For artist Keith Oelschlanger, the scenes depicted in his paintings aren’t simply Denver landmarks — they’re personal time stamps, reminders of times gone by.
“Pig N’ Whistle” marks Oelschlanger’s birthplace. “Royal Street” conjures up memories from his bachelor party in New Orleans. “Oxford At Union Station” commemorates his wedding day.
“If I don’t love it and I don’t know it, I can’t paint it.” Oelschlanger said. “I can’t give it the same respect.”
Yet, despite the personal nature of Oelschangler’s craft, the Colorado native’s paintings didn’t fail to resonate with customers perusing his stall Saturday morning at the 28th annual Cherry Creek Art Festival.
“I used to bowl here as a kid,” said one man to his wife as he pointed to a painting of a plain-looking building at dusk in the back corner of the tent.
Walking toward her husband, she gazed over his shoulder before a painting of the Oxford Hotel on 17th Street grabbed her attention.
“There are a lot of memories here,” she said while admiring the detail.
Oelschlanger is one of five emerging artists featured at this weekend’s festival. Thanks to CherryArts’ Emerging Artist Program, along with the chance to garner recognition and show their pieces to over 300,000 people, the lucky few receive a discounted booth and training session on the business aspects of professional art.
This year’s festival lines six streets from Second to Third Avenues between Clayton and Steele streets. The festivities kicked off Thursday night with a gala to support art education programs in the Denver area. It closes Sunday evening.
Friday, as a part of CherryArts’ mission to provide Colorado schools with access to art and support arts education, the festival hosted the Janus Henderson Investors Student Art Buying Program. Twenty-four Colorado schools were granted money for student groups to purchase artwork from the festival for permanent display in their schools.
Over the course of the weekend, live music on the main stage and the Culinary Avenue of 22 food vendors take a backseat to the 265 artists — 32 who call Colorado home and 62 first-time Cherry Creek Art Festival exhibitors. Featured pieces encompass 13 mediums, including digital art, fiber, jewelry, metalwork, mixed media, photography and wood.
Cherry Creek’s annual festival is considered one of the best and most competitive art shows in the nation, boasting 2,138 applications this year. Last year, total art sales exceeded $3.2 million — averaging over $12,000 per artist. Despite the scorching heat, 2018 isn’t shaping up to be any different: thousands of people roamed the streets, stopping to speak with artists about their work and inspirations.
For a full list of featured artists, activities, culinary options, and Sunday’s musical performances visit cherrycreekartsfestival.org.