Special to the Town Crier
The Los Altos Rotary Club hosted its 24th annual Fine Art in the Park event May 15-16. More than 195 artists displayed their fine arts and crafts among the redwood trees in Lincoln Park. The event also featured jazz bands, puppet shows and children's attractions.
Rotarian Sam Pesner, 1999 Art Show director, said the show was blessed with beautiful weather.
"When the art show arrives, you know it's spring," John and Pam Byrant of Los Altos said. "We have visited this show for years and it gets better each year. The different artists are always high quality and this year the wines are high quality. This is one of our finest family activities in Los Altos."
Phil and Patti Rose came to look at paintings. "Last year we bought a painting from Italy in one of the booths." Patti said.
In celebration of the 24th anniversary of the Rotary's Fine Art Show, a panel of current and former mayors of Los Altos and Los Altos Hills handed out "Mayor's Choice awards" for the best pieces of art in different categories. The awards are sponsored by the Town Crier.
Zhengfu Lu, a San Francisco artist, received one of the awards for his "White on Orange in the City." His paintings present abstract scenes of poor villages in China. "My origins are Chinese, but my art belongs to the world." Lu said.
Dan Baum, a Menlo Park artist, has exhibited the last five years. His photographs are of European landscape and architecture. "I enjoy this show because we see a lot of our old clients, and people stop by to say hello. It's a very good show for us," he said.
Ellyna Berglund exhibits chalk pastels of abstract whimsical scenery. "People are predisposed to buy when they come here," she said. "The people who visit this show are fairly well educated and looking for the high end in art."
Fine Art in the Park is made possible by volunteers. Los Altos Rotary Club members donate their time, and members of Boy Scout Troop 37 help sell popcorn and operate the soft drink booths.
The show is the largest fund-raiser of the year for the Los Altos Rotarians, with proceeds benefiting local and international charities.