by Denise Curtis

The 28th Annual Jubilee Festival presented by BMW of Mobile is just around the corner and the Eastern Shore Chamber is getting ready to welcome some of the best artists and craftsmen from around the Southeast to Olde Towne Daphne. This fun and laid-back festival features a juried art show. It's a great opportunity to go ahead and buy some Christmas gifts you won't be able to find anywhere else. By the end of September, there is usually a hint of fall in the air, so perusing gorgeous paintings, jewelry and pottery in Olde Towne Daphne is pleasant for everyone.  

You also have a chance to support our local dance companies and theater groups as they perform for the crowds. New this year, we are excited to have the YoGo Kids offering a yoga class for children and adults on our entertainment stage. 

 

Another big hit, year after year is the Kids Art Park. Generations of children have their handprints on the perimeter fence of Centennial Park.  Every child makes a fish print or wooden block sculpture which instills a love of art in children of all ages.  There is an activity for every child that walks through the gates of Centennial Park.

 

This is truly a complete family experience that celebrates the arts, local entertainment and community in the City of Daphne.  The 28th Annual Jubilee Festival presented by BMW of Mobile, will be held September 24 and 25, 2016 along Main Street in Downtown Daphne. The hours are 10 a.m. - 5 p.m. both Saturday and Sunday. It is free to attend the festival. Tickets can be purchased for Kids Art Park activities. 

To learn more, visit the Jubilee Festival on Facebook or on our website.

Meet the Jubilee Poster Artist: Dana Gault

The Eastern Shore Chamber is extremely excited about this year's Jubilee Festival Poster art and we have Dana Gault to thank. Dana Gault is a Mississippi girl, born and raised in Meridian, now making her home here in Daphne, AL, "I've loved any opportunity to be creative since I was a kid." Drawing, design, and painting were part of what earned Dana an Associate Arts degree.

In 2007, Dana's husband took an engineering job in Mobile, which landed the couple and their three daughters on the Eastern Shore, "I knew nothing about the area, certainly nothing of its famed art culture. It was just the first place we chose to rent a house." As it turned out, this move wasn't happenstance. This was the perfect area to be, brimming with local artists and art festivals year round. "This was the place the creative ember in me caught fire again." 

Texture has become a recognizable part of Dana's work, "I love the way the paint breaks up over the creases and wrinkles of paper or fabric. I have to 'work backwards', considering the end result I'm trying to achieve and the foundation that must first be laid. I want the viewer to want to touch the surface of my paintings," said Gault,  "I am drawn to vivid colors, and texture. I paint about the things I know, things I love, and things that give me comfort or make me laugh." You'll quickly figure out Dana's favorite subject matters include pineapples-the symbol for Southern hospitality, gulf seafood-specifically shrimp, scripture, positive quotes, and her signature 'Doll Whiskers' blue birds. "Each bird's wing is cut exclusively from the pages of Mississippi Magazine. It's my way of including a little bit of home in my work." In case you're wondering where the name Doll Whiskers comes in, it was Dana's nickname as a kid. 

Dana's studio is a modest room in her home with a huge window that floods the space with natural light. On a typical day, she'll drive her girls to school and head back to 'the office' to paint, "It's so easy to get lost in what you're doing, especially when the creative juices are flowing. I have to set a timer to remind me to be at the bus stop on time." 

"Being chosen as the poster artist for this year's Jubilee Festival means the world to me. I was so excited to get that news. I played it cool for about 30 seconds, then there may have been a few tears of joy. (My kids are relentless about teasing me when the happy tears flow, so I'm glad they weren't home when I got the news.) There are some impressive artists along the Eastern Shore, and to be counted in the same company as past poster artists is an honor that I'll never forget. It actually motivates me to keep growing and evolving my art." 

You'll be able to meet Dana Gault herself at the Jubilee Festival. Be sure to stop by her tent and say hello. You can also find more of her work on her Etsy page or her Doll Whiskers Facebook page. 

The September Young Professionals event will feature a cornhole tournament to raise money for the Spanish Fort Public Library. The event will be Thursday, September 22 from 5:30 to 7:30 at The Tin Roof Restaurant 10810 U.S. 31, Spanish Fort. Companies can claim a team in the tournament by making a $100 donation to the Spanish Fort Public Library. Spots are filling up quickly, so contact Frank Shepard at 251-263-1866 or [email protected] soon if you would like to participate in the tournament!