By JACQUELINE M. DOMIN
Sue Brown Gordon went to college to teach art, but she found a different way
to turn her love of art into a career.
For more than two decades, Gordon, of Greenfield Center, has coordinated art festivals around the Northeast.
I really felt that by doing these events, I was reaching far broader than the classroom, Gordon said.
Last year, Gordon launched a new festival, the Saratoga Arts Celebration, at the National Museum of Dance. It’s back for a second year this weekend, running Saturday and Sunday, Aug. 21 and 22, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., on the museum’s front lawn.
Gordon was excited by last year’s turnout and expects even more people to come by this year, especially since the celebration has attracted twice as many exhibitors as last year. Twenty-seven states are represented along with Canada, and Gordon said everyone who has a piece in the show will be there in person.
`It’s a requirement,` she said. `They cannot exhibit if they cannot be there.`
So what would compel an artist from across the country to spend the weekend in Saratoga? Gordon said many of the artists have some kind of personal connection to this area. The region is a draw in and of itself, too.
`It doesn’t hurt that it’s track season,` she said with a laugh.
Beyond that, Gordon said that she has a good track record of putting on successful festivals. She is the director of the SoNo Arts Celebration in Norwalk, Conn., and the Center Crafts Show in Saratoga, as well as the Bruce Museum Craft Festival and Bruce Museum Fine Arts Festival in Greenwich, Conn. She has coordinated juried fine art festivals at the Bruce Museum for more than 20 years.
Gordon said she measures an event’s success by the public’s response. Last year in Saratoga, `people were so happy,` she said.
It was just the kind of show she had always envisioned holding in Saratoga. Gordon had long felt that if she was going to do a festival in Saratoga, it would have to be on the vast and beautiful lawn at the National Museum of Dance.
`It feels right and it feels like it was meant to happen,` she said.
The festival not only provides exposure for the artists, who are particularly grateful to sell pieces in this economy, it brings people to the museum who might not otherwise go there, Gordon said. That’s one of her favorite things about coordinating festivals: bringing new crowds to the museums.
`This is an opportunity to see it,` she said. `It’s just good, easy fun.`
Since the weekend’s emphasis is on not only visual but performing arts, in addition to static exhibits there will be dancing, live music and artist talks. Each artist is also asked to have a storyboard that explains the process he or she went through to create the piece that’s being displayed.
All kinds of media will be represented. There will be paintings, photographs, drawings, sculptures, jewelry, ceramics, metal and glass pieces for sale.
Participating artists applied largely by sending digital imagery to Gordon, who shared it with a panel of judges. Slightly more than 100 artists were selected for the show. Gordon stressed that each is an independent artist.
`They’re small businesses, not people backing up warehouse trucks,` she said.
In addition to coordinating festivals, Gordon is a longtime artist herself, creating paintings and jewelry. She relishes the chance to give fellow artists a chance to show off their work and looks forward to further establishing the Saratoga festival this weekend.
Admission is free, and festivalgoers can also visit the Museum of Dance for no charge. The festival will be held rain or shine and includes a food court. “