Art on the Green turns 50. Or 51
It’s official.
The 50th anniversary celebration of Art on the Green opens the weekend starting Aug. 3.
But wait …
You’re saying: “We knew that. It’s been publicized most of the year. We’re all excited to go.”
Sure, but Jolie Bazler, the event coordinator, can tell you that nailing down this 50th anniversary thing wasn’t quite so easy.
The No. 50 part, that is.
“We went round and round about it,” Bazler said. “It was discussed and then talked about some more.”
See, the problem is that Art on the Green began with no green at all — and it was 51 years ago.
“The whole thing started in 1968,” Bazler said. “When we researched all the years to celebrate a 50th, well, 1968 to 2018 is 50 years, right?
“Except the problem is that with a start in 1968, if you’re counting events and not just looking at the number of years, you come up with 51 in 2018.
“Eventually we just decided to go with the years and call this No. 50.”
Seems pretty logical, especially since it would now be impossible to celebrate the actual 50th Art on the Green — which actually took place last summer.
Bazler has reached the point where it’s all now just kind of funny, and she’s decided that whatever number you mathematicians care to put on this year’s event — she just wants it to be terrific.
And by the way, if you have a problem with the yearly count, you can take it up with the director.
But …
That would be Bazler, who is the ONLY full-time staff member.
“Everyone else is a volunteer,” she said. “We have over 500 volunteers — literally from age 5 to 95. There are six volunteer board members, and we have 30 volunteer chairs (for various portions of the event) who work year round to make the festival happen.
And here’s your “Awwww …” item …
Marty McCain, this year’s committee chair, is the daughter of Liz Steve — one of the event’s founders.
THERE YOU go: That’s a good enough reason to certify this year’s Art on the Green as No. 50, right?
By the way, if you’ve been out of town or in a cave for a couple of years, there’s even more reason to attend this year’s festival.
Art on the Green has always been great, but two years ago, Bazler and her board — not to mention that army of volunteers — collectively decided that almost everything was terrific, except maybe …
The place was getting too crowded.
That’s a heck of an endorsement, as attendance keeps going up, but it was getting harder and harder to wander around without knocking other people’s treats out of their mouths.
“We realized what was happening,” Bazler said, “and brought in an engineer to look at our space, where things were set up and what the general flow of people was like.
“We did have to cut back on just a few things, but it was a great improvement. There’s so much more walking space now that it’s pleased everyone.”
Just another reason to spend most (or all) of that weekend at Art on the Green.
It’s awesome.
Go have a blast.
Celebrate the 50th anniversary — with the memory tree and various other looks back over a half-century.
Or if you happen to be a visiting professor from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and insist on calling this No. 51 …
You’ll still love it, and …
No one is going to care about your silly number.
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Steve Cameron is a columnist for The Press.
A Brand New Day appears Wednesday through Saturday each week. Steve’s sports column runs on Tuesday.
Email: scameron@cdapress.com.
Twitter:@BrandNewDayCDA