By Ann Nichols
annsnichols@aol.com
For the past nine years, the 4 Bridges Arts Festival has been an eagerly anticipated event by art lovers in Chattanooga. Patrons begin saving their money several months in advance because they know that they will find artworks that are “must-haves.”
The 10th annual festival will be held from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Saturday and 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Sunday, April 18 at the First Tennessee Pavilion (1826 Carter St.). Admission is free for visitors under 18 and $5 for those 18 and older.
On Friday, a preview party will be held from 6:30 to 10 p.m. Admission is $75 at the door or $60 in advance and visitors can have first-pick of the art on display by 150 vendors. Special food and wine are included in the entrance fee.
According to Jerry Dale McFadden, the festival’s artistic director, several new elements have been added to the festival. Instead of regular festival fare, some of Chattanooga’s finest restaurants will offer food samplings. The festival has also “gone green” through a recycling program, a free bike valet and a live web feed through Chattarati.com.
Almost every type of art and fine craft medium will be represented. The featured artist this year is Jamey Grimes, a sculptor and art professor at the University of Alabama. He will be represented by a large, ceiling-mounted sculpture titled “Between Space.”
Constructed of white corrugated plastic, the piece combines the sculptor’s fascination with nature, industrial materials and complex patterns.
“The structure may illicit many different reactions, though it is commonly likened to clouds, trees or the surface of water,” said Mr. Grimes. “It reminds me a lot of plankton viewed through a microscope, but I don’t hold such specific goals for the viewer.”
Mr. Grimes will be present at the preview party on Friday.
The 4 Bridges Arts Festival, ranked as one of the top 100 fine art festivals in the United States by “Sunshine Artist Magazine,” is produced by the Association for Visual Arts.
For information, call 265-4282 or visit www.4bridgesartsfestival.org.