The Art Show summer season is coming to a close for me but one of the biggest and best is just around the corner. The Palo Alto Festival of the Arts is Aug. 24-25 and lines University Ave in downtown Palo Alto. My space is in the first block nearest to El Camino Real. The number is 112/114 on University near High St. There is a lot to see and do for all ages. If you are in the area please stop by and say hello.
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This high quality, community-friendly event is hosted by the Palo Alto Chamber of Commerce with the support of the City of Palo Alto. In the past it has attracted over 150,000 people every year from throughout California and the West Coast. The festival-celebrating its thirty-eighth year-takes place on tree-lined University Avenue in beautiful downtown Palo Alto, a vital economic area 35 miles south of San Francisco. The backbone of the festival and the key to its success are the three hundred fine artists and crafters whose display booths are placed back-to-back along University Avenue. These exhibitors are the reason why this festival attracts such a high percentage of fine artists and crafters whose work you’ll see only at a few select shows on the West Coast. And don’t forget to stop by and listen to sidewalk piano virtuosos. Located on the plaza at the corner of University & Tasso Streets: Chopin and Chandeliers presented by Stanford Health Care. For more info. And, always a crowd-pleaser, the Italian Street Painting Expo, sponsored by the Palo Alto Weekly, will again offer sixty chalk artists creating larger-than-life works of art all weekend long on Tasso Street. This year’s beneficiary of the funds raised by the Italian Street Painting Expo is Palo Alto’s Youth Community Service. Local participation is high at this event. The Palo Alto Parents & Professionals for Art are the organizers and beneficiaries of the kids’ “hands on” art & crafts area. Look for the Kids’ Art Studio located at the Kipling intersection. Also, throughout the festival, the Kiwanis Club of Palo Alto will again be serving beverage products from locally-owned Gordon Biersch Brewing Co. and fine wines produced by Bargetto Winery, DeVincenzi Cellars & Integrity Wines. PLEASE NOTE: the City of Palo Alto has a ban on the use of plastic & paper bags for carrying purchased merchandise. The Chamber of Commerce highly recommends that festival attendees bring their own tote bags for easy transportation of multiple purchases. For those driving to the festival, free parking is within a block or two of the festival site, with parking for disabled patrons in all city lots. Festival attendees though are encouraged to use public transit or ride a bike. For transit information go to 511.org. If you are a dog owner thinking about bringing “Cuddles” to the festival, please reconsider. Large crowds can easily make a typically mellow dog very anxious & sometimes aggressive. Check out this year’s promotional clip for a quick overview of the festival. |
