2009 Festival of the Arts

[kevinpate]

As for fry bread and lard ... lard comes from animals. Animals eat plants. Animals are thus vegetarians. Much like horseshoes and gernades, that's close enough to count..

[jbrown84]

Overall: 8/10 - Parking could be a little more reasonable and food was priced a little high

The food is marked up because that money is donated to the arts organizations associated with each booth. Not bad when admission to the festival is free.

[OKCMallen]

As for fry bread and lard ... lard comes from animals. Animals eat plants. Animals are thus vegetarians. Much like horseshoes and gernades, that's close enough to count..

DEFINITELY close enough when we're taking fry bread...

[Lauri101]

$5 to park in the garage across the street.

Overall: 8/10 - Parking could be a little more reasonable and food was priced a little high and a little better crowd control should be in order for the food area since that is one of the main attractions.

$5 parking is cheaper than usual price to park on non-event days.

I had a chicken gyro (delicious) and strawberry newport (mandatory). Best time to go if you are a downtown worker - 11 AM. No waiting in food court and not as crowded overall.

The only downside - getting out of the parking lot after work. They need to have some traffic control at the Galleria parking area Sheridan exit. Especially with the north exit closed - it's a zoo out there!

[windowphobe]

A flat $5 for parking is a lot kinder than charging you by the hour.

[PennyQuilts]

Ten years ago, my plane was late when I was flying from OKC to Washington DC to see my then fiance (now husband). The plane wasn't going to get in until about 3:00 in the morning due to weather and I suggested that he just park the car at the airport and sleep rather than drive home and come get me, later. He laughed because the parking was $7.00 an hour - that was just the beginning of sticker shock, for me.

[so1rfan]

Fry bread is generally made with flour, milk or water and baking powder then fried in oil. Unless it is fried in lard, I think that the vegetarian Indian taco would be fine for lacto-ova vegetarians.

I want to the FotA this evening with my seven year old. She and I usually go every year on Tuesday, but this year I was in Chicago for a couple of days. We usually do the same routine every year.

We start at the pottery tent where we buy the $5 vase and she paints it. Then we head to food row to pick up an appetizer, today it was the pokora. While we eat it we make our way so she can get her face painted. This year she got a turtle.

We walk down to the water and I take her picture in the leaf dome sculpture, and then we go over to the wind sculptures and then to the artists tents. We will walk one row and discuss the art, the techniques and what she likes about what she sees. She always gravitates towards horse paintings, and will walk up to the artist and tell them she likes their work.

Next up we split a vegetarian indian taco with no onions. The key to eating at the FotA is to bring your own fork. We like to eat at the green picnic tables so we can listen to the bands on the west stage. Then we migrate to the sculpture park, but today we got detoured by a juggler that put on a great show. At the sculpture park, my girl will pose and imitate the art. It is pretty funny sometimes.

Then we walk the rest of the tents and finish the day by demolishing a strawberries newport, pick up our pot and head home.

Friday I will go by myself during the day to eat and take a much harder look at the art and artists. Saturday I will go with my wife.

I usually find a new artists that really impresses. This year it is photographer Shelia Walthers and painter Larry Stephenson.

[FritterGirl]

The Crystal Bridge grounds are really impressive, Very nicely maintained. The bridge could use a new coat of paint, Along with some other things but the plant life looks VERY nice. I could only imagine what the core to shore will look like when its done.

THAT, and more, coming soon!

$5 to park in the garage across the street.

That's pretty reasonable, especially for a fully-covered garage (car protected by elements). Compare that to some of the street-level, surface parking in Bricktown for events ($10 per as far as 3-4 blocks away from the Ford Center), and I'd say that parking is quite the bargain!

food was priced a little high and a little better crowd control should be in order for the food area since that is one of the main attractions.

Please keep in mind this IS afterall, a fund-raiser. Proceeds benefit the arts groups. The restaurants do a great deal of work and get little, if any, profit since monies have to go back to the Arts Council and the partnering Arts Group. I don't mind paying an extra $1 or $2 bucks knowing that I am supporting one or another non-profit arts organizations, several of whom really need that funding, especially since some of the traditional funding sources are tied up with economic woes at present.

[OKCTalker]

This is the primary fundraiser for the Oklahoma City Arts Council which generates revenue through art sales, food & beverage sales, and merchandise sales. The artists and food vendors are selected through a process of application and judging, and to maintain a balance (price, type, geography). Food vendors are matched with non-profit organizations (usually arts-related) that provide them with volunteers to staff the food booths. Other volunteers do everything from erecting tents (Production) to assisting artists (Artists Friends) to selling soft drinks, beer, T-shirts and writing up sales tickets. It's the best volunteer opportunity in town, and it's a top-10 arts event in the U.S., and it's gotten better every year since the 1960s. Enjoy!