Issue date: 5/1/09 Section: The Verge

Ted Siebert and his large sand sculptures can be viewed today and Sunday during Celebration: A Festival of the Arts in the Library Quad. (Submitted photo)

Along with the musical, culinary and poetic arts, this weekend's Celebration: A Festival of the Arts will feature traditional visual art in its many different mediums.

The most traditional type of visual art that will be on display to the public at the festival can be found at the Art Fair.

Forty booths will be set up in the library quad on Saturday and Sunday, each booth showcasing the art of local artists.

The event, which is one of the largest gatherings of artists from East Central Illinois, not only provides the artists with an opportunity to display their work to their community, but also enters them into a competition with their fellow artists.

Awards Judge Carolyn Patterson, an Eastern alumna and the director of the Illinois Artisans Program, will weigh in and determine the winners of Best of Fair, Best of 2-D art and Best of 3-D art.

The recipient of Best of Fair wins $1,000 and the other two awards receive $500.

Many different art mediums will be on display including ceramics, fibers, leather, glass, jewelry, paintings, photography, sculpture, furniture and woodworking.

Art Fair participant and Eastern faculty member Dorothy Bennett has displayed her art several times before and said she enjoys the fair and visiting with other artists.

Bennett will be displaying her original pillows, shirts, purses and scarves at the event.

She describes her work as "fiber art."

Sharing the Library Quad with the Art Fair is sand sculptor Ted Siebert.

Event coordinator Dan Crews said that Siebert has been constructing his sculpture since Wednesday.

Crews said that Siebert has been performing at the fair for years, and he will be demonstrating his large sand sculpture on Friday and Sunday.

Those who venture away from the Library Quad will be able to experience art as well.

The Tarble Arts Center will be hosting two art exhibitions as part of the Celebration.

African Art from the Martha J. Ehrlich Collection features more than 9,000 years of African art history and contains works dating back to the Neolithic Period.

The other art exhibit at Tarble is the 27th Children's Art Exhibition, which features the work of east central Illinois students from Kindergarten through High School. About 300 students will have works on display.

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