Festival of the Arts on display this weekend
The 24th annual La Jolla Festival of the Arts takes place this weekend, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., on the UCSD East Campus, Genesee Avenue and Regents Road in La Jolla.
The festival, produced by the Torrey Pines Kiwanis Foundation, doubles as a benefit to support recreational and educational programs for San Diegans with disabilities.
Admission is $10 for adults and free for children 10 and younger.
In addition to the varied art booths showcasing the work of some 200 fine artists from the United States and Mexico, there will be food, children’s games and activities, chef demonstrations, book signings and a display of vintage Austin-Healey vehicles.
Festival chairman Don Ludwig said highlights will include renowned chalk artists (including Melanie Stimmell Van Latum, an internationally recognized street painter) and local bands such as the Mar Dels and Rockola, Dave Scott and Monsoon Jazz, the guitar music of Peter Sprague and Fred Benedetti, and two Navy bands — the U.S. Navy Southwest Brass Band and the U.S. Navy Destroyers.
Alongside the classic British Austin-Healey cars of the 1960s, modern muscle cars and racing-configured automobiles will be on display. Several of the vehicles have been modified to accommodate disabled drivers.
An awards committee composed of senior festival administrators and gallery owners will recognize festival artists who show the highest level of accomplishment in design, execution and presentation. One artist will be chosen from this “Best of Show” program to be the “Featured Artist” at next year’s festival.
Cara Brown, a watercolorist from Northern California, created the 2010 festival poster. The La Jolla Festival of the Arts was founded in 1987.
“The $1.7 million that the Torrey Pines Kiwanis has donated to San Diegans with disabilities is what makes this event so special,” Ludwig said of the proceeds.
Art festival information
- (858) 586-1202