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| Copyright Living Letters Studio, Inc. |
With festivals and events like Old New Castle Day and others ending,
how is it that the 50-year-old Brandywine Festival of the Arts is set to
return the weekend of Sept. 11 and 12?
“Quality art and community support,” responds Barry Schlecker,
executive producer of the revived arts festival that will bring
approximately 250 artists and crafters to the banks of the Brandywine
River in Wilmington. “And a bit of nostalgia,” he adds.
“Since we announced the return of the Brandywine Festival of the Arts,
I have received hundreds of phone calls and e-mails from residents
who are thrilled the event will be back, and from artists up and down
the east coast interested in participating,” Schlecker says.
The Festival actually dates back to 1960 and has attracted anywhere
from 10,000 to 25,000 people a year to the banks of the Brandywine
River in downtown Wilmington.
Landscape architect Bill Nicholl has attended the Brandywine Festival
of the Arts all but two years (he was in Hawaii and Portugal) since its
1960 inception. As an engineer for the New Castle County Parks
Department at the time, he was part of the initial planning and has
watched the event grow and evolve ever since.
“This event is an institution, especially to the artists and crafters. But
for a lot of people, it’s a place to see and be seen, to catch up with
old friends, reminisce and to see interesting things. There’s always
something new and different at this Festival,” Nicholl says.
| Riva's display at the Wilmington & Western RR fund raiser Art Show, 2/2010 |