PRESS RELEASE
Submitted by Lisa Finkelstein, Executive Director
Fernandina Beach Main Street
April 20, 2021
A long-standing Fernandina Beach tradition, Shrimp Fest, will be celebrated during the first weekend in May with shrimp-themed shop windows. This year Fernandina Beach Main Street will once again partner with art students from the FBHS Art Department to bring some of the festivity to downtown on the traditional Shrimp Fest weekend.
Art students will work in teams to paint windows throughout the historic downtown business district, under the guidance of Joy Keith, Art Instructor for the FBHS Art Department. The public is invited to wander downtown from Friday, April 30th, through Sunday, May 2nd, to watch students paint. Painting headquarters will be in the pocket park next to Amelia Island Coffee. Everyone is invited to vote for their favorite window during the month of May!
Painting locations will include Pelindaba Lavender, Teak & Ivy, Summer House Realty, Villa Villekulla Toy Store, Debonair, Amelia Island Coffee, Olive Amelia, Color It Green, Centered on Yoga, Wicked BAO, Lemongrass, Trailer Park Collectibles, Pineland Bank, and Red Otter.
“Window painting is a great way to involve our young artists in a project that brings people into our downtown and honors a long-standing Fernandina Beach event” says Lisa Finkelstein, Executive Director of Fernandina Beach Main Street. Proceeds from this project support the FBHS Art Department and Fernandina Beach Main Street.
For up-to-date information on this event and the Fernandina Beach Main Street District, visit https://www.fernandinamainstreet.com or find us at https://www.facebook.com/FernandinaMainStreet.
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Fernandina Beach Main Street is part of the National Main Street Program that includes more than 1,200 communities – large and small, rural and urban – in all 50 states and the District of Columbia. The goal of the main street program is strengthening communities through preservation-based economic vitality in older and historic downtowns and neighborhood commercial districts. It is a subsidiary of the National Trust for Historic Preservation.
All this art will be fun to watch!!
Indeed! Watching the talented artists paint a unique shrimp-themed window for each of the businesses last year, both for Shrimp Fest AND the Christmas holiday was a real joy! A bit bittersweet to be sure without the usual festivities, but a great showcase for local talent!