Downtown Wilkes-Barre will be bustling with visual and performing arts at the 70th annual Fine Arts Fiesta.
Dance groups, musicians, actors and more will play on the outdoor stage while vendors display their artwork around Public Square.
Ann Saxton is president of the board of directors.
“We have a lot of wonderful, incredible local talent, and it's just delightful that we are able to provide this venue,” she said. “The artist market vendors, and they come from all over Northeastern Pennsylvania and even some much further. So it's really become a very signature arts event in Northeastern Pennsylvania.”
A celebration of 70 years around the square
This year’s theme, 70 years around the square, celebrates the longevity of the tradition.
The festival was founded by Annette Evans in 1956.
“She had traveled to many artist-friendly cities in Europe, and they would have open-air festivals,” Saxton said. “She wanted to bring that same type of event here to the Wyoming Valley, and Public Square was the perfect venue for it.”
Saxton says Wilkes-Barre has proven to be artist-friendly, welcoming artists of all kinds from near and far for four days of fun.
While art has evolved over the years and new generations make their mark, the Fiesta remains a showcase of the diverse and vibrant arts scene in the region.
Local art
Mark Ciocca’s pen and ink illustrations depict local landmarks, including the F. M. Kirby Center and the Luzerne County Courthouse. He also does printmaking and mixed media.
He will sell and display reproductions and original works at the Fine Arts Fiesta.
“I was going to Fiesta in junior high,” the Scranton-born artist recalled.
Ciocca also judges the juried junior/senior high school art exhibit, in which students submitted photography, painting, watercolor and other artwork.
“Unbelievable, the quality of work. And it was hundreds of pieces… one was just as good as the next,” he said. “So that was interesting to see the quality and the variety of different art projects, like 3D ceramic painting graphics. That was impressive.”
The Fine Arts Fiesta aims to encourage the next generation of artists with activities at the children's tent.
New features
The newest feature, a walking art display, will be back for the second year.
"Last year we introduced this new installation, and last year guests could stroll around the square, and there were 19 life-size installations of some of the great masters, most famous works of art," she said. "This year we're focusing on modern art."
Fiesta headquarters (HQ), an office space the board acquired last year, will house an indoor exhibit at 58 Public Square.
The Phil Giordano Jaxx Orchestra will perform "7 Decades of Jazz" Saturday night. Other performers will include the Wyoming Valley Barbershop Harmony Chorus, South Side Five, the Wyoming Valley Poetry Society and more.
The Fine Arts Fiesta is on Thursday through Sunday, with performances beginning between 10 and 11 a.m. and festivities wrapping up in the evening.
Visit the Fine Arts Fiesta website for the full schedule and click here for the fiesta map.
WVIA's Haley O'Brien will broadcast live from the Fine Arts Fiesta Thursday during All Things Considered. Tune in to WVIA Radio from 4 to 6 p.m.
