Garford Arts Fest celebrates art and community in downtown Elyria

ELYRIA — Mel Hale spent most of Saturday putting an artist's touch on the eastern wall of the railroad bridge over Kerstetter Way downtown. Atop a ladder underneath the bridge, the muralist had painted an angular snake form in two shades of blue and was adding squiggly white lines to it, having worked for hours in the hopes of finishing by the end of the day. In the background, hip-hop music blared from an alley just to the west, past metal sculptures and tents featuring artists' crafts — all of it part of the annual Garford Arts Fest along the East Falls Riverwalk and Kerstetter Way downtown. A student at Miami University of Ohio with a triple major including ceramics and art education, it was Hale's first year volunteering on the festival's organizing committee. "Art is big for me in general," said Hale, whose interests run toward "subversive design" and art forms like graffiti while also "subverting expectations" for those viewing the art. The one-day festival, from 4-9 p.m. Saturday, was founded in 2018. It features free admission, art for viewing or purchase, interactive exhibits and food. Festival co-founder Andrea Repko said the 2025 edition of the festival attracted 32 vendors. Among them were sellers with tie dye, African art, necklaces, paintings, wood carvings, metal sculptures and much more. Organizers ask potential vendors and artists to go through an application process prior to the festival to make sure that local creatives, artists and makers are the ones featured. A new layout this year, with tents lining each side of Kerstetter Way from the rear of the Elyria Police Department to the railroad bridge, opened up the area for better crowd access, Repko said. "It's been a really, really great turnout," Repko said Saturday, a hazy day with temperatures hitting a high of 90 degrees downtown. There was live music and alcohol (for adults only, from the Foundry Kitchen and Bar) in "Art Alley" on Tremont Street — the alley along the railroad tracks just north of the 500 block of Broad Street. That's where the tiny 4-inch by 4-inch canvasses of the Elyria Public Library's six-week Tiny Art Show project this summer were displayed. On the north side of the alley, more colorful murals — including one depicting a tentacled, one-eyed beast staring out at passerby from the void of a crumbling concrete wall. To submit art for Garford Arts Fest, to volunteer or learn more, visit GarfordArtsFest.com or visit "Garford Art Fest" on Facebook. On another wall in Art Alley was one of Hale's other creations for this year's festival: A one-story vertical mural painted on brick, featuring an eyeball in white, red, black and gold with the words "Creating is an act of resistance." Hale finished that mural Friday night, and said its message "encapsulates this festival." "It's a labor of love. I have no problem being out here all day," Hale said. Contact Dave O'Brien at (440) 329-7129 or dobrien@chroniclet.com