faux bridges
We’re all aware of Chattanooga’s premier arts festival happening at the First Tennessee Pavilion this weekend—and by all means, check it out. But if you’d like a North Shore bookend to your weekend festival-going schedule, wander across the Walnut Street Bridge to Winder Binder Gallery & Bookstore and you’ll find the Seventh Annual Faux Bridges Art and Literature Festival, an open-air event from noon to 7 p.m. on Saturday, April 13, and noon to 6 p.m. on Sunday, April 14. The festival will take place on in the parking lot adjacent to the store at 40 Frazier Ave.
Twenty local and regional artists will be participating in this edition of the festival. Many different media will be on exhibit, including painting, metal work, glass work, sculpture, mixed media assemblage and printmaking. The store will also be hosting a number of book signing events in the gallery over the weekend, including a signing with local history authors David Carroll, Bill Hull, Gay Morgan Moore and Jennifer Crutchfield from 3-5 p.m. on Saturday and a signing featuring sci-fi/adult fantasy author Poppy Jackson from 2-4 p.m. on Sunday.
Gallery owner David Smotherman said that in conjunction with Faux Bridges, the weekend will also serve as the official grand opening of Chad’s Records @ Winder Binder. After a month of cleaning and organizing, Chad’s Records @ Winder Binder is fully operational with more than 10,000 records, CDs and DVDs available. Chad’s has been vinyl nirvana in Chattanooga for 25 years, but it took an unfortunate fire at Chad’s previous location for Winder Binder and Chad’s to combine into one hub of folk art, books and music. Cousins Smotherman and Chad Bledsoe said they are delighted how well the two stores have seamlessly merged together in less than a month. To celebrate the grand opening, Chad’s will conduct drawing for two $50 gift certificates over the weekend.
The concept of a the festival dedicated primarily, though not exclusively, to Southern Folk Art was conceived in a brainstorming session in early 2006 during a monthly artist meeting at the Winder Binder Gallery. The name is a tongue-in-cheek nod to and homage to 4 Bridges, Smotherman said.
For more information, visit www.fauxbridges.com.