Th1 Michbgan Daily -Wednesday, July 22,198-1Page 3
LIBERTY 4N3
Daily Photo by LISA KLAUSNER
FOR FOUR DAYS out of the summer, Ann Arbor becomes a paradise for crowds of art collectors and curiosity-seekers.
Preparation for the Art Fair begins early in the morning of the day before and in just 24 hours, the streets of the city are
transformed into a kaleidescope of artistic expression. On E. University, even the tents that are set up have an artistic
flair.
Art Fair's diversity
transforms Ann Arbor
By STEVE HOOK
Daily staff writer
On July 22, Ann Arbor becomes a Mecca for thousands of
people searching for the object that fits their conception of
true "art." From serious collectors hoping to unearth the
next Andrew Wyeth, to tourists and sight-seers looking for
something "vogue" to mount on the living room wall, they
journey to the city.
And they've come to the right place. Ann Arbor is a
bustling center of artistic endeavors all the time, not just
during the four-day period spanned by the annual Art Fair.
This city's vibrant arts agenda stimulates the desire for a
fair-a convention, so to speak, of artisans. They converge on
the city, as conventioneers traditionally do, from all direc-
tions, all backgrounds. They bring with them the tools of
their trade and collections of their finished products.
THEY ALSO BRING with them tales and anecdotes about
their careers and their experiences, which the wandering
guests hear attentivley, marveling at the eccentricities that
possess these painters, sculptors, dancers, and musicians.
An estimated half-a-million may show up for this one, this
23rd annual Ann Arbor Art Fair-hundreds of thousands of
Michigan residents, as well as many from Ohio, Illinois, On-
tario, et. al. They'll crowd the streets from July 22 to July 25,
and at night, when the canvases have all been packed away
in the artists' vans and pick-ups, these guests will pack the
local bars, jam the movie theaters, inhabit the hotels. They'll
party until dawn on the Diag, making a lot of noise, and a hell
of a mess.
But, it is not just an art fair, it is a four-day festival of
summer. There's a lot more to celebrate than oils and pot-
tery.
ACTUALLY, IT isn't just one fair, it is three, and the
organizers of the brouhaha are quick to point that out.
* The Summer Arts Festival, sponsored by the Artists and
Craftsmen's Guild, located from South University to William
on State Street, and along Main Street from William to
Huron.
* The Street Art Fair, Inc., sponsored by the South Univer-
sity Merchants Association, located along the South Univer-
sity business district, from East University to Washtenaw,
and on East University.
* The State Street Area Art Fair, sponsored by the'State
Street Area Association, located north of the Guild's artists
on State St., as well as along some stretches of Liberty,
Maynard, and William.
SOME LOCALS HAVE been grumbling recently, com-
plaining that the Art Fair is no longer an offbeat ac-
cumulation of creative idealists and altruists, but, in fact,
has become a big-buck, high-profit enterprise - for sly
hucksters. Instead of a massive celebration of beauty and
joy, the festival has deteriorated into an extension of Briar-
wood Mall, these grumblers say.
And, frankly, there is some truth to this. Back in the
Roaring Sixties, when the counter-culture dominated the city
and its lifestyle, the Art Fair was ostensibly different than
See VARIETY, Page 17
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On the inside...
Map and bus schedule on Pages 10-11 * Full-page listing
of available concerts, movies, and other scheduled
events on Page 12 * Also inside are profiles of artists
who chucked the nine to five routine for the roving
Bohemian life, tips on how to barter, and a column by
Christopher Potter that compares the spirit of this
year's Art Fair to that of Art Fairs in the past.
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