13th Saint Louis Art Fair

THIRTEENTH ANNUAL SAINT LOUIS ART FAIR TO SHOWCASE ARTWORK BY NATIONALLY RECOGNIZED ARTISTS

Free event will feature music, art demonstrations, children’s activities and food

September 8-10, 2006

St. Louis , Mo. , August 2006 – The Saint Louis Art Fair will celebrate its thirteenth anniversary this year with the works of 165 professional artists from around the U.S. , Europe and Canada , including several prominent artists from the metropolitan St. Louis region. Free and open to the public, the 2006 Saint Louis Art Fair is consistently ranked among the top outdoor art festivals in the U.S. with more than 1,700 artists annually vying for a booth to exhibit and sell their art at the three-day event. As with every year, the 2006 Saint Louis Art Fair will feature a wide range of art mediums, including painting, photography, sculpture, jewelry, wood, digital art, metalwork, printmaking, ceramics, fiber, glass, drawing/pastel, and two- and three-dimensional mixed media.

According to Cynthia Prost, President/Executive Director of Cultural Festivals, the producer of the Saint Louis Art Fair, “Artists from around the world covet a spot in the Saint Louis Art Fair because they recognize our strict emphasis on quality as the basis

for selection into the show. Few shows can compare in terms of creative vision and talent.” Prost estimates that more than 150,000 art enthusiasts and their families will attend the Saint Louis Art Fair to purchase more than $2 million worth of gallery-quality art. “Our Saint Louis Art Fair audience is enthusiastic, educated and sophisticated, and more and more world-class artists are becoming aware of this market as a destination for their work.”

Artists’ creations will be exhibited and offered for sale in outdoor booths in the center of Clayton’s Central Business District from 5:00 to 10:00 p.m. on Friday, September 8; from 10:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. on Saturday, September 9; and from 11:00 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Sunday, September 10. All art on display is original, meaning that no machine or mechanical reproductions are accepted.

Jurying for the Saint Louis Art Fair is conducted by a panel of experienced arts industry professionals and is based solely on upon the quality of work as illustrated in submitted slides. A total of three Art Fair jurors rank them for originality, technical execution and overall quality to determine which artists qualify for exhibition. The panel returns to the show in September to judge for awards and $21,000 in cash prizes. The 2006 Saint Louis Art Fair jurors are: Gary Passanise , Director of Painting at Webster University in St. Louis since 1989; Mark Masouka, Executive Director and Chief Curator for the Bemis Center for Contemporary Arts in Omaha, Nebraska and Bonnie Speed , Executive Director of the Michael C. Carlos Museum at Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia.

In addition to the many artist booths, the 2006 Saint Louis Art Fair will feature a variety of musical performances at both its Main and Forsyth stages. A Performing Arts Village will offer dance, magic and poetry, while an arts demonstration area will allow visitors the opportunity to experience creating art in several different mediums. To keep the children busy, the Saint Louis Art Fair’s Creative Castle will also provide a host of hands-on children’s art activities. Food and drink by popular St. Louis restaurateurs and vendors will be available throughout the show.

The 2006 Saint Louis Art Fair is free and open to the public. To learn more, visit

www.saintlouisartfair.com or call 314-863-0278.