West Franklin Street closes for 44th Festifall

West Franklin Street was filled with artists, patrons, musicians and food trucks on Sunday for the 44th annual Festifall Arts Festival.

While the inclement weather caused the festival to be canceled last year, about 15,000 people took part in this year’s art festival.

Amanda Fletcher, supervisor of festivals and community celebrations for Chapel Hill, said Festifall takes about 10 months to plan.

“From the applications going up on the website to today, there are about 300 different moving parts,” she said.

Part of those 10 months was dedicated to organizing and curating the applications of about 100 artists.

“It’s a juried art show, so it’s all high-quality art,” Fletcher said.

A new special feature to Festifall included photo booths and a living statue centerpiece by local artists Paint Savvy with Lowe’s Home Improvement. Paint Savvy also provided a face painting station for the festival.

Food trucks were also at the festival, including Thai Box Zing, Kona Ice Kabana, Baton Rouge Cuisine and Belgian Waffle Crafters.

Tom Wirtz of Little Dippers Italian Ice had a booth at the festival for the second time.

“We’re off the main drag, but we’re still seeing a lot of traffic,” he said, “We appreciate Chapel Hill doing this; it’s nice to have such an event and we look forward to future years.”

Art vendors sold wares ranging from jewelry to ceramics to photography, and many artists were North Carolina natives. Delores J. Hayes, a potter, spent her early childhood in Chapel Hill and regularly teaches at the Carrboro ArtsCenter summer camp.

Hayes has been professionally making handmade ceramic work for about two years, but this is her first year as a vendor at the festival. Other than her interest in selling her work, Hayes said the festival is an opportunity to connect with the community.

“It’s a way to bring the community together,” she said. “You get to see people from all over and neighbors you never even see, they come out and have a good time. It’s really about staying connected.”

For Leah Mancini, owner and designer of children’s clothing shop Leluna Star, the festival served as a platform for exposure to new customers in the Chapel Hill area.

“For me, because I do a lot of events in Cary and Raleigh, it’s about getting my name and my product out there to a new crowd,” she said.

After some hesitation, Mancini decided to apply for Festifall this year for the first time.

“I’ve heard people say it’s extremely organized, there’s always a great turnout — and so far, that’s exactly what’s happening,” she said.

About 35 nonprofit organizations and 25 performers were in attendance. Nonprofits like Orange County Artist Guild, Bhakti Yoga of N.C. and Go Chapel Hill shared information, while performers appeared on sponsored stages from the Local 506 and the DSI Comedy Theater.

“It’s not too often that we can close down Franklin and have about 15,000 people come through,” Fletcher said.

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