Honoring the Arts by Drew Faria

It’s the greatest time of the year. I raise my head out from under all of my textbooks and notes for final exams like a bear out of winter hibernation and gaze outside at the warm, lively, and simply amazing scenery. Welcome summer! This means that the Marblehead Festival of the Arts 2014 lies right around the corner.

As always, Marblehead plans to go all-out to celebrate all sorts of art from July 3-6. For Headers, it’s the prime time to observe local paintings, watch the films of unsung directors, and lie on Devereaux Beach for the first time of the year! I have devoted this article to highlighting some of the big attractions of the festival as well as some of the equally-interesting exhibits you may not have heard of.

The Unitarian Universalist Church will host its annual Literary Arts Café everyday during the festival. Here, Marblehead writers and non-writers alike get together to listen to each other’s works. Casual food will be offered, and group discussions on the writing often form. What better way to have a relaxing start to summer than hearing some original pieces from your awesome town?

The Painting the Town Exhibit will be featured in the King Hooper Mansion from 12-5PM. Artists get together on a specified morning and spread throughout Marblehead to capture the awesomeness of living in our town with paints. Later, they submit their masterpieces to the Marblehead Arts Association, which displays the artworks for the public to view. People can vote for the best one, and several artists receive awards for their great works that had to be finished within a limited amount of time.

On July 5th from 11 AM-4 PM, Devereaux Beach invites Headers to the Kite Festival and Sand Sculpture Competition. As a kid, there was nothing more exciting on this special day at the beach. I still enjoy looking at the flashy kites and inventive sandcastles and structures people create. I’ve even seen one built AROUND a person!

Of course, one of the main festival attractions is the music at Crocker Park. I’ve been checking out the lineup for this year’s event, and people are playing varied music from all over the place! One group named Entrain has recorded eight albums and incorporates nearly every type of genre into some part of their music! The Squeeze Box Stompers promise a night of fun blues to dance to on the 4th. Their instruments range from fiddle, to accordion, to piano. Also, be sure to check out my band, Multiple Guys with Noise Machines. We collectively will have 15 members, including back-up vocalists and a horn section.

The festival’s website is loaded with activities I never knew existed until I wrote this! This year, I have resolved to take more advantage of this fantastic festival that this town puts on. I hope you will too, because everyone has a special spot for any kind of art.

Visit marbleheadfestival.org for more details