Belmar Art Walk 2015

With the new paving project well in hand, attention could be turned to the 2015 edition of the annual Belmar Art Walk.  This year we had 35 locations lined up, mostly along Main Street, but all within walking distance.  Very early this morning we had a brief return to winter, with below freezing temperatures across much of the state, but the sun and spring weather were back in place by the early afternoon.

Thanks to the warm weather, a lot of the event was held outdoors.  Artists set up their displays on racks and tables on the sidewalks (above) and across Pyanoe Plaza (below), where they could interact with all the visitors passing through town.

Of course, some of our artists were set up inside their business locations as well, taking advantage of their walls and shelves to show their arts and crafts.

Some of the artists provided demonstrations of their skills along side examples of their completed art, and this could be done both outdoors and indoors.

One thing that encouraged visitors to check out all the locations and visit inside the hosting Belmar businesses was a Secret Word Game.  These words were displayed inside many of the places hosting art today, and the maps that were distributed all around town included a place to record these words.

The Boatworks was open for the duration of the event, listed as stop number 4 on the map, though people could visit the 35 locations in any order they wanted.  Well over 100 visitors were recorded, enjoying our current 11th Annual Juried Art Show.  At the end of the day, the Boatworks and its new outdoor brick paver paths hosted a gathering open to all.  Live entertainment was provided by local band Forty Winx.

Anyone who had found at least a dozen of the secret words during the day could drop their map off at the Boatworks, where it was their entry for a free drawing that was held late in the day.  The prize was a large basket of goodies, donated by Belmar businesses.

The winner of the basket was Lorraine Brennan (above center), who was enjoying the day in Belmar along with friends Yuki Terao and Marion Pizzo.  Now they were enjoying it more, and really looking forward to their next planned visit later this summer.

The Belmar ArtWalk was organized and sponsored by the Belmar Arts Council, the Belmar Tourism Commission, and the Belmar Business Partnership.