19th Annual Melrose Arts Festival Draws Big Crowds
Written By Elsie English
Photographed By Nancy Clover
The 19th annual Melrose Arts Festival filled Memorial Hall this past weekend with a vibrant mix of stunning artwork, live music, and a strong sense of community, all under one roof.
Melrose Arts (formerly known as Melrose Arts and Cultural Organization) is a nonprofit organization that works to promote and sustain the arts and culture of our Melrose community. It works alongside sponsors and partners such as the Massachusetts Cultural Council, Melrose Messina Fund for the Arts, Melrose Rotary Club, Follow Your Art, Melrose Creative Alliance, The Beebe Estate, the Melrose Cultural Council, and relies on the continuous support of local residents to make this festival a success.
Festival artists are selected through a juried process overseen by the Melrose Arts Committee, a volunteer group responsible for selecting and supporting artists as they showcase their work. This year, a combination of 45 artists were eventually selected from a total of 90 applicants. Debra Corbett, an artist and longstanding member of the committee emphasizes the board's preference for “mixed media” art which ensures a versatile collection of multiple mediums and art forms. This selection style allowed for a display of not just aesthetic paintings and drawings but glasswork, clay creations, photography, architecture and object design, jewelry, pottery, textile collages, and feltwork to be displayed to purchase and admire.
Among the featured mixed media artists was Shir Glassworks, an exhibit of handcrafted technical glass pieces by Madeline and Ori Shir. Based in Western Massachusetts, the duo presented a range of work including figurines, jewelry, dishware, decorative pieces, and sculptural designs. This marked Shir Glassworks’ third year participating in the Melrose Arts Festival and when asked what made them wish to return to Melrose for yet another year, Madeline enthusiastically shared it was the artists she was surrounded by that made the event worth it, pointing out the “small but high quality” framework of the festival.
As guests browsed the unique displays throughout the space, on the Memorial Hall stage was even more art in the form of live music. Four different musical groups took the stage throughout the weekend to fill the festival with sound. Performing from 11:00am - 1:00pm on Saturday was Violet & Co. who the Melrose Arts Organization chose to deliver “a sophisticated interpretation of beloved jazz classics.” Violet was joined by Berklee professors Lello Molinari and Joe Mulholland. Next up was Anton Sviridenko on keyboard, otherwise known as Santon music; a completely blind, Boston-based musician who graduated from Berklee College of Music and finished out the day of music on Saturday. Opening the festival on Sunday were The Pine Martens, a trio of guitarists and singers all from Melrose: Dave Marten, Jason English, and Charlotte Pearce. Following The Pine Martens was the last performance of the weekend belonging to Oren Santillo who played the piano accompanied by fellow Melrose High School senior Sammy Mcquaid on guitar, Berklee College of Music student Ben Harris on bass, and drummer Emory Carroll.
Two other live artists were present at the festival this year. Guests had the opportunity to get their face painted by Melrose resident Florence Lee, a children's favorite, or have a caricature of themselves drawn by artist Matt Bernson.
Sharing the stage and occupying the lower level of Memorial Hall was Follow Your Art Community Studios who hosted a Junior Artisan Market from 11:00am - 2:00pm for “makers, crafters, and artists ages 6-17” displaying painting, jewelry, crochet, sculptures, and other handmade artwork. Appealing to the abundance of Melrose families drawn to the arts festival, FYA also hosted a community art project where anyone was welcome to participate.
Melrose’s art festival is indisputably a place to experience and appreciate an abundance of artistry but further, it’s an opportunity to learn. Painter Heidi Mann from Lexington explains this as a theme within the festival. “It’s interesting to actually speak with customers who are purchasing my art and see what people are drawn to,” she said. It was Mann’s second year being featured in the Melrose festival as an oil painter inspired by “the quiet nuances of everyday life.” Being able to meet other artists and those purchasing her art face to face, (an interaction that is often online) is what drew Mann to the festival and encouraged her to return for another year.
Just in case festival goers were hungry after taking in all that art, La Cabaña food truck was parked just outside the entrance to Memorial Hall, serving up Mexican and Salvadorian cuisine for attendees on both Saturday and Sunday. Alongside it was Mama Jeans Chef Service, offering a menu of sweet and savory baked goods, another community favorite perfectly paired with the arts.
The Melrose Arts organization was set up at a raffle table, the perfect way for Melrose residents to actively contribute and give back to the artists and community members who make this annual festival possible each year. With the purchase of a raffle ticket, buyers could choose from themed prize baskets labeled with various enticing titles: “local artist giveaway, spa day, pencils and pastries, clam collective, culture and canvas, fit life, etc.” Raffle prize donors included a long list of local businesses who chose to invest in the arts.
Couldn’t get enough of this year's Arts Festival or missed it? Not to worry, there’s plenty of art to go around. Melrose Arts sponsors other programs throughout the city to celebrate the incredible artistry and passion that Melrose has to offer which includes artist demos at the Milano Center, October window walk downtown, monthly Beebe Estate shows and openings, public art installations like the wind sculptures at Ell Pond and Cedar Park, and various community art projects.
Elsie English is a senior at Melrose High School. She is interning with The Melrose Messenger this spring.
