MORE THAN 250 AWARD-WINNING ARTISTS CONVERGE ON WATERFRONT VINOY PARK APRIL 22-23
ST. PETERSBURG, FL (April 18, 2017) – Visitors to the Mainsail Art Festival have an opportunity to experience a wide variety of visual and performing arts, when they visit the two-day show Saturday and Sunday, April 22-23. Mainsail takes place in waterfront Vinoy Park, located at Seventh Avenue NE and Bayshore Drive NE, offering beautiful views of the St. Petersburg downtown skyline. Admission is free. Show hours are 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday.
For event shuttle details, see chart below; or visit stpetetrolley.com or loopertrolley.com/events/.
The Mainsail Art Festival will mark 42 years as one of the Southeast’s premier art shows, and in Sunshine Artist magazine, was again ranked in the Top 20 among the “100 Best Fine Art Shows” in the nation by artists. Artists will be exhibiting in 13 categories: ceramics, digital art, fiber, glass, graphic, jewelry, metal, mixed media, oil/acrylic, photography, sculpture, watercolor and wood.
Along with exhibits from more than 250 artists across the country, this year’s Mainsail art festival also features the Young at ARt student show, the Junior League Kids Create art tent, a diverse line-up of entertainment on stage, a mime, magician and minstrel strolling throughout the park, and culinary arts food court area.
More than $60,000 in cash awards will be selected by this year’s show judge, Courtney A. McNeil, who serves as chief curator of collections and exhibitions for Telfair Museums in Savannah, Georgia, the oldest public art museum in the South. Courtney is well versed in all mediums.
Cash Awards include the $10,000 Mainsail Gold Award/Best of Show; one $5,000 Mainsail Silver Award; two $2,500 Mainsail Bronze Awards; 10 Awards of Excellence at $1,500 each; 20 Awards of Distinction, for $1,000 each; and 20 Awards of Merit at $500 each. In addition, Mainsail also features a Purchase Awards program, where businesses or individuals purchase a work of art and their selected artist receives an additional $200 cash award.
Mainsail commissions an award-winning artist from the show to create commemorative poster each year. The 2017 poster designer is Lorri Honeycutt, is a resident of Austin, Texas who spends her summers in Wilmington in her home state of North Carolina. After a lengthy career in the high tech computer world in Austin, Lorri decided in 2004 to take a break from the high tech world and pursue more fun and interesting work in photographic art. Traveling and exhibiting her art for the past 14 years, her macro photos are a mixture of miniature figures posed in quirky situations. She will be exhibiting at the show this year at booth number 116.
Mainsail is a volunteer-only, not for profit corporation. Major supporters include the city of St. Petersburg, Tampa Bay Times, Junior League of St. Petersburg and Clear Channel Outdoor. For more information and a complete schedule of events and entertainment, visit www.mainsailart.org.
Special Event Shuttle Service Info:
SPECIAL EVENT FREE SHUTTLE SERVICE – MAINSAIL ART FESTIVAL
Trolleys and Mini Buses will be providing the FREE shuttle service
Trolleys are equipped with a Wheelchair Lift
Saturday April 22 & Sunday, April 23
Service Hours:
Saturday, April 22nd: 8:30am – 6:30pm
Sunday, April 23rd: 9:30am – 5:30pm
Service Frequency: Approximately every 10-15 minutes
Shuttle Stops:
- East side of 1st Street just north of Central Avenue (behind the Ponce De Leon Hotel)
- Beach Drive parking lot (on the approach to the Pier)
- North side of 7th Ave NE just west of Bayshore Drive