PORT ANGELES — The Port Angeles Fine Arts Center will open its annual Makers Market and Light Art Experience on Friday, Nov. 25, to kick off Wintertide, a month of festivities and celebration.
The Makers Market will be set in the Esther Webster Gallery and the light art installations will be spread throughout the 5 acres of Webster’s Woods, both at the arts center at 1203 E. Lauridsen Blvd.
The Makers Market will run from Nov. 25 through Dec. 18 from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Thursdays through Sundays and extended hours until 8 p.m. each Friday.
The Light Art Experience will run from Nov. 25 through Dec. 28 in Webster’s Woods.
The artworks will be lit up nightly from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m.
The Makers Market will offer a range of locally-made gifts by 37 artists and artisans from Clallam County. Visitors will find art prints, home decor, jewelry, body care, kitchenware, cards, stickers and clothing.
Shopping will be open to fine arts center members only on Tuesday and Wednesday, Nov. 22-23, for a special Early Opening Preview.
Members will be able to shop from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. on both days, ahead of the public opening.
The Makers Market will open to the public on Friday, Nov. 25.
It will offer “an alternative atmosphere to the frenzy of Black Friday shopping,” according to a press release.
”Shoppers will be able to enjoy the unique and peaceful setting of the Esther Webster Gallery and support the community by shopping locally.”
On opening night, visitors can shop into the evening and stroll through the forested park to see 16 new or returning light art installations as part of the biannual installation of outdoor exhibitions into Webster’s Woods Sculpture Park.
Warm or alcoholic beverages and heated seating will be provided in the courtyard from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. with live music from alt-folk singer-songwriter Elena Loper from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Craft nut roasters D’s Nuts will sell snacks in the courtyard from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.
Seven new artists will be part of the outdoor exhibition this year. They are Brock Wilmer, Jessie Bruning, Kim Wennerberg, Loren Ponder, Kalesta Ponder, Marcell Marias, and Alexis Neuman.
Exhibit artists
Returning artists for the 2022 Light Art Experience include Heather Dawn Sparks, Sarah Fetterman, Ross Brown, Dustin Fosnot, Nathan Shields, Loreen Matsushima, Tracy Beals, Andy Rovelstad and Sarah Jane.
“We are very proud to build upon these beloved arts center events to bring visitors some of their favorites from previous years while adding new artists to both the Market and Light Art Experience,” said Executive Director Christine Loewe.
”We’ve grown the art in the park from nine installations last year to 16 this year and have added six more Makers Market spots for local artists.”
The second annual Wintertide Festival of Lights will be from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. Dec. 10.
Attendees will be invited to participate in a community lantern walk and interactive art stations, and can expect fire and light performances in addition to the light art installations and holiday shopping at the Makers Market.
Food and drinks will be available for purchase by Fogtown Coffee, Pacific Pantry, and Angeles Brewing Supplies Company.
Wintertide is supported in part by grants from the City of Port Angeles Lodging Tax Fund and the National Endowment for the Arts.
For more information about the Wintertide Festival of Lights and to buy tickets, see www.pafac.org/wintertidefestival.
