BANGOR, Maine - Art, good deals on used goods, sales on new purchases, the Bangor State Fair just a short walk away - downtown was bustling Saturday morning and afternoon.
Around 100 artists from Maine and New England displayed their work at the 19th Annual WLBZ2 Sidewalk Art Festival, while the Bangor Region Chamber of Commerce held its third annual Riverside Flea Market near the Waterfront, and several downtown shops held sidewalk sales or trunk shows.
Meanwhile, the Bangor State Fair was in the final hours of its 2008 run. The fair closes Sunday.
Gray skies and humid weather didn’ t stop people from attending the flea market or the art festival.
Mark Parent, the WLBZ promotion/production manager, said the art festival draws about 5,000 people each year. The festival is set up on Broad Street and in Pickering and West Market squares, and the pedestrian bridge in the area.
Artists displayed a wide range of media, from oil paintings to jewelry to woodwork.
“We have a lot of artists who return each year, and we have a nice [group] of new artists as well,” Parent said. “People have their favorite artists, and they come back every year looking for them.”
Robin Grace, a painter from West Kingston, R.I. who was named Best in Show in 2007, won top honors again this year. Felicia Teach of Portland was second and Edgar Reines of Gorham took third.
WLBZ also recognizes the Festival Purchase Prize winner, who this year was Kathy Perelka of Canaan. The award goes to the artist whose work the station chooses to buy.
The festival was judged by Bangor Daily News reporter Emily Burnham, Kerstin Engman, an assistant professor of art at the University of Maine, and Ed Nadeau, an artist and Maine native.
990-8287