Meet artists at the South Main Arts Festival
The fourth annual South Main Arts Festival will take place this weekend, and artists are getting excited to set up their booths at 817 South Main Street. The event — held Saturday, October 18, from 10 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. — will feature juried artist booths, food vendors, art exhibits, a wine tasting room at Grace Heritage Center and music performances by Shelley King and Carolyn Wonderland. Caleb Crisp will paint a mural live, and a pop-up exhibit by resident artists Alex Vietti and Iris Kwon will be at the Georgetown Art Center. Here’s a look at some of the artists featured at this year’s festival.
Markus Lindsey
Markus Lindsey is a photographer sells his photo prints of Texas wildlife and landscapes. Mr. Lindsey’s first job was taking photos for the Williamson County Sun while he was in high school in 1985. His father, Morris Lindsey, worked filling the newspaper stands with papers, while his mother, Barbara, worked in the mail room.
“My very first job interview was with Don Scarborough,” he said. Although he has worked in various fields throughout his life, Mr. Lindsey got back into photography about 10 years ago.
Now, he is a professional vendor and participates in art markets almost every weekend. Mr. Lindsey said his most popular photo is one he sells of a male Cardinal. He said the picture was taken when he unsuccessfully searched for a Green Jay at Goliad State Park. He was initially frustrated with the trip, since Cardinals are common birds he could have found in his own backyard without a two-hour drive.
“I didn’t realize, at the time, the significance the red Cardinal had for people as being a symbol of a past loved one,” he said. Mr. Lindsey’s booth at the South Main Arts Festival will offer prints, including the Cardinal photo.
Emily Tolipova
Artist Emily Tolipova named her business “Where’d The Wild Things Go” after asking herself why certain birds were no longer in cities. She will sell her watercolor illustrations, jumbo sized coloring pages and bingo cards of Texas endangered species and wildflowers, during the arts festival and at the Georgetown Art Center.
The bingo cards allow folks to check species off after finding them outdoors. The back of each card includes a QR code that leads to fun facts about the birds and flowers.
“I’m inspired by play as well as education,” she said. “Getting people excited about getting outside and, in turn, wanting to protect wildlife more.
“It’s kind of like Pokemon [Go], but in real life with birds. I just think that’s really fun. I think we are all looking for ways to kind of connect outside of our screens. The more I can bring that to life with my artwork, I think the better.”
In addition to her art business, Ms. Tolipova does graphic design, video editing and animation.
“I really love just being able to get away from the screen,” she said. “It’s really nice to go analog and just do work that’s with [my] hands.”
Ms. Tolipova just moved to Hutto and has yet to fully explore the trails there. But when she’s in Georgetown, she likes to hike the trails near Blue Hole.
Autumn Yarosz
Autumn Yarosz is a seventh grade science teacher and mixed media artist with a passion for biology. Her subject matter is usually native Texas plants and animals. In her depictions, she tries to model a relationship between an animal and a nearby plant.
“Every now and then, I just walk by something, and I love the texture, particularly textures of trees with a weird growth or a cool pattern in their bark,” she said. “Right now, I am just kind of hyperfixated on cacti and trying to figure out how to do the spines of a cacti.”
She initially wanted to do environmental field work like bird and vegetation land surveys.
“While I was getting my undergraduate degree at Texas State during the summers, I worked for the Bureau of Reclamation, doing endangered bird surveys,” she said. “I’m still getting motivation and inspiration from memories that I had working out in New Mexico or West Texas.”
Over time, however, she became a teacher.
“I was getting kind of depressed working in the conservation and wildlife management, because you just see what’s going wrong constantly,” she said.
Ms. Yarosz always enjoyed drawing but didn’t start the hobby again as an adult until 2020. She said she hopes teaching science and her art will encourage others to look into the benefits of environmental preservation. She will have art prints and some original pieces for sale at the South Main Arts Festival.
Mark and Ashley Chase
Chase Ceramics is owned and operated by Mark and Ashley Chase, a married couple who originally met at a pottery studio. They hope to “add joy” to people’s daily routine with their colorful dishes and wildflower-pressed ceramic home decor.
“[As Mark and I] got more serious, so did our passion for playing in the mud,” Ms. Chase said. “We both kind of just did it together. And now it’s a business.”
Mr. Chase has been doing ceramics for the last 12 years.
“I’m hoping that one day, I can quit my day job and just be a full time potter,” Mr. Chase said.
He is currently a lumber truck driver for McCoy’s Building Supply. After working 11-hour days, he drives home to work in his pottery shed in the backyard. He makes mugs, bowls, plates and vases, but is most known for his ramen bowls, which are designed so chopsticks can rest over the top.
Ms. Chase said she had always “dabbled” in the arts. She creates the decorative wildflower plaques for Chase Ceramics. But pursuing a career as an artisan has never been her dream. She is currently a stay at home mom to their two daughters and is ready to start work again.
“I’m not a homebody. I like being out. I like being in a work environment,” she said. “I am manifesting that it’s happening this year. I’m going to get a job, and he’s going to be able to stay home and do pottery and help with the girls.”
The Chase family lives in Bertram, but travels on weekends to attend markets and festivals. Chase Ceramics has sold at the Christmas Stroll and Market Days in the past. They said Georgetown is their favorite place to sell because it has the open-mindness of Austin but a small town feel.
“It seems that [people in Georgetown] appreciate the art and the effort that is put into it.” Mr. Chase said. “Just the compliments that they give puts a big smile on my face.”