MKAF celebrates 19 years of Festival of the Arts

After 19 years, the Mattie Kelly Arts Foundation continues to celebrate the cultural arts by enhancing the offerings of its annual Festival of the Arts set for Oct. 25-26 at the scenic MKAF Cultural Arts Village in Destin.

“We are thrilled to return to our original roots when this Festival was first born in 1995 and billed as ‘art on the lawn’ by Southern Living magazine,” said Mattie Kelly Arts Foundation CEO Marcia Hull. “Today, the new Festival site portrays that ambience of a spacious green and one of the Emerald Coast’s largest entertainment stages for musicians to perform. Hospitality is our number one priority to create a pleasant environment for all of our artists and Festival fans.” 

The 19th annual edition of the Festival brings fresh art and new faces to the sugar-sand beaches of the Emerald Coast. This year, 23 new artists will participate in displaying everything from oil paintings and fine photography to mixed media, mosaics, sculpture, clay ceramics, jewelry and more.

In addition to art exhibits, six local and regional musicians and bands will perform live throughout the weekend on stage at The Dugas Pavilion. Scheduled performers include:

• Oct. 25: Coconut Radio Band, 10 a.m. to noon; Matt Hoggatt, 12:30-2:30 p.m.; and Mr. Perfect, 3-5 p.m.

• Oct. 26: Continuum, 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.; The Season Ammons Band, 1:30-3 p.m.; and Geoff McBride, 3:30-5 p.m.

The Festival is open to the public and runs from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday. Daily admission is $3. The event is free to children under 12 and MKAF members. For more information, visit www.MattieKellyArtsFoundation.org or call 850-650-2226.