TINTON FALLS – The 43rd Monmouth Festival of the Arts (MFA) will take place Saturday, April 13, through Wednesday, April 17, at the Monmouth Reform Temple (MRT) on Hance Avenue.
MFA is one of the most popular and professional juried art shows in the area, supporting artists as well as art education. More than 160 artists from all over the Northeast will display their art in a variety of mediums including jewelry, ceramics, sculptured art, oils, watercolor, pastels, mixed media and fine crafts.
Daily ticket prices are $8 for adults, and discounted $5 for senior citizens and students. A series ticket, good for Sunday through Wednesday, can be purchased for $18. Festival hours are noon to 8:30 p.m. April 14; 9:30 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. April 15 -16; and 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. April 17.
The festival offers docent-led tours for groups of any size. Those interested in taking a tour may contact Karen Greco at 732-796-9240.
Patrons attending the opening gala from 7:30 to 10:30 p.m. Saturday, April 13, will enjoy a wine bar, hors d’oeuvres, pastry, coffee and tea.
The gala presents patrons with a first opportunity to purchase the most popular art and to meet the many artists in attendance that evening. Tickets for the gala are $65 at the door or $60 if purchased earlier.
Sunday, April 14, is Family Day with hands-on art programs, for children between the ages of 4 and 12, and will take place throughout the day. The Doodle Dude, Art Kaney of Middletown, will entertain young audience members with demonstrations in animation, cartooning and clay from
12:30 to 1:24 p.m. Miss Melissa of Music for Aardvarks and other Mammals will present a children’s concert from 2 to 3 p.m. Festival-goers will enjoy a wide range of popular and light-classical music performed by members of the Monmouth Symphony Orchestra Wind Section.
During the week, patrons can attend several demonstrations given by the artists on the technique of their craft offered during day and evening sessions.
MFA also offers a daylong symposium for art educators on Wednesday, April 17. It will provide teachers with lesson plans and techniques for use in the classroom and the opportunity to earn required continuing education credits. A special student-artist display heralds the artwork of 11th-grade students who won the top awards at the Student Art Competition held in February.
MFA was awarded the John Pappas Recognition Award in Arts Education from the Arts Educators and the coveted 2010 N.J. Governor’s Award in Arts Education for all of its art education programming,
Nancy Pageau is delighted to be returning as show designer for a second year. Her skill and distinctive displays at last year’s festival were widely praised. Pageau has worked as an art consultant, curator and dealer for 20 years. She is the CEO and founder of Inkling for Art in, LLC, of Pennsylvania and has represented publishers, national, and emerging artists and consulted for foundations, institutions and corporations in their selection and display of art. Pageau also served as the first consultant for the award-winning Bryn Mawr Rehab Art Ability program, which designed shows for artists with disabilities. Her wide-ranging expertise in a variety of art will give this year’s festival a new and fresh perspective.
“There is often a story on any given wall or some relationship between the art of different artists which occupy a space,” she said. “Art is the ultimate communicator and speaks to each individual differently, but none the less, speaks.”
The Monmouth Festival of the Arts is hosted by Monmouth Reform Temple and is made possible, in part by the Monmouth County Arts Council through funding from the Monmouth County Board of Chosen Freeholders, through the County Historical Commission, and the New Jersey State Council on the Arts/Department of State, a Partner Agency of the National Endowment for the Arts.
