The Media Arts and Crafts Fair

Towards the end of my journey here in Philadelphia, I have absolutely enjoyed living in Media even though it will be a short stint. There is always something eventful for the wandering soul on State St in Media. This weekend, along with Terrisa, I visited the 10th Fine Arts and Crafts festival, hosted by the Community Centre, which showcases the works of a variety of artists and craftsmen selected through a jury. The event also featured music throughout the day from 10 am until 5.00pm. It gives both the artists and the festival goers to interact and understand art on a personal level. I was reminded of Delhi Haat, hosted by the Delhi Tourism board featuring crafts, music and food from all over India including the fest at Kalakshetra, near my house.


Terrisa had stayed in Media for over two years and had been a regular visitor at the show. Though she is an artist herself, she never thought about presenting her work because she felt she was not on par with the artists on the show. However she told me that the number of visitors this year seemed a little less compared to the crowds she has seen earlier. This was a similar observation at the Media Garage Sale held over the weekend a few weeks ago. However, for a visitor like me, it makes no difference. I was happy to be there and enjoy the day interacting with the folks. 

I met some interesting artists, one of whom specialized in Mixed Media and the other was an older gentleman who worked with B&W photography. Both of them had some excellent works to show-off. The photographs were evocative and you could stand there for hours, gazing at them. The photographer had captured some of the simplest actions we would have taken for granted. I was bowled over by him and spent some time chatting about his interests. The Mixed Media works were excellent as well, though pricey. I found her paintings beautiful and imaginative, especially the series she had on cats. This is her original work and cannot be reproduced without the artist's permission.

We went to the fest way too late and it was closing in 15 minutes. So I rushed through all the stalls, took a couple of photographs to file away and headed home with Terrisa to prepare the dinner over a conversation laced with white wine from a New Jersey winery. 

I finished the last drop sitting on the porch in the sunset with Austin lying down next to me.