Festivals and natural beauty draw the arts to Salem - City beat: Salem, Oregon - Brief Article

Art Business News, Feb, 2002 by Jessica Lyons

"The biggest thing in Salem is the Art Fair," Ken Dale, executive director of the Salem Art Association, will tell you. He's not exaggerating. In the town of Salem, Ore., summer vacations are planned around the one-week free festival in late July.

More than 200 local and national artists and craftspersons hawk their wares, while more than 100,000 visitors buy fine art and crafts, eat multi-cultural food and drink Chardonnay under a canopy of oak trees, enjoy live musical and theater performances on two stages in Salem's Bush Park and participate in hands-on art activities. It's the largest art festival in the state.

Artists' nooks, food booths and nonprofit's tables are patterned in a maze-like layout around trees, a stream and the rose gardens. And as locals will tell you, art, music and wine festivals in other states and other cities don't even come close to this event.

"At every other festival, the booths and attractions are in a rectangular shape," Dale said. "Here, Art Fair is the only event that takes place in Bush Park, it's nestled in the trees, it's like a puzzle.

"More than 40 charities participate--they see this as their major fund-raiser," Dale continued. "Last year more than $200,000 was raised by charities. High schools and other groups volunteer to pick up garbage. The whole community wants it to be a success. It's more than just an art fair, it's a community happening."

Dale and the rest of the Salem Art Association found out exactly how much of a community happening the Salem Art Fair is last year, when the association started floating the idea of fencing in the festival.

They quickly dropped the idea after hearing the public outrage over the fence, and also over the semi-secretive way the association had gone about proposing changes to the 52-year old Salem festival. The community wasn't going to stand for any changes in their beloved Art Fair unless they played a part in determining them.

"This is more than just an event," Dale explained. "People see this as part of themselves. So we must be doing all right."

The near-scandal, however, wasn't just about the fence. It reflects the Salem art scene, and the art-to-community relation in the city as well.

"We have a lot of artists who came here because of the simpler way of life," Dale said. "They came here for the outdoors, or because they are environment-focused. Or they are artists who have lived here for generations. Either way, they feel part of the community they live in."

Salem's known for it's State Capital building and grounds, guarded by the Gold Pilgrim who stands on top, Willamette University's Hallie Ford Museum of Art, the historic Elsinore Theatre and the Bush House, a Victorian mansion with an extensive collection of 19th-century fine and decorative arts. In recent years, according to local gallery directors and art patrons, Salem has also been building a name for itself on it's community support of the arts.

The Bush House, for example has been open to the public since 1953, owned and maintained by the city and operated as a museum by the Salem Art Association. The adjacent Bush Barn Art Center was remodeled in 1965 to become the Bush Barn Art Center, housing two changing exhibition galleries and a sales/rental gallery. The studio annex, adjacent to the barn, provides classroom space--and great light--for painting, drawing and printmaking classes and workshops.

The community also rallied behind the creation of the Salem Riverfront Carousel, crafted by local artists. The entire project, in fact, was based on community involvement. Volunteers created every part of the carousel, from carving and painting the horses, to constructing the building, to planning the opening.

"When it opened, it was a real community happening," Dale said. "You would think, `What's the big deal? It's a merry-go-round.' But it's more than that. It drew the community together. We built this."

Salem-ites also brave the rainy Oregon autumns at the October Open Studios and the icy winters for the Mid Valley Art Council's First Night Salem New Year's Eve celebration. They also hit the downtown streets in full force for the "First Wednesday" art tours, which showcase local artists.

"It's amazing how many people came out to that first First Wednesday," said Mary Lou Zeek, a long-time Salem ceramic artist who opened a downtown gallery in June. "People were so receptive and really excited about it."

Zeek's new gallery in itself is a testament to Salem's growing art community. Her one-room gallery features colorful, edgy pieces of fine art and contemporary crafts produced by local and out-of-state artists.

"People come in, and they usually can't believe they are in Salem," Zeek said. "The comments I generally get are `why aren't you up in the [Portland] Pearl District? Why aren't you up on North West 23rd [in Portland], or down in California? This is what you would expect there.' The Salem art scene is changing. It's growing. People realize they can come here for good art instead of going to Portland."