Fantastic Figures Festival Heralds Coming of New Felton Library

From Felton Library Friends: Celebrating the pending construction of a new community library, Felton Library Friends will host a “Fantastic Figures” art installation and exhibit beginning May 20 through June 16.

A free kickoff celebration will be held Saturday, May 20 from noon to 4 p.m., and include art activities for all, food, information on the library project, a drawing, and the beginning of an online art auction. Musical performances will be offered by Patti Maxine and Friends, Ben Lonesome and the Highway 9ers, Dave McClellan and Friends and Little People's Repertory Theater. The gateway to the San Lorenzo Valley, Felton has seeking a new library for many years. The current library outgrew its current location in the historic Belardi building long ago, and groundbreaking for a new, larger library on Gushee Street next to the U.S. Post Office is scheduled for 2018.

“It has been a long wait,” says Marilyn Robertson, a longtime member of Felton Library Friends. “We are very excited and feeling rather celebratory.”

Conceived by a group of local artists and Felton Library Friends Marilyn Robertson and Nancy Gerdt, the installation will consist of a dozen larger-thanlife figures symbolizing the broad spectrum of library users and the tremendous breadth of qualities and worlds a library brings to the public. The concept was inspired by Ben Lomond artist Eileen Murray, who has constructed two such figures in her garden.

“I adapted the idea from the African nkisi, fascinating protective figures covered with hardware and nails, placed in front of properties in the Congo,” Murray explained. “They are very primitive and beautiful. The African figures are meant to scare people away, but ours are meant to entice. They are garden art.”

The Fantastic Figures will be donated by the artists and will be auctioned off online over a period of several weeks, starting on May 20. Participating artists include Murray, Karen Asherah, Eleanor Carolan, Alexis Spakoski, Karen Close, Jennifer Hennig, Janet Silverglate, Sophie Webb, Bill Jurgens, Nina Moore and Lise Bixler.

The funds raised will benefit the new Library and the beautiful outdoor areas. Auction details will be available at www.feltonlibraryfriends.org.

Photo courtesy of Felton Library Friends