Annual art festival showcases local artisans

The little park on Morro Bay Boulevard becomes a bustling artisan market three times a year over the long holiday weekends of Memorial Day, Fourth of July and Labor Day.
After 64 years, Morro Bay Art in the Park continues to showcase artists from around California and the West Coast.
Steve Powers, an art show coordinator since 1975, has been organizing the festival since 2016.
The festival is owned by the Morro Bay Art Association, an organization formed to promote the arts in San Luis Obispo County. Money raised from the shows go toward scholarships for high school students.
The show is limited to 108 booths because of the small size of park. About half of the artists are from San Luis Obispo County.
“Supporting local artists is very important and this show will showcase many fabulous local talents,” artist Deb Lysek said.
“People should come out to this event because of the large variety of art available in an equal variety of price ranges,” potter Dave Pope added. “Visitors get the opportunity to meet and talk to the various artists. Steve Powers does a great job ensuring a variety of art. Basically, there is something for everyone.”
Because there aren’t any restaurants near the park, there is a small food court allowing people to get food while they peruse the wares of about 125 artisans. The layout of the booths was changed a few years ago to allow shoppers to easily flow through shows without hitting a dead end.
“There’s nothing else at all that compares to the quality of the Morro Bay Art Festival,” Powers said. “There are a lot of people who
have moved in over the last couple of years who don’t know about the event. I think they’ll be pretty impressed.”
The shows take place from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday and from 10 a.m. to
4 p.m. on Monday.
For more information about Morro Bay Art in the Park, visit morrobayartinthepark.com.