Visitors at the Festival of the Written Arts usually like to take an occasional break from the authors in order to head across the school grounds to the Hackett Park Arts and Crafts Fair, scheduled this year for Aug. 13 and 14. This fair is one of summer’s highlights, not only for Festival visitors but for the sponsoring Sunshine Coast Arts Council because it’s the organization’s biggest fundraising enterprise (along with the Christmas craft fair) and is now entering its 29th year.
The statistics are impressive: up to 6,000 visitors over the two days that the fair takes place in the shaded Sechelt park. This year the approximately 65 vendors include 20 that are appearing at Hackett Park for the first time.
The artists are juried and come from on and off the Coast, working in all mediums. Jewelry is always popular. Kerri Luciani makes unique designs and Darla Van Horne works with fire and forging for her metal jewelry. Willy Miller uses gold and silver wire wrapped pieces. Tribes of the Heart is an eclectic mixture of jewelry styles in tribal, spiritual and Bohemian.
Last year’s consumers’ choice winner was Red Pot Pottery. Lynn Sea from this quirky pottery studio will be there again, as will Creek Clayworks. Jack Ploesser of Fire and Ash studio will show his pottery. Another craft fair perennial, Jack Olive, shows his glazed food safe and oven safe functional pottery. Fibre artists display clothing, felted items and hand-dyed yarns.
Chris Motloch of Molten Spirit creates in glass, as does Sun and Sea from Sechelt and Anthony Jamie-son’s custom cast architectural glass. Wood-working is well represented by woodturner Plumb Bob and the craft of Roberta and Kaye Miller. If you crave more wood, nip across the street to the Arts Centre to see the current exhibition, the Works in Wood show, that opens Aug. 10.
There is lots of upbeat entertainment this year: Joe Stanton’s music performed with acoustic guitar, the musically diverse Anagram Jazz Duo, and for kids and adults alike, the clowning, miming fun of Gerardo Avila.
There’s always a line up at the food trucks. This year choose from Filipino food, samosas and pakoras for lunch, hotdogs made with quality meat, gourmet confections, truffles without refined sugar, kettlecorn, jams, honey and – my personal favourite – those roasted, flavoured nuts. New to this year’s festivities will be a beer garden featuring hand-crafted beer by Powell River’s Townsite Brewery.
See www.sunshinecoastartscouncil.com for a list of vendors and the entertainment schedule. The hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Sunday. Hackett Park is located between Dolphin and Medusa on Trail Avenue in Sechelt. Admission is $3 for adults and $2 for seniors, children under 12 get in free if accompanied by an adult.
Organizers are still looking for volunteers to work the gates for two hours in return for free entry. If interested, call 604-885-5412 or email info@sunshinecoastartscouncil.com
