On Saturday and Sunday, Oct. 9 and 10, the annual Sedona Arts Festival will return for a fun-filled weekend of celebrating fine art and supporting local arts education, according to a news release.

Held on the grounds of Sedona Red Rock High School, 995 Upper Red Rock Loop Road, the festival – now in its 30th year – will feature more than 100 juried artists, live music, raffle prizes, a new beer and wine garden, various food trucks and more.

But as the art world struggles to recover in the wake of the pandemic, the core focus of this year’s festival will be showcasing the incredible artists who travel from across the country to participate, as well as raising funds for the festival’s scholarships and grants program.

“What most people don’t realize is that our event is a fundraiser,” said Lori Reinhart, executive director of the Sedona Arts Festival. “It is our sole opportunity to raise funds for our scholarships and grants program, which financially supports arts education in the Verde Valley. Particularly now when so many are struggling and resources are limited, Sedona Arts Festival is trying to help support these programs. A portion of the gate fee and 100% of our Dollars for Scholars raffle goes directly to our giving programs.”

Radiant Infinity by Charles Sherman, hand cut glass and ceramic mosaic over fiberglass 41” x 41” x 13”. (Sedona Arts Festival/Courtesy)

While helping to support the festival’s mission and enjoying a fall day against the backdrop of Sedona’s stunning red rock vistas, attendees will also have an opportunity to browse art from a wide variety of mediums, meet the artists and purchase works directly from them.

“After 10 years of coordinating this event, what I’ve really loved is the relationships I’ve made with the artists,” Reinhart said. “I look forward to seeing many of them year after year, and our attendees look forward to that too. There’s something really special about having a piece of art from someone you know and whose talent you admire. It’s like you get to keep a little piece of them with you.”

Many artists participating in the Sedona Arts Festival have echoed this sentiment as well.

‘Bell Rock Ascension’ by Carolyn Quan. (Sedona Arts Festival/Courtesy)

For instance, visionary artist Carolyn Quan said, “I’ve been participating in the Sedona Arts Festival since 2015, and it is one of my favorite shows. It is a great match for me and my work, and I always appreciate meeting visitors to the Festival who connect with my work and my message in a deeper way than at most other festivals that I do. Sincere connections have always been important to me. When people connect on a deep level with your art, it makes a huge impression and enhances the desire to create more.”

For some artists, this year’s Sedona Arts Festival is an opportunity to showcase the fruits of the heightened creativity they experienced during pandemic-related lockdowns.

Los Angeles-based sculptor and jewelry designer Charles Sherman – who has been participating in the festival for 12 years – is particularly eager to present his “Miracle Towers” sculptures this year.

“I’ve been developing the ‘Miracle Towers’ since the beginning of the pandemic, which turned out to be a creative blessing for me,” Sherman said. “I call these sculptures ‘Miracle Towers’ because they have positive energy and have a sense of upward motion. Each side of the towers is triangle, so they are technically pyramids and have pyramid energy. They have Feng Shui energy and are vortices of pure beauty.”

While Sherman considers himself to have been an artist his whole life, he started to earn a living as an artist at the age of 59.

Attendees of the Sedona Arts Festival will surely be awed by the myriad number of artistic mediums on display, from ceramics to glass to fiber art and beyond.

The festival will take place from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 9, and from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 10. Admission for both days is $15; proceeds from ticket sales will help support arts education in the greater Sedona area through the festival’s scholarships and grants program.

To learn more or purchase tickets, visit sedonaartsfestival.org.

Information provided by the Sedona Arts Festival.

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