COCONUT GROVE ARTS FESTIVAL
Annual street festival features music, art, food
Artist Nancy Ney remembers just how much she loved art as a kid.
“I lived on Long Island, and my mother was very interested in art, so we’d go into Manhattan,” she recalls. “I was exposed at a young age, and I really loved it.”
Now, Ney is one of about 100 artists at the Coconut Grove Arts Festival who will help other young art lovers purchase their first works and build a foundation for the future.
This year the 59th annual festival, which runs throughout Presidents’ Day weekend in Coconut Grove, is introducing the Young Collectors Club, a booth where kids 12 and under can shop for their first works of art. Participating artists will donate small works that will be priced between $5-$10, and kids can buy their favorites without parental intervention. That’s right: No grownups allowed.
Ney, who lives in the Grove, loves the concept and plans to donate a close-up of a lion. Her work showcases many African animals, always a kid magnet. She sees children eagerly thumbing through prints at her booth, calling their parents over to point out what they like.
“It’s a wonderful idea,” she says of the Young Collectors Club, which was created by the festival’s executive director Camille Marchese. “It’s meaningful to buy your first piece of art. You really remember it. I hope this is a tradition they continue here.”
Ronna Katz, a printmaker and painter based in Michigan and New Mexico, says she’s seen similar programs at other art fairs and believes kids respond to it with a lot of joy.
“They feel this sense of autonomy and maturity,” she says, adding that she is donating several small pieces. “It’s all about having a say in the matter of decorating your room. This excitement is a feeling they can capture and continue in the future.”
Her favorite part? Posing for a parent-approved photo
with young art lovers who buy her work.
“The kids feel the empowerment,” she says. “They’re so proud to bring their art to my booth and show me that they picked me. It’s adorable.”
The Young Collectors Club will be open from noon until 4 p.m. at the Inner Artists section of the festival.
Of course, adults can buy art at the festival, too (though probably not for $5). This year’s event features 285 painters, printmakers, sculptors, jewelry artists, photographers and more, with 100 here for the first time. The booths will line South Bayshore Drive, McFarlane Road and Pan American Drive, along with merchandise and food options.
ALSO AT THE FESTIVAL
The Stacks: The six shipping containers have returned once again to act as a canvas for muralists who will paint live throughout the festival.
Kitchen Combat: New to the festival last year, this competition pits Grove chefs and mixologists against their colleagues from around Miami-Dade County
Culinary demonstrations and tastings: Head to the big white tent and try the latest creations from more than 50 restaurants and vendors.
GETTING THERE — AND PARKING
Traffic can be thick around the festival, which draws around 80,000 people to the Grove waterfront each year. Traffic tends to back up on I-95 Southbound at Rickenbacker Causeway, so the
festival recommends ta U.S. 1 or 836 West to 27 Avenue and the festival
You can also take Me rorail to the Coconut Gr station or use ride-shari apps like Uber or Lyft. Y can park at Grove garag on-street meters and pr parking lots.