 | Now: 63°F | Low: 52° High: 63° |
The sky’s the limit on expectations for the 31st Annual Peter Anderson Festival in Ocean Springs Nov. 7-8, which organizers say will top last year’s estimated 150,000 participants, to become the biggest ever.
The combination juried art exhibition, shopping extravaganza and street fair with live music and plenty of food is second only to Coast Mardi Gras in size and allure and is designated a top tourist event by the Southeast Tourism Society and AAA Southern Traveler’s Magazine.
Nearly 350 art and crafts vendors from all over the U. S. will offer everything from fine pottery, paintings, jewelry and sculptures to woodwork, metal work and handmade tile pieces.
Downtown streets will be closed to vehicle traffic and toe-to-toe with foot traffic — including baby buggies and family dogs.
The festival is hosted by the Ocean Springs Chamber of Commerce — Main Street — Tourism Bureau, which has dedicated the event to finding a cure for Lou Gehrig’s disease. It pays tribute to native son and master potter Peter Anderson (1901-1984), founder of Shearwater Pottery and brother of Walter Anderson (1903-1965), whose namesake museum is a festival participant.
Matter of fact, Walter Anderson Museum of Art will host a 2 p.m. Saturday talk by the author and the illustrator, Hestor Bass and E.B. Lewis, respectively, of a new children’s book titled “The Secret World of Walter Anderson.”
New to the festival this year will an outdoor art market where multiple artists will exhibit at the Mary C. O’Keefe Cultural Center at 6400 Government St.
New among the live bands to perform in Marshall Park is a young bluegrass foursome called Nash Street, which was named the Best New Act in Country Music at the 26th Annual Colgate Country Showdown at the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville in January. They’ll perform from 2-3:30 p.m. Sunday.
A returning favorite band from last year, Swampnoise, made up of Coast musicians Adam Dalgo, Gary Cooper, Dustin Daams and Dan Amer, will perform from 2-3:30 Saturday.
Another returnee is artist Jan Byron of Tecumseh, Okla., who’s been coming to the festival about five years and won the 2008 Creative Arts Award for her 3-D mixed media made with stuffed fabric.
Calling the figures her muses, Byron said the medium evolved from her earlier jewelry designs, noting that the head of the 20-inch figure is a pin that can be removed and worn alone. Her art utilizes an undergraduate degree in jewelry and metal smithing and a graduate degree in weaving and textile.
Dena McKee from Pascagoula, known for her series of Jackson County landmarks, will sell prints of her new “The Shed BBQ & Blues Joint,’ which was named by ABC’s. Even newer offerings at her booth will be the bygone “Pix Theater” in Pascagoula, and “The Old Colle Towing Company,” as seen from the Pascagoula River.
Also, look for the unexpected in McKee’s whimsical ‘Hoochie Mama’ series, with ‘Hoochie Nurses’ and ‘Hoochie Teachers’ just added.
Festival times are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday.
Parking can usually be found along side streets, but designated parking is with transportation provided to downtown.
E-Mail
Print
@Nyx.replyAnswerText@