Submitted by Rene Carroll
The Washougal Art Festival will once again transform Washougal’s Reflection Plaza into a gallery of fine works of art. The event, presented by Washougal Arts and Culture Alliance (WACA), will feature 29 professional regional artists, Saturday August 10 from 9 am to 4 pm at the plaza, 1703 Main Street, Washougal.
“More than 50 artists applied to be a part of the festival this year,” said Janice Ferguson, WACA Board Member. “A jury of local art professionals selected the individuals who were invited to participate. We are delighted with the high caliber of art that will be on display and for sale and excited to showcase these amazing artists.” This year the festival increased the number of artists from 25 to 29.
For a preview of artists and their work, visit the WACA website. Artists are Linda Andrews-Riggs, watercolor; Mark Amerman, acrylic & mixed media on canvas; Kathy Beckman, acrylic & mixed media on canvas; Eric Berlin, hand sculpted animal porcelain; John Broughton, photography; Marilyn Estenes, fiber and photography; Anni Furniss, acrylic on canvas; John Furniss, wood work; Katy Fenly, jewelry; Chrissie Forbes, recycled robots, oils; Josh Hancock, blown and sculpted glass; Beck Lipp, wooden boxes & spoons; Brenda Lindstrom. oils and acrylic; Toni McCarthy, jewelry; Glo McCollough, acrylic on canvas & prints, Savannah Mendoza, photography; Annette McCabe, oil on canvas; Nokes Anderson, custom leather work; Liz Pike, oils on canvas; John Reylea, reclaimed wood art; Karen Reule, silver filigree jewelry; Pam Sharp, watercolor; Faun Scurlock, photography; Gary Suda, ceramic pottery; Cyndee Starr, mixed media; Patricia Thompson, mixed media fiber; Ray Tufts, wood work; Erskin Wood, photography; Barbara Wright, pen, pencil, water color, graphite.
Performance artists are also being welcomed back to the festival this year. The line-up features Jay Koder and Al Perez, performing from 10:30am -11:45am, Daniel and Lindsay will present a dance performance at noon, Wayne Havrelly plays from 12:15-1:30pm and Rain and Shine Trio will perform from 2:00-3:30pm.
The work of prolific local muralist, Travis London was selected as the image for the 2019 Washougal Art Festival poster and advertising. “We love how this stunning watercolor image features the beauty of downtown Washougal,” said Jim Cooper, WACA president. “Each year our festival committee seeks out a work of art that is ‘Washougal inspired.’ We are thrilled that Travis created this for us!” London’s local mural work includes the WACA-funded “Historic Lager” on the side of the Big Foot Inn in downtown Washougal. A limited number of signed 2019 WAF posters will be available for purchase at the festival for a $20 donation. He will also have a booth at the festival.
The festival is family-friendly and features The Paint Roller – Mobile Paint Party who will be offering free, fun, artistic projects for children. “This has been a very popular part of our event,” said Ferguson. “We love providing kids a chance to explore their creativity and leave with artwork of their very own.”
New this year will be a silent auction for works of art donated by participating artists. “A goal of the festival is to raise funds to bring more public art to our city,” explained Chuck Carpenter, WACA board member. “This auction is one way we do that. We appreciate the generosity of our festival artists for their donations and the participation of festival attendees to bid generously on these wonderful items.”
Proceeds from this year’s festival will help fund an original Heather Söderberg casting, “Dreaming,” to add to the public art of Washougal. “This life-sized bear is amazing in its character and detail and is certain to become a community and visitor favorite for taking pictures with,” said Carpenter. “Like the bronze Seaman sculpture in Reflection Plaza, this too will be large enough for people to sit with for pictures and will add more charm and interest to our downtown.”
The festival welcome back local restaurant, Alex Smokehouse, as the main food vendor at the event. They will be serving their popular barbeque items and other fare. The Washougal Lions will also be on hand selling delicious root beer floats with proceeds benefitting their community work.
While in Washougal, visitors are encouraged to discover works of public art using the WACA art map http://washougalarts.org/local-art/ which provides locations, artists name and the year for more than 30 installations around town. Maps will be available at the raffle table.
WACA Board Members and Festival Committee members working alongside Cooper, Ferguson and Carpenter are Joyce Lindsay, Rene Carroll, Suzanne Grover, Kelli Rule, Susan Warford and Alex Yost. The Festival is sponsored in part by the City of Washougal Hotel/Motel Tax Fund. Other event sponsors include The Paint Roller – Mobile Paint Party and Camas Gallery.
“Our past festivals have been such a success for us, our artists, and the community that we are excited to host the event again,” Ferguson said. “We are pleased to provide accessibility to original art in such a fun, festival environment.”
