PRESS RELEASE: For Immediate Release

NORTHAMPTON, MA

Event Date: May 27-29, 2023, Memorial Day Weekend

Meet more than two hundred outstanding artists and master craft makers traveling from 16 states to show and sell original works in ceramics, painting, decorative fiber, art glass, furniture, jewelry, metal, mixed media, photography, sculpture, wearable art, and woodworking. 

Northampton, Massachusetts – For 28 years, the award-winning Paradise City Arts Festival in Northampton has positioned itself as New England’s leading fair of fine craft, art and design. Held inside three airy buildings connected by covered walkways, and along the outdoor Sculpture Promenade, the show is beloved for its distinctive indoor-outdoor nature. The 12,000 square-foot Dining Tent commands a grassy lawn surrounded by outdoor sculpture. With lots of brand-new artists, great food by local chefs, a benefit Silent Art Auction and fun activities, visitors are kept busy and enthralled all weekend long.

Paradise City Arts Festival is all about authenticity. It is the place to see the work and hear the stories of extraordinary artists and makers from every corner of America. 10,000 attendees, some traveling long distances, visit this sprawling show held on Saturday, Sunday and Monday of Memorial Day Weekend. Yankee Magazine called it “the fairest of the fairs” and wrote “The Northampton visual arts scene explodes at the Paradise City Arts Festival, an extravaganza of 200-plus top-notch craftspeople and fine artists that’s been dazzling shoppers since 1995.”

Director Linda Post says, “You don’t get any more ‘small business’ than an independent artist or craftsperson designing and making original work one at a time in his or her studio. This is a movement that began in the sixties or seventies as part of the counterculture. It is now an inspiration for the indie artisan community that has taken hold among a new generation throughout America. People are also looking for the personal touch, the conversations with artists that are a vital part of what makes festivals like Paradise City valuable to the arts community in the 21st century. When you bring something home from a show like this, there is a narrative to it,” Post explains. “Those stories give an extra dimension to the objects that surround you in your home.”

SPECIAL EXHIBIT: With Flying Colors!

Summer approaches, and a virtual torrent of color washes away the monotones of winter.  Nature obliges with flowers in every color of the rainbow. What better time for Paradise City artists to step up and reveal their true colors when they celebrate this show’s Special Exhibition, “With Flying Colors!”

Color plays a pivotal role in all visual arts, whether in paint, clay, steel, stone, or cloth. The interplay of light and dark, bright and dull, colors from opposite sides of the wheel – these allow artists to express emotions, tell stories, explore landscapes and create new ones. We savor the richly distinctive hues of a handwoven jacket and revel in the beautifully colored scarves that adorn them. We search for the perfect gemstone that brings out the radiant color in someone’s eyes. Woodworkers often use accent colors to highlight shape and grain; a colorful table runner can even join with the rich hues of a maple or walnut surface to herald a meal fit for royalty. Ceramic and glass vessels of all types, by their very nature, play with light and offer a virtual panoply of color. And of course there is painting; in the hands of an artist, the deft and inspired use of color practically tells a story all its own. This exhibit is on display in Building #2.

“I found I could say things with color and shapes that I couldn’t say any other way; things I had no words for.” –  Georgia O’Keeffe

Silent Art Auction Benefit for ILI

The International Language Institute of Massachusetts (ILI) provides free English classes for new arrivals from all over the world so they can utilize their skills in this country and successfully integrate into their community. The campaign for this program is called Giving Voice. A varied selection of beautiful and valuable donations by Paradise City exhibitors will open for bidding each day at the Silent Auction Tables. Paradise City’s Silent Art Auctions have raised more than $500,000 for community non-profits over the years. The Auction takes place in Exhibition Building #3.

International Foods under the Festival Dining Tent

The 12,000 square-foot Festival Dining Tent is a microcosm of Northampton’s vibrant restaurant scene, with recipes that span the globe. Chefs from the region’s restaurants introduce new dishes every season, often using ingredients straight from the Valley’s farms. From exotic curries to locavore burgers and dim sum, there is something for every palate. A full bar offers wine, beer and Paradise City’s signature cocktails, including the popular Manhattan Meets Northampton.

Music highlights regional bands: The O-Tones, the Green Street Trio with outstanding guest vocalist Avery Joi, and the Leslie Alexandra Quartet.

All Around the Show

Paradise City keeps its visitors’ hands, eyes and brains busy. Alan and Rosemary Bennett, known for their life-sized, realistic renditions of fish and sea creatures, lead immensely popular clay sculpture workshops for children (and the young at heart). The changing installations and large-scale sculpture along the Sculpture Promenade between the Festival Dining Tent and the Exhibition Buildings are catnip for kids, Instagram heaven and full of fantastic decorating ideas for the attendees’ own gardens.

In addition, one often comes across an artist working on a painting, sketching out a concept for a commission, carving wood or sizing clothing for a client. This is one of the little pleasures of Paradise City. Not only is the event an opportunity to meet the artists and talk to them about their work, but there is always a glimpse of the technique and thought process behind each piece of art.

Fast Facts

What:
Paradise City Arts Festival (AKA Springtime in Paradise)
Over 200 competitively juried artists from every part of the country exhibiting original works in ceramics, painting, decorative fiber, art glass, furniture, jewelry, metal, mixed media, photography, large-scale sculpture, wearable art and woodworking.

Where:
In three airy, high-ceilinged Exhibition Buildings, along the Sculpture Promenade, and under the Festival Dining Tent, rain or shine, at the 3 County Fairgrounds: 54 Old Ferry Road, off Rt. 9 in Northampton, MA 01060

When:
May 27, 28 & 29, 2023
Memorial Day Weekend
Saturday 10am-6pm
Sunday 10am-5pm
Monday 10am-4pm

Admission:
Adults: $14 online, $16 at the door. Students: $8.
12 and under free. Tickets available online or at the box office.
Free Parking!
Free full color program with admission.

And More!
Food by local chefs and music every day under the Festival Dining Tent • International Language Institute of Massachusetts Benefit Silent Art Auction • Special exhibit: “With Flying Colors!” • Workshops & Demonstrations • Art installations along the Sculpture Promenade

Information & Tickets:
Call 800.511.9725 or visit: www.paradisecityarts.com

Regional Exhibiting Artist Lists

Paradise City offers illustrated listings of exhibitors from various regions, along with contact information for interviews and artist websites. If you plan to feature a specific Paradise City artist, please get in touch with us to obtain high-resolution images to accompany your story. Lists of exhibiting artists from other regions of the country are also available.

Western Massachusetts

Connecticut

Vermont and New Hampshire