Norcross Mayor Bucky Johnson is always grinning from ear to ear, but at the recent city’s arts festival, he was like a euphoric yellow jacket on honey. Strolling along Thrasher Park with a friend, I had to find out why the mayor seemed even happier than usual. Could it be that he’s optimistic about the upcoming T-SPLOST (special-purpose local option sales tax) initiative that he’s been pushing? After all, Norcross could benefit from its passage which could bring in much-needed transportation improvements. No, that excitement was on the backburner for the mayor. On this lovely Saturday, Mayor Johnson’s happiness was all about this year’s incredible arts festival.
"This year’s festival seems bigger than previous years," I said to the mayor, who was standing near Thrasher Park. "I’m amazed that more streets seem to be blocked off."
"Oh yes, we have over 180 vendors!" Johnson exclaimed. "This is a great turnout."
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Mayor Johnson has a reason to smile even wider: with a plethora of talent on display, great food and excellent weather, the 2011 Norcross Art Fest was a success. Mixed with the downtown’s charm, this festival has been a delight for the past eight years, but in my opinion, this year tops them all.
Everything from folk art and paintings to jewelry and photography were on display. While I was there, I felt transformed by the smells of great Greek food and he sounds bluegrass music. Somehow the Norcross Art Fest feels like a mini-vacation that’s just around the corner.
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I always look forward to the festival, which to me, marks the true beginning of autumn. We deserved this after a record-breaking hot summer. Indeed, we could use the rain again as our lakes’ levels are dropping, but hopefully that much-needed H20 will come during the week.
It’s also inspiring to see that the festival promotes art for children as well as Chairs for Charity initiative. The Chairs for Charity donates chairs to the local schools.
Somehow I missed the literary events which featured some of my favorite authors including Elliott Brack, who appeared on Sunday and Richard Eldredge, who appeared later on Saturday. Other literary greats included Cristina Martin, a magazine publisher and journalist. I learned of their times on a sheet that was handed to me after my friend and I got off the shuttle to the event.