Door County Festival of Fine Arts: Sharing the Artistic Process – from Blank Canvas to Masterpiece, Aug 11
Artistic demonstrations at art festivals may be commonplace, yet few festivals require every artist to demonstrate their craft for the public as artists do at the invitational Door County Festival of Fine Arts (DCFFA).
Art for All Ages at the 9th annual DCFFAThe 9th annual Door County Festival of Fine Arts takes place on August 11, from 10 am to 5 pm in the expanded Sister Bay Waterfront Park, at the northern end of the beautiful Door peninsula. Each artist who participates in the annual DCFFA shows off their talent not only with finished pieces of fine art at the Festival, but by demonstrating their artistic process to the public during at least two scheduled times that day. This concept of demonstrations by each artist is unique to the Door County Festival of Fine Arts and brings an air of participation and public engagement to the Waterfront Park in Sister Bay.
“By demonstrating our techniques, I work to open up the doors that have been opened for me,” says Sister Bay-based artist Tom Seagard. “I invite people in, to their level of expression and understanding, so they too can understand the artistic process.”
Whether they travel the world for inspiration or stay closer to home in Wisconsin, DCFFA features only fine artists who reside in Door County or use the peninsula as a base of operations, and who are willing to demonstrate their creative process.
As a means to engage creative minds of any artistic level, the DCFFA hosts an Activities Tent, where art lovers of all ages can unleash their creativity through a variety of mediums.
“When you give children (and adults) an opportunity, they express themselves effortlessly, all you have to do is get out of their way,” Seagard said. Seagard taught art at public schools and continues to teach classes around Door County.
Artists, like Egg Harbor-based watercolorist Kari Anderson, have participated in DCFA for years, some since the Festival’s inception in 2003 at the Hardy Gallery in Ephraim.
“The show has developed a strong reputation for high quality work,” Anderson says. “It’s unique, because it’s an invitational show for Door County artists, which gives people from other cities an opportunity to see how artists make a living on the peninsula.”
Also returning this year, is a Free Entry drawing for pieces of fine artwork donated by participating DCFFA artists. Anyone who attends the festival is eligible to enter and receive a free raffle ticket!
For more information, call 920. 854.2812 or visit: ComeToSisterBay.com.
Artists participating in the 2012 DCFA:
(in alpha order by last name)
Arnold Alaniz: Trained in Madison, WI and got his MFA in the late 1960s. He opened his first gallery in Ephraim in 1981. In the mid-80s, Arnold was represented by 2,200 galleries worldwide, and has been the top-selling landscape artist in the U.S.
Kari Anderson: Has been painting in watercolor for a good 30 years. Her style is easy to recognize as a splashy, colorful watercolorist who captures so many glimpses of our beautiful Door County peninsula. She likes to paint outside the lines! Kari stays very busy with teaching watercolor as well as being involved in county government. In 1980 she married Paul Witalison, together they reside in a renovated historic one-room schoolhouse near Jacksonport.
R.D. “Bob” Bentley: His familiar signature has been seen throughout the United States on hundreds of public portraits of congressmen and businessmen, and private paintings for individuals and families. Yale honors major and student at the Art institute of Chicago, Bob is known for his boldness with oil paint. While portraits have long been Bob’s life as an artist, he has progressed from portraiture to (and including) landscapes. Some of his most special paintings are “portscapes,” which allow the subject to be portrayed in a casual, informal setting.
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