I had high hopes going into the Spring Tempe Festival of the Arts. I love outdoor art festivals because they always feel promising with the high number of artists in one place. The odds of finding something you love that’s within budget are pretty good. The large number of artists also means that you get to browse and narrow down what your favorite style is.
Phoenix is about a six-hour drive for me, but I’ve done the drive many times, so it doesn’t feel that long to me. My sister had the weekend off and decided to go with me. Good trip. Good talks. Food is always a highlight for me when traveling, and I already had a place in mind. We dropped our bags, headed to dinner, and met some old friends. The trip is off to a great start! The only thing we didn’t plan for was weather…
Rain, Shelter, and Sudden Evacuation
The next day was art festival day. Mill Ave. was shut down to make room for more than 350 artist booths, and there was only one problem…it started raining. Just a sprinkle at first, then it turned into an all-out monsoon with blowing rain. Crazy! Of course, the one day we are visiting it rains! We took shelter in a coffee shop hoping that it would pass…until there was a gas leak or something??! The fire department showed up and we had to evacuate….back into the rain!
The Artist I Almost Bought From
Back on the rainy streets, we tried to keep looking at the artist booths. The wind was blowing, and it was raining, which made an umbrella useless…and dangerous. I finally found one artist that I LOVED. He painted cactus in a hip, colorful, retro kind of southwest style. I loved that the subject was cactus, a traditional southwestern subject, but the painting was done with abstract features in the background. It’s like a new twist on an old subject. The backgrounds had bold colors, paint splashes, and texture that made the whole thing feel alive. I thought, “I’m gonna hit up his booth on the way out and get something”. Then the rain got worse, so we gave up for a while and went in for lunch.
Finding Him Later….
Art festival attempt three now. We braved the storm a bit longer and then all the artists started shutting down their booths. I never found the cactus painting guy again. It’s my fault. I am a creature of habit and always do one round of art festivals and re-visit the ones I like at the end to make my final decision. Luckily, a friend with us had grabbed his card without me realizing it until later. Thank goodness for him!…but then I lost it again. I was able to find him on the artist list though! I tracked him down as Tim Frazier, whose work I still think about when I picture that stormy day.
Was it Worth It?
Yes, absolutely yes. I would go to this art festival every year if I could. Where else can you get such a wide range of original artwork in one place? This is why art festivals will always be my go-to. This is exactly why outdoor festivals are worth the effort, sometimes one booth makes the whole trip. Even if you can’t afford original pieces, there are many prints that are usually signed by the artist, which can look just as beautiful in your home as an original.
This was my first time going to this particular festival and you can definitely see that a bigger city attracts more artists. For anyone trying to buy affordable art in person, festivals like this are one of the easiest ways to compare styles before spending money. If you enjoy original art, large festivals like this are one of the best places to discover what style you are naturally drawn to.
