Old Capitol Art Fair anchors fantastic weekend in downtown Springfield Sara Ratcliffe and Claire Murphy bring details

Jeff Williams:
Welcome to Community Voices, a production of NPR Illinois. I'm your co-host, Jeff Williams, in the studio with me today. Sara Ratliff, Sarah, how's it going?
Sara Ratcliffe:
Good.
Jeff Williams:
And Claire Murphy, Claire, how's it going?
Claire Murphy:
Going great.
Jeff Williams:
You're both with the Springfield Old Capitol Art Fair. It's coming up.
Sara Ratcliffe:
It is.
Jeff Williams:
It's coming up. It's crazy. It's right around the corner. So yeah, if you want to talk about that a little bit.
Claire Murphy:
So, the Old Capitol Art Fair is May 16th and 17th in downtown Springfield. Rain or shine.
Jeff Williams:
Rain or shine, or wind?
Claire Murphy:
Or wind, yes, that's right. Wind tunnel last year. It'll be 10 to 5 on Saturday and 10 to 4 on Sunday. We're very excited about it. This year we've got about 125 booths.
Jeff Williams:
Right on! And that's kind of where it usually (located)… around the Old State Capitol plaza, more or less?
Claire Murphy:
Correct. We're not on the actual grounds because there's been construction, but we're.
Jeff Williams:
The perimeter outside of it. Yeah.
Claire Murphy:
Fifth Street, Washington and Adams. Kind of right around there. So, you can't miss it.
Jeff Williams:
No, can't miss it.
Claire Murphy:
There's plenty of parking around. In addition to all of the wonderful artists, which man, it is the best event of the year downtown, I think.
Jeff Williams:
Oh, it's great, man. There's tons of the artists are fantastic mix of artists from the area, artists from kind of all over the country too, right?
Claire Murphy:
Absolutely. I feel like I've seen some from other, some other countries every now and then, right? So yeah.
Sara Ratcliffe:
It's great. And A mixture of media.
Jeff Williams:
Oh yeah.
Claire Murphy:
Everything from painting to ceramics, photography, leather works, fiber, drawing, everything in between.
Jeff Williams:
Yeah. What I love about that, it's like the first week of the farmers markets happening. Old Capital, Pride's happening too. So it's just, It's awesome. It's a madhouse down there, but I love that.
Claire Murphy:
I think there's also a book sale happening at Lincoln Library this weekend too. So it's a huge collaboration of downtown, which I think is, it's really special because it's never been a competition between events.
Jeff Williams:
It doesn't feel like that ever now.
Claire Murphy:
It's always a beautiful blend of everybody attending at the same time. And I think something really special about being a part of this board, I've been on it. This will be my 4th or 5th year. And It's been really cool not only seeing the crossover, but we have regulars who come back every year between the different events. So, seeing everybody come and support downtown is something really special.
Jeff Williams:
Seems like the Springfield and Sangamon County area, but then there's people who travel from, you know, from other areas that come out for…(and) because you've got that mix, you know, you've got these multiple things going on. So even if you're coming with your family or something like that, the thing is, they kind of overlap in a way to me. It's cool like that too.
Claire Murphy:
Yeah, and you can come down, especially on Saturday when all of those things are happening. You can spend the entire day and go shopping at the farmer's market, buy some art, eat lunch, because we've got a food area, listen to some live music, do a little painting for the community project. Your kids can shop at the children's tent.
Jeff Williams:
I was going to ask about that. The children's tent for people who haven't gone before, kind of let them know how that sort of rolls.
Claire Murphy:
So, the children's tent is a collaboration of pieces from the artists who are at the fair. And the price range right now is from, is it 4 to 6 still this year? Four to $6. Kids can come in and.
Jeff Williams:
So, like under 10?
Claire Murphy:
Under 10. Yep. And so, artists will donate a certain number of pieces so that they're represented in a younger audience. And it's really special because the kids walk in and get to shop on their own in the sense of independence for them. A cool story that I kind of tied to the children's tent. Two years ago, I believe, I was speaking to one of our artists. I take pictures of all of the winners every year, the prize winners. And I like to get to know their story a little bit. I think there's something magical behind the storytelling of the art fair. And… I think she was one of our new artists… something along those lines. And I had actually purchased one of her pieces. So, I wanted to congratulate her and celebrate her. But she had let me know that she still has a piece hanging in her house from when she attended the children's tent when she was younger. And now she's a prize winner at the said fair. And there's just something behind that, you know, 60 plus years of tradition. that you see grow from, those children who are going into the tent could end up being artists who have tents on the lawn down the road. So it's such an incredibly unique tradition that I'm proud, and I know Sarah is as well. We're all proud to be a part of making this happen in Springfield.
Sara Ratcliffe:
Yeah, it's great. And if you're Springfield natives like we are, having that experience, I remember the first piece I bought when I was a little kid.
Jeff Williams:
Same. I totally remember my first time going there with my brother.
