Syracuse native Ann Szeplaki inspects one of her paintings at the Oakwood Art Festival. Most of her paintings are done in the winter when she has more time to devote to art. The subjects are rendered from photographs and her memory. Szeplaki has, she said, “been a patron for many years.” (Photo by David Hazledine)

SYRACUSE— Visitors to the 2017 Oakwood Art Festival, hosted by Chautauqua-Wawasee, 702 E. Lake View Rd., Syracuse, Saturday, Aug. 26, basked in a clear, sunny day, ideal conditions for viewing a wide variety of works by artists and artisans from all over the upper Midwest.

Nicole Stevens, a Muncie-based painter, and husband John, donned sunglasses outside of a tent adorned inside and out with her vivacious, colorful canvases. “Last year it rained the whole time,” she recalled.

Tammy Cotton, the Chautaqua-Wawassee manager overseeing the event, estimated 300 visitors throughout the day perused the wares of 40 vendors, which included musicians, Indiana winemakers, food stands.

Pianist Dave Lachaw, left, and bassist Kevin Piekarski, added their jazz stylings to the festival.

For this year’s event, Cotton and others attended several other festivals, collecting artists’ cards in an attempt to broaden the festival’s scope. From the comments of attendees and the exhibitors themselves, they were successful. “It’s an eclectic mix of artists, which is nice to see,” said Kathleen Johnston of Syracuse, who has patronized several previous Oakwood art events.

Included in this melange were local organizations such as the Kosciusko Community Foundation and Syracuse-Wawasee Trail, both of which offered activities for children.

Suzanne Light, Community Foundation director, provided a kids art tent where children decorated bags to be donated to homeless shelters and cards, which will be sent to nursing homes. “We had about 50 kids come through,” Light commented.

Melodie Koher, president of the Lakeland Art Association, was also on hand, overseeing the potter and jewelry of Syracuse’s Elizabeth Walmsley. “We help out whenever we can,” said Koher, who added that her friend’s exhibit saw “a lot of traffic,” an observation echoed by other exhibitors.

Lakeland Art Association President Melodie Koher showing the work of Elizabeth Walmsley.

At the wine table, Tippy Creek and Hucklerry Hill wineries offered free samples to attendees. Emily Mallory, of Huckleberry Hill, traveled from Linton, Indiana, and was thrilled to have “sold quite a few bottles.”

The only negative of the festival seemed to be that it ended too soon, at 3 p.m.. Cotton said Chautauqua-Wawasee would look into the possibility of extending festival hours, either in the morning or afternoon. Indeed, she is already building the planning for next year’s event, and anyone interested in helping out should visit chautauquawawasee.org