Art shines at Garden of the Gods Art Festival
(COLORADO SPRINGS) — The first Garden of the Gods Art Festival took place on Saturday and Sunday, featuring hundreds of artists and craftsmen from across the nation, and thousands of people went to the event.
The event offered everything from bells to photography, painting, pottery, jewelry, and more, and every piece was handmade.
The event attracted more than four thousand art enthusiasts to Colorado Springs’s historic site, Garden of the Gods.
“There were tons of people for a first-year fair. I’ve done several, this is by far the best I’ve ever seen,” said Tom Heywood owner of Tom Heywood Photography.
More than one hundred and twenty artists and craftspeople from thirteen states showcased their work offering a seemingly endless variety of pieces including paintings, photographs, jewelry, pottery, and clothing.
“I’ve been an artist for 15 years and I’ve always loved trees. So when I started this journey back in 2009, Tree was going to be my focus So I’ve experimented just different materials. I do a lot of mixed media and I’ve always loved sculptural types of pieces, so a lot of my pieces are wood and canvas combined, said Sarah Kesen, owner of Dream Team Studio and artist.
Kesen a painter from Castle Rock says she is blown away by how many pieces she sold over the weekend.
“I incorporated six different types of fabric, just trying to bring the culture back, and I’m hoping to do different fabrics from different countries,” she added.
She said last year she went to Africa on a trip and brought back fabrics to include in her work. Using different materials, like fabric, wood paint, and gels to create her interpretation of what she calls the “Tree of Life”.
“I want to bring peace and color and life into people’s homes, especially these days. To bring color and, you know, life into their spaces, so that’s my main goal just to bring joy, joy to people. So that means a lot,” said Kesen.
Heywood a landscape photographer, says his love for nature is his muse.
“You know, right now it’s a piece I have right here is one of my favorites it’s a new favorite,” said Heywood.
He began taking photography classes fourteen years ago to fulfill his passion to show people the beauty of nature.
“The way the light, the way the light interacts. And it’s coming through the scene. It’s just very dynamic, with the trail coming in, there’s so much diversity in the trees,” he said describing one of his recent pieces of Garden of the Gods.
Sharing their passion with the community is something artists love to do, but they rely on festivals like these to make a living.
“So any time of any of the people, you know, that can support local artists, it means a lot because there’s nothing like the human touch to art in creating it,” said Kesen.
The festival also featured live music, a beer and wine garden, food trucks, face painters, and other activities for kids and adults.
The event will be back next year and any artists who want to showcase their work can apply online at DashEvents.
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