One of Washington’s largest and longest-running art festivals opens at noon Friday, continuing through Sunday at Kingston’s historic Kola Kole Park and nearby community center.
Organized by the charitable non-profit Kitsap Arts and Crafts Association, the 52nd annual Kitsap Arts and Crafts Festival features original artworks in two-dimensional, three-dimensional, and photographic media.
Children’s activities, food venues and live music performances are also included throughout the weekend schedule.
According to association President Bryan Moore, about 60 student pieces of art will be on display, plus a total open and juried exhibit of about 120 pieces.
Though the overall number of artworks is down by about 30 percent over the last two years, Moore and the selected jurors are impressed with the overall quality that has been submitted.
“Collectively, the quality of art is higher this year even though the number of pieces have reduced,” Moore said. “We didn’t cap the number of juried works but were more vigilant instead on what we were trying to hold all mediums to in terms of expectations on execution and command of the medium. We actually have a larger number allowed than is typical for a juried show. This is a compliment to submitting artists.”
Jurors for the 2011 exhibition are painters Chris Hopkins of Everett and Max Hayslette of Kingston.
Hopkins is a 1979 honors graduate from the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, Calif., and 2003 recipient of the Vargas Achievement Award. With varied works in public and private collections such as the Library of Congress and the White House, Hopkins made his first visit to the Kitsap festival to support the jury process.
Hopkins’ top three measures to evaluate submittals included strength of design, confidence with media, and message.
“My job here is to do what’s best for the quality of the show,” Hopkins said. “Some pieces are high quality. Some pieces aren’t quite there yet — something to aspire to and not give up on. When you are devoted to art, you are a lifetime student.”
Hayslette graduated from the Art Institute of Chicago in 1952 and is represented in more than 300 private and public collections, including the Rockefeller Foundation and Stanford University.
Hayslette’s focus during the evaluation emphasized competence with medium, power of statement, and sensitivity.
“The one thing you can’t teach is sensitivity,” Hayslette said.
The challenge for evaluating photography by the two experienced painters was evident in their debate on the merits of each piece.
“You really have to see a body of work to know if a photographer has what it takes,” Hayslette said. “Anyone can take an award-winning photograph by accident, but when you find two that are great, then you know it isn’t a fluke.”
In a special showing of his work honoring the Tuskegee Airmen, Hopkins will display “Red Tail Wing Rider” at the community center. This painting dramatically depicts an airman sitting on the wing of a P-51 Mustang while directing the pilot how to safely maneuver. Hopkins continues to work on a series of Tuskegee paintings inspired from his original on the subject, “Butterflies.” Acclaim for “Butterflies” resulted in an agreement with the Pentagon to continue the series.
Moore followed the jury process closely and was impressed with how unified the two painters were when discussing the final awards.
“They both had a breadth of experience,” Moore said. “They looked at different elements but were absolutely unified in agreement: talent always rises to the top.”
Juried artworks were given final placement Tuesday prior to the preview party Thursday evening at the Kingston Community Center. Scholarship renewals were also announced for 2010 winners Sierra Moon and Madeline Trower.
Live music all weekend
The festival is Friday, noon to 6 p.m.; Saturday, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.; and Sunday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
In addition to the fine arts displays, live performances in Kola Kole Park are expected to draw large crowds.
The Tri-Cities Steelband Association will present a feature performance on Sunday by the Bram Brata Steel Band, on the main stage. The band, whose name translates as “an unexpected party,” performs Trinidadian steel drum music, plus a varied repertoire from Caribbean to classical.
The objectives of the Kitsap Arts and Crafts Association are to cultivate and promote the arts in Kitsap County through scholarships. Since 1975, the association has awarded 181 scholarships to help further proficiency and education with the fine arts.
