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SALT LAKE CITY — The Utah Arts Festival was in full swing Saturday as thousands of patrons took advantage of the hot June weather to peruse the array of visual, performing and culinary arts.
The festival is celebrating its 35th anniversary this year. Since it began in 1977 as the Salt Lake Festival of the Arts, the festival has grown into a 4-day event with artists from a broad range of mediums and drawing upwards of 80,000 guests. Festival Director Lisa Sewell has been with the event for 15 years and said she is sometimes shocked by the growth she has seen during her tenure.
"There's something for everyone," Sewell said. "We really try to field the needs of all the segments we can think of."
There's something for everyone. We really try to field the needs of all the segments we can think of.
–Lisa Sewell
Salt Lake City resident Katie Morse said she likes the festival for the food — anything from pizza by the slice to Thai plates from Sawadee — and for the unique art that is showcased.
"The art's really different," she said. "It's not something straight out of Target. It has personality."
Many festival goers had similar remarks. Morse's friend Tyler Isaac liked the bluegrass bands that played on the festival stage, different from what one would normally hear on the radio. Another man, John Clowers of Park City, was impressed with some of the jewelry he saw.
"It's stuff you don't see at a mall," Clowers said.
Morse has attended the festival five or six times in the 16 years she's lived in Salt Lake and said she likes the way it ties the community together.
"It brings everybody to one place," she said. "Half of the fun is the people-watching."
The festival employs only four paid staff, Public Relations Coordinator Eugenie Jaffe said. Beyond them, it relies on the efforts of 40 coordinators and more than 1,500 volunteers.
The art's really different. It's not something straight out of Target. It has personality.
–Katie Morse
"Without them we wouldn't be able to do anything," Jaffe said. "The whole festival is a labor of love."
Thom Christman is one of the coordinators for those volunteers. He began volunteering with the festival 10 years ago after he was recruited by friends and got hooked.
"You come to know it and you're proud of it and you're proud to be a part of it," he said of the festival.
He said about 60 percent of the festival's volunteers return each year and part of what he loves about the job is the people he works with.
"It's a family," Christman said. "We have a pretty dedicated set of core volunteers that return year after year."
Christman said he likes the variety of the artists and the food, but most of all he loves the location. The festival is held on the grounds of the City and County Building and the City Library, stretching across 200 East. With 80,000 people visiting the festival, there is surprisingly little garbage, something Christman attributes to volunteer crews who are "almost invisible."
Salt Lake is fantastic. Most festivals you're pretty much on your own. In Salt Lake, it's not an easy show to get in to, but if you do get in they take care of you.
–Tim Herbst
"We take a lot of time to respect the property and the grounds itself," he said.
Tim Herbst, an artist from Denver who is presenting his work in this year's festival, was also impressed with the location. Herbst has been a full-time artist for five years and takes part in around 15 festivals between May and October.
"Salt Lake is fantastic," he said. "Most festivals you're pretty much on your own. In Salt Lake, it's not an easy show to get in to, but if you do get in they take care of you."
For his art he grinds a texture into metal, which he covers with a "home recipe" of colors and then coats with acrylic for a glassy, brightly-colored object. Herbst said he brought 40 pieces to the festival and had sold half as of Saturday afternoon. He likes that the festival charges an admission price, saying it creates a different clientele.
"I'll definitely try and come back," he said.
Herbst is just one of 159 visual artists at the festival. There are also performing artists, films, food and drink vendors, and entertainment for children. In a section of the festival, a guest can wander through a display of photographs and sculptures, eavesdropping on a nearby live poetry performance while sipping a drink and keeping an eye on the kids who are having their faces painted nearby.
"We create a four-day, mini-verse and invite the public to share," said Lauryn Degrado, a technical crew volunteer.
The festival continues through Sunday. Tickets are $10 for adults and $5 for seniors. More information can be found at uaf.org.
Email:benwood@desnews.com