Sara Ratcliffe:
Yeah, definitely. the kitty cat on a piano key. So yeah, it's great. And it's so great that the kids get to go in and shop by themselves and buy things. They're becoming collectors. It's really awesome.
Claire Murphy:
I have one, one of my first pieces is currently hanging in my home office. My dad had just moved and he (said), “Hey, I wanted to give you this. (It) was your first piece from the children's tent. Now you're a part of that event.” So that tradition is just continuing! And everybody on our board, I feel like, supports that mission and that effort so strongly. And it's so unique that we carry that over every year.
Jeff Williams:
I love it. If people wanted to find an online presence or get some information; is there a way to go about that?
Sara Ratcliffe:
Absolutely. Probably the easiest way is to Google Springfield Old Capital Art Fair, because our URL is Springfieldoldcapitalartfair.org. Can't say much easier than that right there! (laughter) All of the information is there about hours.
Jeff Williams:
Does it have a list of who some of the artists?
Claire Murphy:
We are getting that. So, some of our artists were still. figuring out if they were still able to come as of last week.
Jeff Williams:
But there's a lot, that's a huge thing to get it to then finalize it so you can put it online. So sorry, didn't mean to interrupt.
Claire Murphy:
No, I was about to say I'd like to shout out our chair, Keith Hand. He's made such an incredible effort in making sure that this is such a streamlined process for so many different artists and personalities. He just finalized our list. So, we also have a Facebook and an Instagram, and we'll have both of those posted coming up this weekend so that everybody can get a preview I also would like to shout out Sarah here. She drew and put together this incredible map that's going to be put out as well to give everybody a little bit of geographical knowledge before they show up. Because sometimes there are people who come for a specific artist and they want to know exactly where they are.
Jeff Williams:
Absolutely.
Claire Murphy:
And this map.
Jeff Williams:
And especially if you don't have like a lot of time and you want to find, yeah, that makes sense.
Claire Murphy:
And especially with all of the one way street and the which ways of downtown Springfield, she has made this this incredible map that makes it so easy for anyone coming from Springfield or out of town. So that's definitely something to look forward to as well.
Jeff Williams:
Right on, right on. And that's the thing is, when I said that, as far as the lot of time, you need to spend time down there if you can, but sometimes a person does, you know, there's just no choice. They got other obligations, but they want to get down there. So it's nice to have that. So they can kind of find the area where their artist, if it's that particular case where they can find them.
Sara Ratcliffe:
Yeah, or if you're interested, say you want a ceramics piece, you've got the perfect spot in your house for something and we've color-coded it this year so you can see, okay, this is the color for all the ceramics booths, and you can pop around there to find it. So, we're trying to make it as easy to navigate as possible.
Jeff Williams:
Right, And well, that's another thing. It's like, okay, I know I want to get this piece. I don't want to necessarily tote it around. a long time. You got to go buy the piece or if it's a specific artist and you think, I think they're going to have this piece there, but you got to kind of get it early sometimes because if not, you walk around like, oh, I'll get that later. It's like, oh, it's gone. I knew it should have. But sometimes then you'll take it back to your car if it's especially if it's like a bigger Ceramics piece or a bigger 2D piece or whatever it happens to be. Take it back to your car so you can then just continue to walk around. But that kind of helps with the strategy of knowing where that artist is so you can kind of park in an area, get there, get the piece, take it back to your car, then kind of can be like, okay, I got that. Now I can chill and just check out all the other art too.
Sara Ratcliffe:
Yeah, and that'll all be in the Illinois Times so that folks can, you know, plan their visit accordingly.
Claire Murphy:
We have so many different businesses that I don't have the full list in front of me right now, but I think something I also want to recognize… So many Springfield businesses have supported this fair this year. That will be full list in the Illinois Times as well. That's coming out, that's running print Monday. I just confirmed that today. I would say well over 20 businesses, either in kind or financially donated to this And I think that it also speaks volumes to the community. I circle back to that word every time, but I think that's what makes this weekend so special is not only, are the businesses downtown, but they like to be involved, and they like to show their support. And that's what keeps us going. It's going to be really special. I think we've got a really cool era coming up for this fair starting this year.
Sara Ratcliffe:
Yeah. And I'm going to piggyback on that, Claire, talking about community and the sponsors and the board and the artists that make it happen, but it's also the volunteers.
Jeff Williams:
Volunteers, exactly.
Sara Ratcliffe:
Yeah, so we take volunteers from high school age through all ages. And you can, if you want to volunteer, you get a free t-shirt. So that's pretty awesome. You know, it's a couple hours at a time for high school kids if they need their service hours. We'll sign the papers for you. But you can go to our website again. Just click on volunteers and you can sign sign up through (the app) ‘Sign Up Genius’ there. We do still need some help with children's tent shoppers and water distribution, artist break for the artists, because if it's hot, they go through water. Oh yeah, definitely. And then also help with the community mural project, which we haven't talked about yet.
