Celebrate 30 Years of Art in the Park at Elgin Park

COURTNEY McCLURE, The Standard

UXBRIDGE: The Uxbridge Art Festival, also known as Art in the Park, will take place at Elgin Park. Art in the Park starts on August 17th and ends on August 18th. It opens at 10 a.m. and closes at 5 p.m. on both Saturday and Sunday.

Admission into the event and parking are free for visitors. There will be a silent auction and a children’s play area will be set up.

Art in the Park has been running for about thirty years and many of the attending artists have taken part in the festival for a number of those.

Donations at the gate are very much appreciated, as donations help support many community and district projects.

There will be a silent auction, with pieces donated by many of the participating artists. Funds from the auction are entirely donated to the Lions Foundation of Canada Dog Guides program.

The Dog Guides program trains dogs to assist people with vision impairments, hearing loss, autism assistance, seizure response, diabetes alert and those with various physical and medical disabilities.

“[ART in the Park] has been a wonderful success most of the time,” said Uxbridge, Bob Armitage.

According to Mr. Armitage, there will be 98 artists attending this year’s event.

Karen Neu Wideman is a returning artist. She has been participating at Art in the Park for over 15 years. This was the place of Ms. Neu Wideman’s first art show. Initially, she did not have enough pieces to show off on her own, so she asked two other artists from Artists from Uxbridge to join her.

She heard about Art in the Park from other artists who she attends church with.

Regarding Art in the Park, Karen said, “I think it is a beautiful and friendly environment.”

Ms. Neu Wideman mainly works with acrylic paints, painting landscapes.

There are a variety of other artists who attending this event. Ms. Wideman has noticed artists who make stained glass creations, those who make pottery and sculptures and more.

A piece of advice she has for visitors is, to talk to artists during the event.

“If you see something which draws you in, talk to the artist and ask them about it,” she explained. “Ask them what their process is. Ask them what inspires them. It’s good to just ask questions.”

If you ask the artist questions, you may find out the “story” behind their artwork.

You can view some of Ms. Neu Wideman’s art on her website, at www.neuwidemanart.ca, or visit her booth at Art in the Park, later this month.

Artist applications, for the 2024 event, are closed. However, applications for next year’s Art in the Park will be open in October of 2024.

To learn more about Art in the Park, please visit their website, at uxbridgelionsartinthepark.com.