This weekend our Messing took us to the Melbourne Art
Festival in Downtown Melbourne. The event lasted all weekend and had score upon
score of artists sharing their work with potential buyers. There was everything
from the traditional art work to fancy photography, jewelry, painted dishes,
fishes with giant lips, and even some pretty cool digital artwork with no
photos being used. Sculptures and statues, metal work, and floral arrangements,
all lined the streets and perched under giant white canopies. Some I understood
and enjoyed and others I stared at and wondered why? Especially after I saw the
price tag. I mean I can understand some of the amounts, but others I had to
look at and wonder if these people realized they were in Melbourne.
If you remember from a post I made a few months ago, Eye of the Beholder, you’ll already know that some art just
confuses me. I am a simple man in my tastes of what I like in my art and the
abstract and I do not get along inside of my head. I like the more traditional
paintings and sculptures. I want something I can understand without having to
sit and meditate on what it means. However, the art festival had it all and
something for every taste.
The day was hot, but still comfortable. The crowd was thick
as gawkers browsed each booth taking their time to savor every piece. We even
had another run in with someone pushing a stroller, so the idiots are not just
resigned to Disney. I worried about this man behind the wheel of a vehicle
because he paid more attention to what was beside him than what he was pushing
through in front of him. He did apologize, but “I’m sorry” does not make my
heels feel better. The place was crowded enough without having to dodge
carriers for munchkins. If you cannot watch where you are going and show some
common courtesy, then please carry the child and leave the stroller at home.
The rest of us should be able to pass out stroller violation tickets or make a citizen’s
arrests. It is simply ridiculous.
The people who ran the festival had also organized
entertainment on one of the side streets and we arrived in time to see some
friends of the 9-year-old perform songs and a skit about an elephant followed
by a puppet show. I left during the puppet show, however. Talking felt makes me
nervous.
They also had booths set up for the kids to make different
crafts. Items were set up to glue onto the hat along with glitter to sprinkle
over it all and the 9-year-old made a hat that littered loose glitter as we
walked the rest of the festival. There were also food booths with kettle corn,
popcorn, and lemonade and a live band played near some covered picnic tables.
It was a fun day as our family walked among the booths and
took it all in. We enjoyed seeing the work of artists from all over Florida,
not just our small neck of the planet. There hundreds of talented people out
there and it is always great to be able to see what other people are creating.
It is also nice to be able to support them. And you should. Get out and visit
the small business, craft fairs, farmer markets and art festivals. Support and
encourage the people who are not part of the larger retailers, who create one
piece at a time and sell it the same way. They need our support and we need
their artistry. It is true that it may cost more, but things worth having,
things that last, are worth that extra cost. Be generous and spend some of your
time and money to help those who work in studios and garages. The world needs
more of that kind of beauty.
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