Spotlight

Cary's Spring Daze celebration helps ring in the town's 150th anniversary

Cary's popular Spring Daze arts festival will look a little different this year, as the town hosts four consecutive arts markets throughout the month of May in celebration of the town's 150-year anniversary.

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Town of Cary : Spotlight : Spring Daze
By
Abbey Slattery
, WRAL Digital Solutions
This article was written for our sponsor, the Town of Cary.

Since 1994, Cary's Spring Daze Arts and Crafts Festival has been inviting hundreds of local artisans and vendors to exhibit and sell their work. Due to COVID, this year's festival will look a little different than usual, but the town is still inviting local artists while adhering to proper safety protocols.

"Spring Daze is traditionally a festival, however, due to COVID we had to cancel last year — and we were trying our hardest not to cancel two years in a row. We looked at the landscape and tried to figure out what we could do despite the pandemic and the restrictions," said Adam Bell, festivals and events supervisor for the Town of Cary. "I went directly to the source and sent out surveys to the artists asking if they'd be willing to have a market over multiple weekends. That communication in and of itself has really helped guide the decision-making."

In setting up the new format for the festival, Bell reached out to similar arts markets that operated during COVID, asking about the safety protocols and helpful guidelines they followed.

This year's Spring Daze will have one designated entrance and designated exit, booths will be spaced ten feet apart and masks are required. Capacity will also be limited and tracked with a clicker, and hand sanitizing stations will be available, as well.

Anywhere from 20 to 25 artists will set up booths for four weekends in May — the first, the eighth, the 15th and the 22nd — from 10 a.m. until 2 p.m. All artists are from North Carolina, and most will rotate through each weekend, bringing variety to the market.

While the festival is usually located in Bond Park, this year it's slated to take place in downtown Cary at the Fidelity Bank parking lot and will coincide with the town's 150th anniversary celebration, as well as the Downtown Farmer's Market.

"This is going to be the first special event that the Town of Cary is hosting since the start of the pandemic. If we're looking at an overall picture, this is a kickoff and a precursor to the spring into the summer," said Bell. "Because we moved the arts market from Bond Park to downtown, one of our goals is to drive business and economic development into downtown and give visitors an opportunity to seek out food and explore."

This year, Bell received over 300 applications from artists across the state to participate in the market. Since Spring Daze is a juried festival, artists must be selected by a panel in order to be included.

Ginnie Parrish of Blue Frog Design is a long-time participant of Spring Daze, showcasing her work at the festival since 1995. While this year will be different from years in the past, Parrish is looking forward to the chance to participate again — and contribute in drawing more traffic into Downtown Cary thanks to the location change.

"The first year I did Spring Daze, they used to have it in front of Herbert Young Community Center before they moved it out to Bond Park. With COVID, and simplifying it and making it smaller, I think the four smaller art markets in downtown Cary are a smart idea. Not only are they making it safer, but downtown has a lot to offer, too, so it's nice that they're drawing people in," said Parrish. "Cary has always been supportive of the arts, and the market is nice for the artists to be able to participate and get some exposure. There are a couple of galleries downtown, too, so it's always nice when there are events that help draw people into those and the other shops in the area, as well."

Parrish specializes in polymer clay, using the synthetic material to cover things like glass vases and kitchen utensils. She also creates her own jewelry, bowls, boxes and other functional decorative art using the clay. While Parrish will likely attend more than one weekend, most of the artists will rotate over the four-week period, so visitors can expect an ever-changing variety of wares at each market.

For Bell, this year's Spring Daze marks the beginning of a transition back to safe community gatherings — and both Bell and Parrish hope to see the market not only generate support for local artists, but also encourage more exploration of all downtown Cary has to offer.

"It's a long-standing event that's now shifting to be something a little bit more unique for 2021, and I hope people can come down and make a day out of it," said Bell. "As we also celebrate the town's 150th anniversary, I think this is only going to add to that rich history of Cary."

This article was written for our sponsor, the Town of Cary.

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