The 45th Annual Westport Fine Arts Festival rejoins community partner The Westport Library Book Sale for a downtown Arts & Books weekend, with lead Fine Arts Festival sponsorship from Gault Family Companies, Pernod Ricard and Brooklyn Brewery.

The Westport Fine Arts Festival is a top 30 nationally ranked art show with over 175 booths of juried artists in 11 categories, plus an expanded respite area featuring beer, cocktails, fine food and live music throughout the weekend.

The festival takes place on July 14 and 15 in downtown Westport, and runs from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday. The library’s book sale also starts on July 14 (at 9 a.m. with the running of the bargain hunters) and runs through 1 p.m., Tuesday, when the flood of books winds down to a trickle. [For more information on the book sale, see the bottom of this article.]

The Fine Arts Festival is proud to resume their collaboration with the Westport Library. The Library book sale features thousands of deeply discounted books and other items in over seventy categories from A to Z, and runs July 14 through 16.

“Our Main Street location provides a direct connection to another long-standing event, the Westport Library Summer Book Sale,” said Randy Herbertson, WDMA president. “By co-promoting and collaborating over this weekend, we’ve both experienced more success and provided a more enriched cultural experience for all of our patrons,” he said.

The Library and the Fine Arts Festival will partner on unique programming that will transform Taylor Place into an outdoor salon for a day of events celebrating the love of books and art.

On Saturday visitors are encouraged to stop by a unique book art station and experiment transforming paperback books into new works of art with a workshop on some basic book art techniques. Also on Saturday, create your own comic adventure using LEGO Story Starter sets with help from the Library’s MakerSpace.

Sunday is nonprofit day on Taylor place, and various local groups will have the opportunity to inform the community about their missions and activities. Patrons can support make a “little library” by helping local nonprofits create selections of materials for their communities. Representatives will be on hand to accept donations of books for their own “little libraries.”

In 2017, The Westport Fine Arts Festival returned to Main Street and was recognized as a top 30 U.S Arts Festival out of over 500 that were acknowledged.

“This accomplishment was gratifying,” said Herbertson, “as it both enhances the stature and exposure of Westport, and helps us continue to attract quality artists.”

A wide range of culinary options appealing to all ages will be available throughout the festival, with some exciting new additions to be announced soon. Local restaurants who participate will take advantage of the estimated 9,000 plus visitors that the combined weekend events will bring to downtown Westport.

Festival attendees can once again enjoy multiple bars featuring Monkey 47 and Absolut Elyx signature cocktails provided by returning sponsor Pernod Ricard. Brooklyn Brewery will return as the festival’s exclusive beer sponsor.

This year festival organizers are excited to work with The Artist Collective of Westport.  Collective members will bring all-age art activities and demonstrations to the family area, centrally located in Brooks Corner Plaza.

Jerry’s Artarama will also contribute to the kids area, providing an all new focus on interactive crafts.  Gault will highlight their support of the Make A Wish Foundation in their booth in this area.

The Westport Downtown Merchants Association is also pleased to welcome back returning DMA sponsors Leifer Properties and David Adam Realty. The Fine Arts Festival receives additional support from The Visual Brand, Rye Ridge Deli and Rockwell Art and Framing.

The 45th Annual Westport Fine Arts Festival is presented and produced by The Westport Downtown Merchants Association, with artist direction by Sue Brown Gordon of Gordon Fine Arts.

The Westport Downtown Merchants Association is a non-profit organization of merchants and landlords working together to improve the commerce and culture of downtown Westport for the benefit of the community and commercial interests in downtown.

Both the Fine Arts Festival and The Westport Library Book Sale are rain or shine events and free to the public.  For more information on the Westport Fine Arts Festival and to find out how to get involved visit westportdma.com. To learn more about the Library Book Sale, visit westportlibrary.org.

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More About the Book Sale

From the Westport Library website:

The book sale runs at these times on these days:

  • Saturday, July 14: 9 am-5 pm
  • Sunday, July 15: 10 am-5 pm
  • Monday, July 16: 9 am-5 pm  (half-price day)
  • Tuesday, July 17: 9 am-1 pm  (contribution day)

The books will be mostly under the tents on Jesup Green.

Find hardcover and paperback fiction and non-fiction books, audiobooks, vinyl records, DVDs, CDs & children’s books.
On Saturday & Sunday, stop by Taylor Place for an outdoor salon with activities celebrating our love of books.
Watch the website for listings of special and rare offerings.

To volunteer for the upcoming sale, use this link to sign up online or emailshooper@westportlibrary.org.

(NOTE: Donations are NOT being accepted at this time.)

• Books – all kinds, any subject, in good condition: : fiction and non-fiction, hardcover and paperback, and especially recent books and children’s books

• Audio books on CDs

• DVDs, CDs, Vinyl LPs and music scores
• All printed materials with collectible appeal, including signed, vintage, rare or unique

Donations are welcome at the Circulation Desk on the main floor of the Library.

The Westport Library is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. Donation receipts are available on request. The Library receives and processes over 100,000 items each year. Book Sale income supports Library programs, projects and the collection.

For questions about donations, please call 203.291.4840 or email booksales@westportlibrary.org.

 

Books Sold All Year-Round

In March, our Spring Book Sale offers four days of indoor shopping with fiction, trade paper backs, cookbooks, children’s books and much, much more.

The Library’s largest sale in July is the annual Summer Book Sale that runs for four days under the tents on Jesup Green. This sale is a treasure hunt! With tens of thousands of titles in over 50 categories, there is truly something for everyone, including rare and featured specials.

In early December the Holiday Book and Gift Sale features pristine, gift-worthy books and unopened DVDs and CDs. For the complete holiday shopping experience, everything in the Library Store is also on sale.

Gently used books that are recent or of current interest are sold all year on the daily book sale shelves located on the main level across from the Circulation Desk. Prices are written inside the front cover. Please pay for the books at the Circulation Desk.

Unsold Books Recycled

At the end of sales, leftover books are made available to multiple organizations, including preschools, schools with limited book budgets, special care homes for children, juvenile detention centers, women’s shelters, domestic violence shelters and prisons.

Books have also been collected and sent to Africa, India, and the Philippines by concerned citizens.

Any remaining books are recycled into paper.

If you know of a place that needs books and wish to handle the transaction, please stop by our Spring and Summer Book Sales on the last morning of the sale.

The Following No Longer Accepted

Some of these materials might be accepted by other organizations, but the Library no longer handles:

• VHS tapes
• Audio cassettes
• Outdated computer software
• Magazines, unless collectible
• Encyclopedia sets, unless new or very old
• Self-recorded CDs and DVDs
• Water-damaged or mildewed materials
• video games

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