ARTSQUEST JOURNEYS BACK TO 30-A
22nd Annual Festival to find a new home in Seaside
The ArtsQuest committee began searching for a new home for the festival when the future at its current venue in Sandestin became uncertain. Several interested communities, including Seaside were explored, and Seaside emerged as the best venue for the relocation.
Seaside?s general manager, Pam Avera, explains her enthusiasm behind becoming the new host of this wonderful community festival. ?Seaside is privileged to be selected as the new host for this wonderful event, and we welcome it back to 30A,? stated Avera!
ArtsQuest Chair Nan Ream says she is excited for ArtsQuest to have this opportunity to ?return to our roots? along 30-A. ?CAA considers this move to have great potential for festival growth,? says Ream. ?Seaside welcomes artists and art lovers alike into a community spirit that provides terrific shopping, dining and accommodations along the greatest beaches in the country.?
?The CAA is extremely grateful to Sandestin Golf & Beach Resort and the Village of Baytowne Wharf for supporting ArtsQuest for seven years and allowing it to flourish,? adds Executive Director Jennifer Steele Saunders. ?We are optimistic about the Festival?s move back to Scenic Hwy. 30-A, where it began nearly 22 years ago, and look forward to working with The Merchants of Seaside, the Seaside Community Development Corporation and Cottage Rental Agency, to continue to evolve ArtsQuest and fulfill the CAA?s vision to enrich lives, stimulate economy and strengthen community through the arts.?
The 22nd Annual ArtsQuest Fine Arts Festival will continue to be held Mother?s Day weekend each year with the 2010 date set for May 7 ? 9. There will be room for over 100 local and national artists, along with four stages of music, theatre performances, KidZone and a Walton County student art exhibit.
The ArtsQuest Fine Arts Festival, sponsored in part by the Beaches of South Walton, is the largest of the many events and programs produced by the Cultural Arts Association as part of its mission to support the arts in Walton County through leadership, advocacy, funding, programs and education.
For more information about ArtsQuest or the Cultural Arts Association of Walton County, visit CulturalArtsAssociation.com or call 850.622.5970. For more information about The Town of Seaside, visit SeasideFL.com.
ABOUT THE CULTURAL ARTS ASSOCIATION OF WALTON COUNTY
The Cultural Arts Association is Walton County?s Local Arts Agency that supports the arts through leadership, advocacy, funding, programs and education. Established in 1992, the CAA produces the 30-A Songwriters Festival, ArtsQuest, Designer Showhouse for the Arts, the Beaux Arts Ball & Artist Market and Flutterby Children?s Festival, along with many other cultural events, fundraisers and art workshops. The CAA?s Educational Giving Program provides ongoing funds to Walton County teachers, need-based students, and college and continuing education students. The CAA works in partnership with Beaches of South Walton to promote Walton County as a tourist destination for arts and culture.
ABOUT SEASIDE
The Town of Seaside is a gulf front community located on Scenic Highway 30A between Destin and Panama City Beach, Florida. Founded in 1981, this renowned New Urbanist town is the flagship cultural center of The Beaches of South Walton. Seaside has over 400 homes and cottage rentals, and The Merchants of Seaside boast more than 50 specialty retail shops and restaurants. Seaside?s thriving town center includes civic, cultural and educational institutions; a public charter school, an inter-faith chapel, a repertory theater and The Seaside Institute. Parks, a swim and tennis club, and an amphitheatre provide year-round recreation and entertainment.
