Flatwoods Art and Eats Festival Held Over the Weekend
Kathy Clayton
The Ashland Beacon
From bubbles and books to art contests and live music, there was something for everyone at the second annual Flatwoods Arts and Eats Festival Saturday in the Flatwoods City Park.
“We have tripled the number of vendors and entries in the art contest, from last year,” said Lorna Rose, member of the Flatwoods Parks and Recreation Board and the organizing force behind the event. “Last year was kind of last minute, but this year we have really grown the event.”
The entire park beyond the basketball courts and playground was filled with food trucks, vendors, and activities for both kids and adults. “We’ve tried to decorate the entire space,” she said. The décor included blankets and throws laid out under trees, with pillows for reclining under the shade.
“This year, we set up a community mural in the park, along the long wall facing the playground,” Rose said. “We want the community to contribute to the mural. It’s an eight-by-twelve-pixel design, that’s a sort of paint by numbers. Anyone can step up, look at the paint number in the design, choose the corresponding color, and fill in the square in the mural. I created the design, and broke it up into squares on plywood sheets.”
One young man, Jonah Evans, proud of the work he was doing on the mural, said he wouldn’t mind having his picture taken for the paper. “I’ve been in the paper before,” he said, proudly.
Live music featuring local performers Chase Abrams, Johnathon Cox and the Rail City Dulcimers performed throughout the day. Attendees could pose with their faces peering out from holes cut into various designs. Children – maybe adults too – could blow bubbles of varying sizes from stations set up around the park, along with bounce houses.
One of the main events of the festival is the art contest. “We have categories for adults, and student categories for elementary, middle, and high school,” Rose explained. Judges will select the winners, and there is also a People’s Choice Award. Artists can submit their works in any medium, from traditional painting and drawing to quilts, 3-D works, and more. There is no entry fee.
Winners of this year’s art contest are: First place, Gail Kritz; second place, Thea Cline; and third place, Rodney Chapman; People’s Choice winner was Jennifer Phillips.
Delicious smells wafted from the food trucks, including Chuys Mexican Street Food, the Route 66 Diner, and the Fraternal Order of Police food truck. People could cool off with a frosty treat from the Kona Ice truck.
“The parks and recreation board has done a great job with this festival,” said Flatwoods Mayor Buford Hurley. “The arts festival has grown since last year, and as it continues to grow, we will increase funding to make it even better.” He noted that Parks and Recreation Board sponsors various events throughout the year, and different people are chosen to head up the different events.
“We encourage the people of Flatwoods to keep an eye out on the city Facebook page, the website, and Parks and Recreation Facebook page to check for upcoming events,” he said. “We have a lot of good things going on in Flatwoods now.”
Some of the vendors set up around the park sold jewelry, baked goods, soaps and lotions, and custom-made wooden décor. A local bookstore had a table, selling works by Kentucky authors, including the Pulitzer Prize-winning Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver. Local author Cathy Schaffer sold her books under an awning. A bit further around the path, C&C Creations sold freeze-dried candies. “We have about 30 vendors this year,” Rose noted.
Keeping with the art theme of the event, stations were set up under a picnic shelter for kids to create their own masterpieces.
