CALENDAR
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GOOD NEIGHBOR
Art by Skylar Sloan
Art by Blake Gore
Finding the Art
T H E S E S E L F-TAU G H T A R T I S T S H AV E E M B R AC E D THEIR CREATIVE GIFTS, PURSUING CAREERS IN THE FIELD AND SHARING THEIR WORK WITH T H E P U B L I C AT A R T S F E S T I VA L S N E A R A N D FA R . WRITTEN BY LESLIE CRISS PHOTOGRAPHED BY JOE WORTHEM
Noel Jones
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INVITATION | APRIL 202 2
Art by Barbara Eaton
A
rtists of myriad mediums who take part in the arts festival circuit are in preparation mode. It’s been a while coming — two years to be precise, thanks to a COVID-19-caused festival hiatus. The time’s finally coming for them to pack and unpack their canvasses, pottery, jewelry and more, display it under an open-air tent in a town square and meet art appreciators in small towns during festival season. Depending on the size of the festival, the number of artist booths varies. Gumtree Art & Wine Festival taking place May 6-8 in Tupelo is planning for more than 60 artists to be on hand this year; Oxford’s April 22-23 Double Decker Festival is planning for about 180. One thing is clear, Mississippi is (and long has been) home to a vast amount of artistic creativity. Noel Jones, pictured at left, is one Mississippi artist glad to see festival season returning this year. Visit invitationmag.com to read more about how he and fellow artists Blake Gore, Skylar Sloan and Barbara Eaton have each developed their creative pursuits. Visit invitationmag.com to learn more about and see more work from Mississippi artists Noel Jones, Skylar Sloan, Blake Gore and Barbara Eaton.
