The Lakeshore Art Festival is excited to announce that DTE Energy Foundation has come on as the premier sponsor of the 2013 festival! Also, a jury recently met to review applications for exhibitors and is pleased to announce the acceptance of 265 fine art/fine craft, craft, Michigan Food Market, and Children's Lane exhibitors to this year's festival.
Roger Royer, DTE Energy regional manager, commented, "We can't think of a better time and place to hold the Lakeshore Art Festival than summer on the lakeshore in downtown Muskegon. DTE is proud to partner with the Muskegon Lakeshore Chamber of Commerce and sponsor the expanded Lakeshore Art Festival that has a long, successful history on the lakefront."
"We are thrilled to have DTE Energy on board as the premier sponsor of this year's festival," said Lakeshore Art Festival Director Carla Flanders. "Additionally, after a successful jury process, I am so pleased with the level of diverse exhibitors that will be at this year's event, as well as the enhanced quality of the fine art and fine craft area."
The selection process to invite exhibitors to this year's enhanced art festival was performed by a team of jurors comprising local artists, Muskegon Museum of Art Executive Director, Judith Hayner, and key Lakeshore Art Festival committee members.
During the blind jury process, jurors examined photos submitted by art and craft exhibitors, then scored each entry on a scale of one to five. From these scores, and taking into account the uniqueness of the item, pricing; and quality, exhibitors were categorized into the fine art/fine craft section of the festival or the general craft fair section.
Muskegon Museum of Art Director Judith Hayner participated in the jury process and said, "We were thrilled with the quality of submissions for the Lakeshore Art Festival. Being the first year of this newly revamped event, we were not sure what we would see, but the amount of diverse artists and exhibitors that applied is truly exciting. It was also great to have some of our regional artists on the jury committee. This is a new festival, and I think it will feel like that to all of our visitors."
Downtown Muskegon's Hackley Park will feature exhibitors that fall under the "fine art" or "fine craft" category, as historically done with Art in the Park. "Although the layout of the park will differ from years prior ... we are excited that the new layout will help to showcase the high-quality exhibitors that will be in the park," Flanders said. The streets of Western Avenue will then feature unique crafts, street performers, and the Children's Lane.
While all items must be handmade to qualify for the Lakeshore Art Festival, a summary of fine craft, fine craft, and craft is defined below. A full definition for these three categories can be found on the Lakeshore Art Festival website.
Fine Art: A high-quality medium that is unique and artfully made with a conscious intent to engage in the tradition of art-making and a resulting object that is art for its own sake.
Fine Craft: Object(s) that can have a functional intent, but are made or decorated as to be singular or rare objects. These objects tend to be luxury items and extraordinary or quite unique. Handmade furniture, ceramic vessels, glass objects, jewelry, and the like fall into this category.
Craft: Object(s) that can be easily and quickly made, with common forms and subject matter, and can at times be viewed as a commercial product. These pieces are common and are frequently distinguished by competent skill, but ordinary technique.
The Lakeshore Art Festival is still looking for additional exhibitors for the Michigan Food Market, and fine art categories of watercolor, oils, sculpture, and digital art. Lakeshore Art Festival will no longer be accepting application for jewelry exhibitors. Additionally, applications for street performers of all varieties are also still be accepted.
Additional sponsors and more details related to the Lakeshore Art Festival will be released in the coming weeks. Look for more information as it becomes available on the Art Festival website and Facebook page. The Lakeshore Art Festival is being produced by the Muskegon Lakeshore Chamber of Commerce.
If you are interested in supporting the Lakeshore Art Festival via sponsorship or volunteering, please e-mail [email protected]. Mark your calendars for July 5 and 6 and get ready for this exciting event.
Source: Lakeshore Art Festival
