Edmonds Art Festival Showcased New and Upcoming Musical and Artistic Talent

The 54th Edmonds Arts Festival showcased a slew of contemporary local artwork from artists both veteran and green.

Denise Bossieux, president of the festival's executive board, asked attendees to "enjoy the delicious food and eclectic selection of music and entertainment" in the festival's informational pamphlet.

While many of the artists' booths featured watercolor paintings or charcoal drawings, a great many artists aimed for a more unique vibe. From paintings to sculptures to dragon ornaments to custom made pi clocks, those patrons with an eye for originality had much to peruse at this year's festival. 

Deborah Bridges, a sculptor specializing in clay, discovered that her niche lies in creating fragmented Buddha heads. 

"Faces are the most important artistic visual image to me," Bridges said. "When I began sculpting, I moved from focusing exclusively on faces to focusing on Buddha faces, then to fragments of those same images."

Bridges, a Buddhist by habit, says her spirituality is a central part of her artistic technique. "I'm informally a Buddhist, but not literally a Buddhist."

While Bridges draws her inspiration from religion and spirituality, David Roseberg is an artist who draws some of his inspiration from science and mathematics.

"I'm a bit of a nerd," said the clockmaker, who has created several timekeepers themed against the periodic table of elements or the digits of the number pi.

One potential buyer asked Roseberg, "Why do you choose to make clocks?" 
"Why not?" Roseberg responded. "You can put as much freedom of expression into them as a painting or a sculpture or a piece of music. So why not make clocks?"

Shortly afterward, Roseberg was pleased to sell that patron a clock for $135.

Other artists like Alec Kraft elected to take a vintage spin on visual art. Kraft and his fellow artists of the Red Horse Sign company find inspiration in classic Washington imagery, such as a '50s era football match between the UW Huskies and the WSU Cougars. 

The art at the festival wasn't just limited to visuals, however. Matthew Stewart draws inspiration from local native american lore to create tribally inspired hand-carved wooden flutes.

David Templeton, a classical pianist and 12-year member of the Edmonds Art Festival, said that the Edmonds community is particularly receptive to his brand of song.

"I've never been able to read or write music properly," Templeton said. "I just hear it in my head and my fingers play it on the keyboard."

Templeton said that his lack of formal training in music has actually helped him to put song to paper. According to him, he's been knocking ivory keys since before his feet could even reach the piano pedals. 

"The lack of that intermediary medium actually helps me compose," he said. "Not having that physical form lets me take the music in my head directly onto the piano."

Enrico Martinez, a festival volunteer, notes that Templeton's music is exceedingly pleasing to listen to. 

"It's not like regular classic music," Martinez said. "It's not too flashy. It's soothing, and it's easy to listen to. It helps calm me down and reflect. It's a great sound to put on during meditation."

Templeton made his debut at the Paramount Theater in downtown Seattle. He'll play for the first time at Carnegie Hall in New York in October.

The musical highlight of the festival came Sunday at 3 p.m., when the Mood Swings Jazz Band took the stage to draw a startling amount of festival goers away from the art booths and to the festival's music stage. 

From an excellent rendition of Shirley Bassey's "Big Spender" to an array of soulful jazz club beats, The Mood Swings had the audience mesmorized from start to finish.

Being a community event, the Edmonds Arts Festival had plenty of local food for attendees to gorge on. Eric Michaels is one volunteer who managed one of the many street food booths available at the festival. 

His booth's sign included the words "Big Weiners," helping to draw a lengthy queue to Michaels' booth for an array of freshly grilled sausages and burgers. 

Other food options included typical local fare like grilled salmon, peroshki and old-style garlic fries, as well as enough fudge sundaes to send a person to the hospital.