Gloucester Arts Festival Set For June 2021

Don’t just save one date this June. Save the entire month.

The Gloucester Arts Festival will return to rural coastal Virginia for its fifth year, kicking off June 3, 2021 with an unveiling of sculptures on Main Street and culminating with a U.S. Navy Fleet Forces Band concert.

Throughout the month, guests can watch as plein air artists from across the mid-Atlantic paint the Heart of the River collection, competing for over $20,000 in prize money; a Virginia Symphony Orchestra free community performance under the stars; Meet the Artists during the Brews & Brine event at historic White Marsh Farm; a blue grass concert at Abingdon Church; Cocktails in the Garden with the artists at Brent & Becky’s Bulbs; and the visit of the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts Art Mobile.

“If there is anything we all have learned in the last year, it’s the importance of coming together, being together, and of community,” said Mollie Stewart, the 2021 Gloucester Arts Festival Chairman.

“We are delighted to bring the Gloucester Arts Festival back safely and use this important cultural event to celebrate the artist community, the Gloucester community, our community.”

As it has in year’s past, the event draws from all over, allowing the Gloucester region to showcase its bounty.

“We’re delighted that in addition to the artists themselves who will be participating in the plein air painting event, we have attracted an esteemed sculptor to showcase his work on our Main Street and an incredible judge for the show,” Stewart said of Larry Moore who will serve as the 2021 Gloucester Arts Festival judge and sculptor Jay Lagemann.

Lagemann is most widely known for creating animated, playful characters from metal. He created the monumental bronze Swinging Jenny, of which an 18-foot by 22-foot version is publicly on display in New York City.

All events will be held outdoors and will remain in compliance with current COVID-19 safety guidelines.

Learn more about the Gloucester Arts Festival and view a detailed calendar of events at gloucesterartsfestival.com.