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Art au naturel

The Roser Park festival branches out this weekend.

By LIBBY NELSON, Times Staff Writer
Published November 7, 2007

John and Fonda Anderson said hilly Roser Park reminded them of Knoxville, Tenn.
	[Lara Cerri | Times (2006)]

ST. PETERSBURG

In its fourth year, the Historic Roser Park Art Festival is growing beyond tent exhibitions. The signature tents that indicate an art show will line the neighborhood's streets, but four Roser Park residents also have opened their porches and gardens for artists to display their work in a more natural environment.

"The concept of it is to put the art in an environment where it would blend in, where it would normally be put," said Catherine Nivens, festival chairwoman.

The idea for the installation exhibits was proposed by glass artists David Walker and Joshua Poll, whose work is featured at Zen Glass Studio in Roser Park.

"We were just trying to figure out a way to add a little pizzazz, a little spice to the art show by incorporating some of the neighborhood into it," Poll said.

The installations will be in the four residents' yards and on their front porches. Poll said he plans to hang some of the glass artwork from the neighborhood's larger trees.

"The patrons from the festival will be able to not only walk up and down the street, but carry it into the neighborhood as well," Poll said.

Finding volunteers was easy.

"People love their homes in Roser Park," Nivens said. "They love to show them off and it's never a problem. People just love to do that."

Homes taking part will have a yellow flag in the front yard.

The Zen Glass Studios work will not be for sale, but because artists are local they can arrange a purchase for later if people are interested, Poll said.

"It's the first time," he said. "We're just going to wing it."

It stalled, then bloomed

Planning the event, now in its fourth year, has become a year-round task, Nivens said.

After a somewhat rocky start - the first year's festival in 2003 was successful, but the second was canceled because not enough artists registered - the festival has grown every year, Nivens said.

Some of the artists are local, but many come from the national art festival circuit. This year organizers expect 70 artists and about 8,000 attendees, up from 6,000 last year.

The festival takes pains to make itself an attractive destination for artists, Nivens said, with homes hosting artists and a party the first day of the festival.

"We do a lot of little extra things for them, and they have their circuit and word gets around," Nivens said.

Historic Roser Park Art Festival

Where: Booker Creek, Roser Park Drive (10th Avenue S), just behind All Children's Hospital

When:10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and 10 a.m. to4 p.m. Sunday

Admission: Free

Parking: Free in the Bayfront Medical Center parking lot

[Last modified November 6, 2007, 21:29:22]