Weather in the DeLand area during March always is an iffy thing. There's no telling what the temperature or rainfall may be. But, for the last 54 years, there's been one sure sign of Spring — the DeLand Outdoor Art Festival. The 54th annual festival will be held March 23 and 24, 2019 in the newly renovated Earl Brown Park, 815 S. Alabama Ave. Admission is FREE. Fine artists from throughout the Southeast will be competing for thousands of dollars in cash prizes and awards.

The festival offers a craft section with items for sale ranging from handmade jewelry, clothing, soaps, infused products, to carved wooden toys. Festival planners believe the event will attract more than 135 artists and crafters. More than 6,000 spectators came to the festival during its two-day event last year. This is the ninth year that the art festival will partner with the Florida Wildflower and Garden Festival in Downtown DeLand. Organizers of both festivals intend to keep the partnership going. A free shuttle bus will run between Downtown and Earl Brown Park for those wanting to attend both events between 10 a.m. and 3 p.m., when the wildflower festival closes on Saturday, March 24. The art festival will be open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday. Since the wildflower festival is a one-day event, the art festival becomes the only show in town on Sunday. That day, the festival will be open 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. As usual, country, folk, bluegrass, blues and other musical performances will be going on throughout this year's festival. Entertainers will be on stage between 10 a.m. and 5 p.m. Saturday and from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday.

Food ranging from Greek salads to popcorn, Wisconsin Cheese Curds, Bar-B-Q, Kettle Korn to Home Made Ice Cream and much, much more to tempt and satisfy your pallet. Festival goers are encouraged to sign up in the information booth for the Spectator drawing of $100 to be spent on fine art & crafts. The drawings are held every hour both days from 11:00 am to 3:00 pm. Meanwhile, The West Volusia Beacon newspaper will continue its tradition of sponsoring the Youth Division of the festival. Art and Soul Studio, owned by Bonny Leary, Orange City, and Casey Marshall, a local graphic designer, are co-sponsoring the division. The division features artwork from students throughout West Volusia. Other sponsors include: City of DeLand; the DeLand Department of Parks and Recreation; Tinker Graphics and the Florida Department of Transportation.

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