Lubbock Arts Festival draws creators, patrons and more
From glass work to sculptures, the pedestrian mall and exhibit hall of the Lubbock Memorial Civic Center was decorated in a patriotic theme for the 44th annual Lubbock Arts Festival.
The Lubbock Arts Alliance hosted the annual event, sponsored by United Supermarkets, Saturday and Sunday, with a special preview night on Friday.
A self-proclaimed “Buddy Hollogist,” County Judge Curtis Parrish was the recipient of this year’s champion of the arts award Friday evening through his work as a county judge.
“You see, we are made in the image of God - God said let us make mankind in our own image - and you know what the image of God, its a creator,” Parrish said. “When we create music, when we create visual arts, when we create sculptures, when we stand on stage and perform as actors or actresses, really what we're doing is we're emulating the creator himself. This is why art is so important to us.”
The event boasted over 35 booths in the pedestrian mall from local vendors and venues such as East Lubbock Arts House, Lubbock-Con, Texas Selfie Station and the Lubbock Master Gardner Association.
Inside the exhibit hall, over 85 booths lined the sides and the center of the hall featuring local artists, arthouses and artists from around the area. Also featured in the exhibit hall was a veteran exhibit with pictures of local veterans and their service.
Whitney Norman, an artist who uses oil paint to create botanical paintings, said she hoped to teach people this weekend that art is for everyone.
“It's not snobby and stuck up,” she said laughing. “It's colorful and it's vibrant and it has meaning and we need to put more focus on that, I think.”
From coloring in a coloring book on her living room floor when she was younger to her passion for painting now, she said she has always been artistic and hoped to get her name out over the weekend.
For artists such as Chuck and Jan Bailey, it is about showing that anyone can create art on anything they can find. Paintings on sandstone, cotton wood bark and canvas filled this husband-and-wife booth.
“This is actually her first show really go out and do,” Chuck Bailey said. “I just started getting her more into it. If she could sell some that would help to get her going and, you know, let her know to go that direction.”
This article originally appeared on Lubbock Avalanche-Journal: Lubbock Arts Festival draws creators, patrons and more
