On your next vacation to Palm Springs and the California desert cities, be sure to stop in the Indian Wells Tennis Garden's annual Art Festival. They say Indian Wells is the place were art is happening and when I last visited the Indian Wells Tennis Garden, a tennis facility known world - wide for its pro tennis events, I could plainly see why. The annual Indian Wells Art Festival takes place each year in early April when the weather in the desert is perfect and the flowers are in bloom. There are over two hundred award winning artists in booths set out over the massive event facility that is the Indian Wells Tennis Garden. The transform this fabulous oasis in the desert with a spectacular splash of colors and textures in a variety of shapes and forms, revealing the hundreds of pieces of one-of-a-kind artwork that is available for purchase to art enthusiasts and shoppers.
Some of the offerings that while strolling by my eyes gazed upon included paintings, drawings, ceramic creations, glass, photography, sculptures that dressed the senses, jewelry, apparel along with hand-crafted wares and other forms of art in all sizes and shapes. What make the venue and the event special, at least to me, is that I was also able to meet many of the artists in person. They spent the time to talk to me about their creative inspiration and their work. This is a three-day event and there is plenty to see. You don't have to be an art aficionado in order to enjoy the Indian Wells Art Festival. The festival is about ten year old and grows in size and prestige with each passing year.
One of the more popular activities and one that I personally enjoyed, was on-site demonstrations of art in the making. Everything from sand sculptures, glass blowing, painting, weaving and large scale stone sculpting. There is also larger than life mural painting, wood carving, and pottery throwing which has to be seen to be enjoyed. With a celebrated reputation for it's high quality and wide variety of fine art and quality craft, I understood why the festival has been ranked one of the "100 Best Fine Art Shows in the Country" by Sunshine Artist magazine as well as being the "Best of the Best" by Palm Springs Life magazine. It is also ranked in the top 100 in both fine art fairs and fine craft shows by Greg Lawler's Art Source Book. After all the sight-seeing and art shopping, my taste buds were throbbing. So I stepped over to the Gourmet Market Place that was filled with gourmet specialties. The artisan village environment also includes an art market that offers art products, sidewalk chalk drawing, children's activities, wine tasting, and live musical entertainment.
If you are looking for a day of sun and beauty, this is a place where one can acquire the affordable and capture the collectible all while enjoying the perfect weather that is Palm Springs in April.