Thousands of people will fill the meadow in Bush’s Pasture Park this weekend as Salem’s largest celebration of art returns.
With almost a fifty percent increase in artist submissions this year, the Salem Art Fair & Festival will see “more artists, more food vendors, more beer and wine, more music, more performers and more fun to experience,” said Matthew Boulay, executive director of the Salem Art Association, which puts on the festival.
Art Fair begins Thursday, July 20, with an opening ceremony from 6-9 p.m., then runs Friday and Saturday from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
The event showcases regional and local Willamette Valley artists, musicians, food and performances geared toward families to celebrate art within their community.
This year they received 350 applications with 230 spots. The Art Association hires a jury of five artists from different backgrounds to look through the applications and make selections. There are 17 different mediums represented at the fair including glass, metalworks, fiber wearables, printmaking, and painting.
The Art Association is anticipating between 20,000 to 25,000 people in attendance throughout the weekend, Boulay said.
Returning will be a fan-favorite live mural painting demonstration where you can watch artists paint an 8 by 8 foot wooden canvas throughout the day.
This event is “a celebration of art, culture and community,” said Boulay.
Tammy Dinius, a mixed media artist from Washougal, Washington, is showing her work for the first time this weekend.
She said she’s excited to show at the fair because it is known as one of the best art fairs in the northwest.
Her business is called Women, Wine, and Words. She starts every piece by journaling on the canvas and then covers it with watercolor and acrylic. She often incorporates wine humor in her writings that shows through when a piece is finished.
As someone who has not found success online, Dinius said that her favorite part of doing shows like this one is the connection with people.
One year a woman came up to her at a fair who had been fighting cancer for the past year and told her, “Your art is my daily reminder I can make it through.”
Andrea Lopez, a Vancouver, Washington artist, was asked to be one of this year’s two poster artists.
After being invited to the fair for the first time last year as an emerging artist, the Art Association asked her to make a piece that is representative of Salem to be sold in poster form.
Lopez said that when she thinks of Salem she sees light colors, animals in the pasture, and freshly harvested foods. Her finished piece, titled “Shalom, a peaceful place,” is an abstract painting with a whimsical tone and hidden elements featuring a cow, bicycle, fresh fruit and bright shapes.
Lopez said she appreciated the fair because, “It takes a lot to share your work, it puts you in a very vulnerable place and to know people put the effort to come out and show appreciation for your work means a lot.”
The Bush Barn, Salem Art Association’s headquarters, and the neighboring Bush House Museum will be open all weekend. A current exhibit at the Bush House Museum features four portraits of early Oregon Black pioneers that tell the history of people who have been long overlooked and marginalized said Boulay.
Last year, the fair decided to move out from under the big oak trees in Bush’s Pasture Park to protect the roots from being walked on.
This year the entrance will be on the corner of Southeast High and Miller Streets to be more accessible, shady, and safer for crossing.
To offset the loss of shade, the Art Association is providing extra tents, tables with umbrellas, water misters and an air-condoned cooling station with free cold water. The barn is also air-conditioned.
The National Weather Service forecasts highs between 88 and 90 degrees for the weekend.
Live music will play throughout the weekend. Friday’s theme is summer party, featuring the Summer Groove Party Band that plays summer hits from the 70’s, 80’s and 90’s, and a popular ABBA cover band.
Saturday will be filled with blues and jazz music, including Lloyd Jones a singer-songwriter from Portland who has toured internationally.
He will be performing his new album “Tennessee Run” which is a cross of soul, funk and blues.
“I put grooves to storytelling,” said Jones.
Sunday is a day for local bands and will feature Salem-based Pachanga, which is influenced by Afro-Latin rhythms. The full performance schedule is on the website.
As an artist himself, Boulay loves how the fair is a great way to support artists in Salem and the Willamette Valley. He also said the art that is priced affordably for most people.
“You can find something at every price point,” he said.
This fair is made possible by hundreds of volunteers. With a budget of almost $500,000, the art association is able to pay all the vendors, get city permits, purchase free water, and pay for all the equipment it takes to put the event on. Any leftover money goes back into the association to fund programming for youth art.
Tickets are free to children age 12 and under as well as SNAP card holders. Tickets are $5 daily for teenagers 13-17, or $10 for a three day pass; $8 for seniors and veterans, or $15 for a three day pass and $10 for adults or $20 for a three day pass.
Tickets can be bought online to enter more quickly, or purchased at the entrance with cash or card.
Cycling to the fair is encouraged. There will be a secure fenced bike storage area outside the main entrance that will be staffed by Salem Bicycle Club volunteers throughout the fairs operational hours.
There will be free parking at South Salem High School, 1910 Church St S.E., Friday through Sunday and at the SAIF Corp. parking lot, 400 High Street S.E., Saturday and Sunday. There will be shuttle buses that will run approximately every 20 minutes going from the parking lots to the main entrance.
Contact reporter Natalie Sharp: [email protected] or 503-522-6493.
SUPPORT OUR WORK – We depend on subscribers for resources to report on Salem with care and depth, fairness and accuracy. Subscribe today to get our daily newsletters and more. Click I want to subscribe!
Natalie Sharp is an Oregon State University student working as a reporter for Salem Reporter in summer 2023. She is part of the Snowden internship program at the University of Oregon's School of Communication and Journalism.
