Finding The Artist Within

ARTFEST 2001 in Langhorne, Pa., this weekend will showcase local artists and bring out the artist in the locals.

By: Jodi Thompson
   For a small borough of 1,700, Langhorne has its fair share of artists. Include neighboring towns and townships, and the number of creative sorts jumps dramatically.
   Nine years ago, Langhorne residents Carol Zetterberg and Ed Toland decided their town needed a council to serve its artists. The idea was bandied about for some time until Mr. Toland, an accountant and treasurer for nearly every group in town, offered to keep the books should someone else actually start an arts council.

Southampton resident Mary Walsh, above, will showcase her paintings Oct. 6 at the Langhorne, Pa., ARTFEST 2001.

   "So I handed Ed 10 dollars and said, ‘Now you owe 10 dollars. And now we’ve started it,’ " Ms. Zetterberg says.
   What began as a collection of dues is now paying off as Langhorne ARTFEST 2001. The celebration kicks off Oct. 5 with an Artists’ Reception and Dessert Night at the home studio of two Langhorne artists. Selected works of local artists will be displayed and a silent auction will take place.
   ARTFEST will be held the next day at the Langhorne Heritage Farm. The festival honors the fine and performing arts.
   "We feel that everybody has creativity in them," Ms. Zetterberg says. "This event is a day for people to come and appreciate other people’s creativity and also to participate. That’s important to us."
   ARTFEST offers adult and youth art shows. Four on-site artists will open their studios to visitors. Council writers display their work on "The Writing Wall," actually a barn door.
   Musicians will entertain, as will Irish step dancers from Ryan School of Dance, headed by Langhorne resident Joanne Schneider.
   Festival-goers can paint a pumpkin or flowerpot, make a scarecrow or have their faces painted.
   "We have an open mike so writers can read their writing," Ms. Zetterberg says. "We have the open mike also for people who just want to jump up and sing."
   Or play an instrument, she adds later. They’ll accept just about any expression of the creative spirit, within reason, of course. Ms. Zetterberg enjoys the unexpected.

One of Ms. Walsh’s pieces.

   "It makes it interesting and it makes it exciting because you never quite know what’s going to happen," she says.
   The Langhorne Council for the Arts may be a discovery of sorts for many in the area. The council seeks to encourage the average person to explore the arts.
   "We have a very unusual philosophy in our art program and in our program for kids," Ms. Zetterberg says. "Our focus is on allowing and enabling people to find the creative part within themselves and to express that."
   In that spirit the youth art show no longer awards first, second and third place prizes. Every child is a winner. The judges examine each piece to determine what is unique about the work. That quality is recognized with a custom award and an age-appropriate gift of art supplies.
   The Heritage Farm seems the perfect environment for the artist. It’s a quiet spot within bustling and bursting suburbia. The brick house is a step back in time with a front porch and interior woodwork detail not seen in new construction. The yellow and green barn and outbuildings combine to paint a serene landscape.
   Four artists-in-residence occupy what were once chicken coops, a calving barn and the milking area. Community gardens fill the fields and the bull’s pen is a shady meditation garden.
   Ms. Zetterberg points out how peaceful the farm is. She insists ARTFEST echoes that tranquil atmosphere.
   "It’s a very relaxed day," she says. "Everybody has something creative in them. We just want to be here to help them explore. We don’t push anybody to do anything. Whatever talent people have, there’s a place for them to express it here."
Langhorne ARTFEST 2001 opens with an Artists’ Reception and Dessert Night at 128 E. Maple Ave., Langhorne, Oct. 5, 7-9:30 p.m. Tickets cost $12.50. ARTFEST takes place at the Heritage Farm, 222 N. Green St., Langhorne, Oct. 6. Raindate Oct. 7, 1-4 p.m. Admission costs $2.50, $1 for children. Money raised benefits art programs and farm improvements. For information, call (215) 750-3712.