SARASOTA — American Craft Endeavors will mark a milestone as it presents the 30th annual Downtown Sarasota Craft Festival. The event will take place on Saturday and Sunday, Oct. 17-18, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., at Five Points Park, 1 Central Ave. in Sarasota.
Admission is free. Visit www.artfestival.com.
The festival will showcase hundreds of creative creations — including original oil paintings, unique, hand-made jewelry, woodwork and functional, wheel-thrown ceramics. The rain-or-shine outdoor event is pet friendly and includes a full green market of live plants, handmade soaps, delicious edibles and more. All the pieces in this juried showcase are handmade in America and priced for all budgets. Every creator is on site to discuss the inspirations behind each piece, and to take custom orders.
Among the craft artisans scheduled to participate in the festival is Phil Darst, a Sarasota-based mixed-media artist whose lifelong passion for creativity shapes his vivid coastal and wildlife artwork.
Recognized at a young age as an art prodigy, Darst began oil painting lessons at age 10, attended college art classes by 15, and held his first solo exhibition as a high school senior. He formally studied fine arts at Ball State University before training at the Kendall School of Design, which launched a successful, decades-long career in interior design and retail management.
Throughout his corporate life, Darst continued to paint, exhibiting his work in various galleries and art shows. Now retired near the shores of Siesta Key Beach, he draws daily inspiration from the local coastline. Darst routinely walks the beaches, sketching and photographing the regional wildlife, ocean views, and visitors that populate his scenic paintings.
Also taking part in the festival is Sarasota’s own Andrea Lara, the artisan behind Alegria Co-Creations. Lara’s passion for handcrafted work began in early childhood when she would design and make her own toys. She created piñatas and matching candy holders which she sold for birthday parties in her teens, and continued exploring her love of drawing, crochet, cake decorating and figurines.
After moving from Argentina to the United States at age 16, Lara followed a more traditional career path, until a chance decision to make an original piece of jewelry for her partner, Barnardo, led to the beginning of Alegria Co-Creations. Founded in 2022, Alegria Co-Creations has expanded from an online Etsy shop to her life as a traveling jewelry artisan. Each piece is lovingly created with premium leather cords and genuine freshwater pearls or natural gemstones, then embellished with sterling silver or stainless-steel beads.
Commuting all the way from Largo, Edward McCormack is the founder of the original Clarendon Hardwood Bowl Company. Originally from Vermont, he and his father designed and fabricated the custom machinery for the Great Alaskan Bowl Company before McCormack decided to take their ideas and start their own company.
Unlike Alaska, where the primary source of wood is birch, McCormack was able to source Vermont’s hardwoods — including cherry, butternut, maple and walnut — to make their distinctive, extra-deep bowls that were sought after up and down the east coast. They would sell first to the kitchen and dining industry during the summer and springtime, then McCormack would sell others through ACE shows in the wintertime during the 1990s and early 2000s. Five years ago, following the passing of his father and brother, McCormack relocated to Largo where he is now retired and still finishing, sanding and selling the increasingly-hard-to-find bowls throughout the craft festival circuit.
West Coast photographer Craig Sheffield captures the beauty of coastal life.
“I’ve always loved nature and going on adventures,” Sheffield says on his website. “What really ignited my passion for photography was whale sharks. Two years in a row while fishing offshore I came across whale sharks. It was truly majestic. From then on, I wanted to capture their beauty and share it. Today I’m capturing beauty as I see it.”
About American Craft Endeavors
American Craft Endeavors produces some of the nation’s most exciting high-end juried craft shows in many of Florida’s vibrant downtown areas and popular tourist destinations including the St. Pete Beach Corey Area Craft Festival and the Downtown Dunedin Craft Festival, among others. The group’s founders personally select unique, culture rich cities for their show locations providing a complete outdoor experience unmatched by other festivals. For additional information, visit www.artfestival.com or call 561-746-6615.