PORT ANGELES — The Port Angeles Fine Arts Center will host the Summertide Solstice Art Festival, a free, family friendly event from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday.
The celebration at the center, at 1203 E. Lauridsen Blvd., marks the longest day of the year and welcomes new artwork and poetry to Webster’s Woods Sculpture Park.
Admission is free with donations appreciated.
The outdoor festival will include live music, lawn games, nature art stations, poetry readings, and local food and drink vendors.
This event marks the yearly changeover of sculptures for the open air exhibition.
Six new artwork installations have been added to Webster’s Woods Sculpture Park as a part of “Under the Canopy.”
These new arrivals will be on display for one year and join more than 100 existing works of art nestled into 5 acres of rugged second-growth forest. This year’s artists include Steve Belz, Carlos Inclán Oseguera, Anthony May, Greg Neal, Tracy Beals, Jessica Bruning and Nathan Shields.
Poetry in the Park, a collaboration with the Olympic Peninsula Authors group, contains a robust selection of 20 new original poems this year.
The poems also will be displayed on signs throughout the woods for one year.
Participating authors include John Victor Anderson, Les Carnahan, Judith Rayl, Stephanie Nead, Alice Derry, Charlotte Warren, Don Haggerty, Judy Rosen, Bruno Rescigna, Laura Garrard, Dianne Knox, Eva McGinnis, Angela Terry, Joan Enoch, M.D., Diane Walker, Eva Epstein, Carmen Germain, Risa Denenberg, Linda B. Myers and Gary Bullock.
Visitors will be able to meet the authors and enjoy live readings in the gallery courtyard or enjoy a self-guided poetry walk through the park.
Clallam County Poet Laureate Jaiden Dokken will give a short introduction to start the poetry reading at 1 p.m.
Funding to support the Poetry in the Park program has been provided by the Washington State Arts Commission and the National Endowment for the Arts.
“We are very excited to be going into our fifth year of Summertide,” said Rachel Storck, Community Engagement Director.
“This festival is such a joyous event. It’s always fun to hear laughter in the woods, see everyone’s solstice crowns, and watch as people discover new ways to experience art.
“It’s a great way to start off the summer season, and we love hosting this event for our community,” Storck said.
Activities to explore throughout the afternoon range from viewing the “Blooming Artists” exhibition in the gallery to hands-on nature art stations like printmaking or felting with Cabled Fiber & Yarn.
Attendees also can enjoy live music from the meadow stage throughout the event.
Songslinger and third-time Summertide performer Jack Dwyer will kick off the event from 1 p.m. to 2:15 p.m.
Deadwood Revival will bring “a tasty soup of new old-time and folk rock spiced with a bit of classic country” to the meadow from 2:30 p.m. to 3:45 p.m.
And finally, underground garage surf band AntBath will close out the festival from 4 p.m. to 5 p.m.
Attendees are encouraged to bring a blanket or lawn chair and listen to the performances down in the meadow, or enjoy the melodies throughout the park as they explore the new artwork or make art at one of the hands-on stations.
Food and drinks will be available for purchase from local vendors Pacific Pantry, Angeles Brewing, Buena Luz and Welly’s Ice Cream.
Summertide is sponsored by the Washington State Arts Commission, National Endowment of the Arts, Olympic Peninsula Visitor Bureau, Cabled Fiber & Yarn, Country Aire and Safeway; and in-kind sponsors KONP, Wildling Farm, Cherry Hill Florist & Gifts, Tampopo Farm and Angeles Millwork & Hartnagel Building Supply.
For more information, see www.pafac.org.
