http://www.dailycamera.com/news/2009/jul/18/downtown-boulder-artfair-
events-summer/
Lining Pearl Street with art
More than 100 artists, thousands of attendees partake in Downtown Boulder ArtFair
By Brandon Schatsiek, Camera Staff Writer
Saturday, July 18, 2009
BOULDER, Colo. — Saturday marked the beginning of the 31st annual Downtown
Boulder ArtFair and thousands of people took to the Pearl Street Mall to enjoy the
beautiful art coupled with the beautiful weather.
With more than 100 vendors at this year’s art fair, which continues Sunday, it was
hard to find two with similar art. The vendors included those selling watercolor
paintings, photography, pottery and metal sculptures crafted from nuts and bolts.
Artists ranged from those making unique creations purely as a hobby to those who
rely on it as a main source of income. Those artists who have no other source of
income said that business can be tough in today’s economy.
“I don’t know what to expect,” Steve Appel, owner of Bolt People, said in regards to
what kind of business he’ll get from week to week.
Appel, who lives in Prescott, Ariz., and runs a Web site at www.boltpeople.com, said
he attends about 15 art fairs each year. He said he has been building his small hand-
crafted metal sculptures — including scuba divers, snowboarders and even
gynecologists — from bolts and nuts for more than 20 years.
As people scale back their discretionary spending, he said this year has been
especially hard.
“It makes you want to go out and get another job, but I don’t know what I would do,”
Appel said.
While thousands of people will pass through downtown Boulder over the weekend,
many people on Saturday commented on how the fair seemed smaller — in terms of
vendors and attendees — compared to past years.
Larry and Suzan Demaree, who came in from Loveland for the day, said they also
noticed a decrease in numbers.
“It seems like there were more vendors before,” Larry Demaree said. “It looks like
they just spread it out to make it look bigger.”
The Demarees also said they didn’t think the quality of art was as high as it has been
in previous years or compared to other art fairs.
“It just seemed like it was ... more of backyard, hobby type stuff,” Larry Demaree
said.
Pat Walsh, 66, who has spent the last 26 years in Boulder, came to the art fair with
her daughter Marnie, 32. Walsh said they have been attending the art fair for as long
as she can remember and called it an outdoor community-style art festival.
“It’s about bringing in craftsmen who have a passion for whatever they’re making or
painting,” she said.
While Walsh said she usually buys something every year, many others left the fair
empty-handed. Many artists have a bigger reason for sticking with their professions,
regardless of their bottom lines.
“The point is I have fun with it,” Appel said.