Community Corner

Festival of Fine Arts and Crafts Set for July 24

Downtown event will feature artwork from artists, photographers and crafts people.

The Summit Festival of Fine Arts & Crafts, a juried outdoor event held in downtown Summit, is set for July 24 along Beechwood Road and Union Place.

Summit Downtown Inc. is pleased to announce that artwork in media including: clay, wood, fibers, metals, glass, jewelry, watercolors, oil, mixed media and photography will be on display and for sale.

Along with artisans there will be a variety of jazz, classical and contemporary music performed live in front of the train station on Union Place.  The Baroque Orchestra of New Jersey, under the direction of its conductor and artistic director, Dr. Robert W. Butts, will present a noon time concert of selections from diverse eras of music. Butts also serves as the Music Director for the New Jersey Concert Opera and Conductor for Opera at Florham Park and has been a regular guest with orchestra and opera companies in Europe.

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“Summit Downtown, Inc. has been looking for an event to bring people into the downtown during the summer months,"  said Mark Wadmond, SDI events chairperson. " We are excited to resurrect this Festival of Fine Arts and Crafts which was previously sponsored with the Suburban Chamber of Commerce.”

 One of the many artists that will be partaking in this event will be Darlene Foster. Darlene studied drawing and painting at the Sarah Brown School of Art in Atlanta, Georgia and incorporates photography in her works of art. Darlene spent 17 years as the retouching artist with The Image Maker Photography Studio and numerous freelance clients.  She is currently self-employed doing photographic painting, retouching, restoration and collages for photographers and the public as well as her personal artwork.  You can view her artwork at www.darlenefoster.com.

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 Also participating in the show will be Bruce Ringier, a blacksmith from Maplehurst Forge. The Forge is a contemporary blacksmithing studio that utilizes 19th century tools and techniques with a 21st century flair.  Located in rural Wantage Township, New Jersey, the Forge is a place where forgotten industrial and farm objects are repurposed into functional furniture and sculpture.  If you are a fan of belt buckles he will be displaying a wide variety of them fashioned from found, forgotten tractor parts and forged raw steel.  Each of his belt buckles is one of a kind.  Along with exhibiting his work Bruce will be demonstrating at his booth.  He will educate people on the techniques he uses with informative and interactive demonstrations throughout the day. Maplehurst Forge offers individual blacksmithing lessons from April through September. You can view his work at www.maplehurstforge.com.

The event is free to the public.

Summit's Festival of Fine Arts & Crafts will be on Sunday, July 24, 2011 from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.  This event is a juried event and applications are being accepted from artists, crafts people and photographers by contacting the producers of this event: JC Promotions, Inc. at 201.998.6311 or events@jcpromotions.info.


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