Bursts of heavy rain may have slowed the people flooding into downtown Gainesville for the SFCC Spring Arts Festival Saturday and Sunday, but it didn't stop them.
Turnout wasn't as high as the 130,000 who attended last year, and many artists packed up early Sunday, but attendance wasn't as low as could be expected, said Kathryn Lehman, the show's coordinator, as she took shelter from the rain under a tent.
"They bring their umbrellas, and they come out here," Lehman said of the festival-goers.
The festival, in its 39th year, was put on by the SFCC Cultural Programs department.
This year's show featured 250 artists, who displayed objects such as glasswork, pottery and handmade rocking chairs. While some traveled from as far as California and Canada, others came from studios only a few blocks away.
Edgar Reims, of Maine, who won the 2-D Best of Show award for his oil landscapes, said he spends his winters in Florida and has been coming to the show for the past seven or eight years.
Peter Carolin, a local who painted the design for this year's advertisements, spent much of his time autographing posters and T-shirts, which featured a Florida landscape of palm trees and a cloud-filled sky. The original was on sale in his booth for $2,400.
Carolin said he's been coming to the festival for about 20 years.
The city's art festival last fall was a low point in his sales due to the economic downturn, he said, but things now are starting to perk up.
Susan Nash, a Gainesville artist who sold Dr. Seuss-like sculptures, said she also noticed sales picking up.
"People are still being a little picky with their money," Nash said. "But my sales have been good."
Reims said his sales have not been affected by the economy, though they may have been hurt this year by the rain.
Besides browsing artwork, patrons could sit and eat fried fair food, make crafts at the Kids' Art Jungle or watch free entertainment.
Caroline Johnson, an SFCC student, came to watch her roommate perform in a traditional Greek folk dance.
"I've never been to an art festival in general, so it's like a learning experience," Johnson said.
Others said they go to the festival every year.
Rick and Gloria McDonald said they often travel to art festivals in South Florida, though they live in Gainesville.
"I can hardly go to one of these without buying anything," Gloria McDonald said. "I love the paintings, but we don't have any more room on our walls."
More than culture, Lehman said, the festival is about being a community.
"To be a community we have to have times to come together to visit our friends and serendipitously run into people we know," she said. "People tell me, 'It's my favorite holiday.'"
