The Cotton District Arts Festival will feature a lineup of new and returning artisans for the April 16 event, the Starkville Area Arts Festival announced last week.
Confirmed craftsmen include: jewelry makers Merek and Shelah Dhloughly; ceramic artist Robert Long; artist Joe MacGown and his son, Joseph; painter Frank McGuigan; photographer Jeremy Murdock; and woodworker Robert Sanders.
Those artists will join others at the Artisans Village, a hodgepodge of more than 100 booths selling a variety of wares at the event.
Artisans from across the Southeast converge on Starkville for the annual festival. Festival guidelines require all artwork be either original, handmade or repurposed, which leads to original pieces.
The event’s juried competition will award a number of distinctions, including best ofs in clay, jewelry, painting, photography and graphics, sculpture and other traditional crafts.
“We have worked very hard to bring another successful Cotton District festival to Starkville,” said CDAF Artisan Village chairman Rosa Otondo in a release. “We believe the Starkville community will enjoy this year’s event, as we have a wide range of artists from all over the Southeast.”
The 2016 CDAF also features the Taste of Starkville culinary showcase; live music; a writer’s village; international and Celtic displays; a 5K run; pet parade; and juried arts show.
This year’s juried arts competition features James Davis, a University of West Georgia professor whose exhibits have been showcased in the South and five other countries, as a judge.
First- and second-place awards, a combined $2,000 in prizes, are presented in three categories – paintings and drawings, 3-D and mixed media art and photography – while Best of Show ($750) and Merit Awards ($100-$200) are also available.
Mississippi State University’s Visual Arts Center Gallery, located at 808 University Drive, will host the final exhibit from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. during the festival.
The CDAF draws crowds upward of 40,000 people each year from across the U.S. It was named a Top 100 Event in North America by the American Bus Association, a Top 20 event in the Southeast and one of the Top 5 festivals in the state by Mississippi Magazine.
For more information about SAAC, visit StarkvilleArts.org or call 662-324-3080 for sponsorship and volunteer efforts.
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