Jeff Williams:
I was going to ask about that. If that was still happening this year, that's great.
Claire Murphy:
Every year. It's something, and you know, I like to lean towards saying this is something that kids can be involved in, but then you see, I look over every year and there are parents painting tiles with their children and creating something that then goes to the state museum. And that's so unique to say that you helped create a larger piece. All of us came together and did that. You know, our board sneaks over and we paint our own pieces, but you know, we love having the helping hands along the way to make that happen. These volunteer opportunities, I should add with that, they're not incredibly long shifts. They're brief, but it's to get your own window into the opportunity. So very thankful to have those open to every age group.
Jeff Williams:
Sign Up Genius is a pretty easy thing to navigate for people. You know what I mean? It's not real. I mean, if you haven't done it before, you know, once you get to that Sign Up Genius, it's.
Sara Ratcliffe:
You just need your name, your e-mail address, and just click on when you're available.
Claire Murphy:
And usually with an event of this size and this stature, there are always questions. And our board is always so present and available for any kind of question ranging from where's the nearest porta potty to where's this specific artist. We'll help you out. You can't miss us. We're all in matching shirts through most of the weekend. And we just are so excited to get you where you want to be. I will say I did save our list of musical acts, and I want to highlight those because Micah Walk, our entertainment chair, has brought together quite the lineup of live entertainment. And I'd specifically like to highlight Saturday morning; we have the Municipal Band kicking off the entire fair. And I think that's a unique chance to, again, have a longstanding Springfield tradition kicking it off.
Jeff Williams:
We have a Springfield Municipal Band, yeah.
Claire Murphy:
So then we have Low Fat, Travis Reed Band, Avery Kern Band, Griffin Finoglio, Derek Striebig, Canyon Choir, and Capitol Sound are all of our entertainment lineup for throughout the whole weekend. That's Saturday and Sunday. We have this incredible collaboration between the food and the music that just makes it feel welcoming. So just constant happiness and entertainment throughout the weekend. (laughter)
Sara Ratcliffe:
Weekend of joy.
Jeff Williams:
And that's most of the music on that. Oh, what is the corner of? Is it?
Sara Ratcliffe:
It's on Fifth Street. It's right outside of the Alamo. Yeah, Fifth and Washington.
Jeff Williams:
Fifth and Washington, yeah, that's right. By the Alamo. By the Alamo, yeah, right on. Very, very cool. Well, once again, in the studio with me today, Sarah Ratcliffe, Claire Murphy, both of the Springfield Old Capitol Art Fair, May 16th, May 17th. Anything else you guys can think of or want to add?
Sara Ratcliffe:
Just be there.
Jeff Williams:
Just be there.
Claire Murphy:
Come on down and join us for another of your memories.
Jeff Williams:
Right on, love it. Yeah, I know I'm going to start early. Sometimes I'll just like, I'll bring my bike down in a backpack. So, then I start off. I've got to be strategic with what I'm going to buy as far as from the farmer's market first off. You know what I mean? I can't get something that I need to keep frozen too much, you know, so I got to be strategic with that. Then I'm like, okay, Can I fit some art in my backpack too? I got to, kind of think that through. But for me, it makes it easy to kind of just be down there all day, on my bike and stuff.
Sara Ratcliffe:
It's art of all sizes.
Jeff Williams:
So I did.
Claire Murphy:
I do remember one thing I'd like to remind everybody is that inside the Old Capitol this year, we are going to have student art. We do a student art contest every year. And actually, the winner of a student poster contest, her artwork is featured on our poster that you'll see about town. It's a beautiful display of the young artists coming up throughout the school system and it's all different schools in the area. I highly recommend it. Last year we had such a stellar lineup and again it's free. You get to wander the fair but wandering into the Old Capitol and seeing the new and emerging artists of the Springfield community is very unique.
Jeff Williams:
Right. Well then what's also cool is that they get to see the art and if for somebody if they haven't been in the old state capitol before but they're either new to the area or not from the area or something. So it’s multiple bonuses around that you're able to just explore and see new things across the board. Definitely.
Sara Ratcliffe:
Where Lincoln walked. Yeah, absolutely.
Jeff Williams:
Right. Once again, Sierra Claire, thanks so much for coming in.
Claire Murphy:
Thank you for having us.
Jeff Williams:
Thank you. Right on.
Claire Murphy:
Look at us. Nice. smooth conversation. I think that's the best way to talk about these events. Thank you so much for the opportunity.
Jeff Williams:
Yeah, definitely.
Claire Murphy:
I'm very happy that we got in touch with you and we got to be part of this.
Jeff Williams:
A part of this, too. Community Voices is events you might have missed in conversations with neighbors, artists, and area businesspeople. Suggest a guest or Comment at communityvoices@nprillinois.org. Get to know your neighbors with Community Voices at noon and 10 p.m. and on demand at nprillinois.org. Community Voices is a production of NPR Illinois.