By Elizabeth Brannon
What does a UFO have to do with the upcoming May 7th Art Festival at Heritage Park? Read on to find out.
You already know the basics – The 2nd annual Arts Festival is on top of us – Saturday, May 7, at Heritage Park, where you’ll be able to connect, create and celebrate. The festival will feature a variety of vendor booths where art will be displayed and on sale by the artists. There will be food trucks, a Kona Ice Truck, and live performances throughout the day from a variety of art groups. There will be chalk activities and other painting opportunities for adults and children, including painting rocks that will be added to the park beds and trails. You might even see some trees adorned with crochet works from local artists.
Heritage Park is one of the most popular destinations in Flower Mound, and in addition to the art festival, there are the dozen bronze animals permanently displayed throughout the park that are always great to see and appreciate.
Last month, we featured the community mural for festival-goers to paint and turn into a collective work of art. The mural painting will be one of the highlights of the festival, perfect for individuals or families to enjoy and participate in. You can be an artist for a day and create a one-of-a-kind work of art for Flower Mound to enjoy. How many times in life will you be able to say you worked with 800 other artists to create a bona-fide community mural?
Now, how does a UFO fit into the events and fun of the festival day? Remember the news that there would be a scavenger hunt on festival day? The items to be found at the 2022 Festival Scavenger Hunt are all flying saucers, or UFOs, that will be hidden throughout the park. There will be 6 to 8 little UFOs hidden, and if you or your family members are lucky enough to find one, the hope is that you will paint it or use it in a design and then take a photo of your final UFO creation and send the photo to [email protected]
The Scavenger Hunt Items are inspired by the art of Esther Pearl Watson. Esther was born in Germany, but lived most of her young life in Texas. Her childhood was the typical nuclear family set-up with father, mother, and a handful of children. The family was steered by her father’s obsessive pursuit to build a working flying saucer and sell it to NASA or Ross Perot. Her painting style resembles a child’s drawing, a cartoonish Texas landscape dominated by a glittery flying saucer that hovers at the center of the composition. To view Esther’s works: www.webbartgallery.com/esther-pearl-watson
By the way, do you know Scavenger Hunt Day is officially celebrated on May 24 each year? You’re never too old or too young to participate in a scavenger hunt.
In other Flower Mound Art News:
Current Town Hall Artist for April/May: Karen Somoano, who has been a fervent drawer since childhood, decided to take up painting several years ago. Since then, her work has been featured in numerous area shows and has won multiple awards. Inspired by nature and wildlife, the majority of her paintings are of animals. She paints primarily using oil paints, but also works with acrylic paint, water color, and inks. Karen is grateful to live in Flower Mound which has an abundance of natural beauty. She has lived in Flower Mound with her husband and two sons since 2013.
Town Hall Artist for June/July: Marie Gunderson, who will display acrylic paintings. More about Marie next month.
All artists are invited to submit samples of their works for consideration to be featured on the Town Hall Art Wall in the future. Contact [email protected]
Announcing the 2022 Traffic Box Signal Artists Winners: Alice Won, Meghann McLead and Steven Rodrigues. Congratulations to these three artists and look to see their works on the signal boxes early this summer.
And, speaking of summer, don’t forget Chalk the Walk – June 4 – Heritage Park – it’s less than a month away, so mark your calendars!
Art thoughts: “Searching is half the fun: life is much more manageable when thought of as a scavenger hunt as opposed to a surprise party.” – Jimmy Buffet
Elizabeth Brannon serves on the Flower Mound Cultural Arts Commission.
