Three outdoor art fairs take place in Southwest Florida over Valentine’s Day weekend: the 20th Annual Coconut Point Art Festival in Estero, the 43rd Annual Sanibel-Captiva Rotary Club Arts & Crafts Festival on the grounds of the Sanibel Community House and the inaugural Wellen Park Fine Arts Festival in Venice.
MORE INFORMATION:
Continue reading for more on each of these festivals.
20th Annual Coconut Point Art Festival
Howard Alan Events brands the Coconut Point Art Festival as “The Big One.” That’s partially because it features work by some 250 artists who set up booths in the parking lot at Coconut Point in Estero. A visually stunning community surrounded by acres of lakes and boardwalks and with over 100 stores and 25 restaurants, Coconut Point is also a bustling hub for shopping, dining, working, gathering, and living.
There is ample free parking and admission is free.
This year, the festival is celebrating its 20th anniversary.
It is open Saturday and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
This show typically draws in excess of 25,000 people over the two-day weekend.
43rd Annual Sanibel-Captiva Rotary Club Arts & Crafts Festival
This festival began 43 years ago as a pancake breakfast featuring a few local artists. Since then, it has grown into one of Southwest Florida’s premier juried art shows. The Sanibel-Captiva Rotary Club’s Annual Arts & Crafts Festival is held over President’s Day weekend and features more than 100 of the country’s most talented artists.
Organizers of the annual festival expect over 7,000 visitors to flood the grounds of the Sanibel Community House.
Click here for a list of participating artists and their booth numbers.
Click here for a map showing the festival’s layout.
“Patrons are going to find an amazing selection of handmade work that is incredibly creative and inventive,” said Scot Congress, festival chairman and a member of the club since 1984. “These [artists] have considerable followings. Many show their work in galleries around the world.”
For the juried show portion of the event, the exhibitors are competing for first place, second place and third place in the categories of 2-D art, 3-D art, photography and jewelry, as well as honorable mention. A Best in Show, known as the Ikki Matsumoto award, will also be awarded.
Prior to his passing, Matsumoto supported the festival. A cherished tradition of the festival is the commemorative T-shirt featuring designs by the late island icon. For the 43rd anniversary, the club is featuring Matsumoto’s signature “Pink Flamingo” design. These shirts, available in various styles, serve as a reminder of the island’s artistic heritage and the community’s resilience.
Congress explained that more than 300 artists and crafters applied to be considered as participants. They each had to submit photos and descriptions of their work, which were reviewed and the exhibitors chosen by a panel.
Inside The Community House there is a silent auction and sale with over 200 donated art items, merchandise, restaurant, and hotel certificates and more. “It’s the largest silent auction and sale collection that we’ve ever had,” Congress added. “Each of the exhibitors has donated an item; these artists are all incredibly philanthropic to Rotary,” he said.
“Every artist is asked to donate a nice piece for our famous silent auction and sale and we receive fabulous art.”
The true impact of the Sanibel Rotary Arts & Crafts Festival lies in its mission. Every dollar raised supports local, regional, and global humanitarian projects.
“Proceeds are used to support local, regional and global needs,” explained club president Paul Hawkins. “Locally, organizations such as FISH, Community Housing & Resources, and Children’s Education Center of the Islands receive Rotary grants to support their projects. Regional organizations supported are Rotary hurricane relief, Calusa Waterkeepers, and Meals of Hope. Globally Rotary supports projects providing clean water, eradication of polio, providing wheelchairs to the disabled, and supporting better healthcare for mothers and babies.”
Rotary is an international organization with some 1.2 million members in 168 countries. The Sanibel-Captiva chapter has more than 85 members. The group meets Fridays at the Community House or via Zoom. Visitors and Snowbirds are welcomed to the 8 a.m. meetings.
A large parking lot is located directly across from the Community House. There is no cost to park. However, this lot tends to fill up quickly.
Not to worry. The Rotary Club has several overflow parking lots that also serve as free shuttle stops. Follow the signs held by the Rotarians on site.
Each of these stops is west of the fair venue. The Rotary Club recommends that off-island visitors take "the long way around" and approach those lots from the west. From the causeway, turn right onto Periwinkle Way. In approximately 1.3 miles, make a left onto Casa Ybel Road. Continue until it intersects with Tarpon Bay Road and turn right onto Periwinkle Way. Or continue to Library Way (past Periwinkle) and turn right.
Note: City ordinances prohibit parking alongside the road.
A $10 donation is requested.
The festival is held at the Sanibel Community House (2173 Periwinkle Way) and the adjacent Sanibel Community Playground.
The festival’s hours on Saturday, Feb. 14 are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sunday, Feb. 15 from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Wellen Park Fine Arts Festival
The Wellen Park Fine Arts Festival takes its name from the street in Venice where the festival takes place (19745 Wellen Park Blvd.). It’s a thoughtfully curated show that features work by local and regional artists in a number of media and genres.
Organized by Paragon Festivals, this is the festival’s inaugural show.
Hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. both days.
Admission is free.
Support for WGCU’s arts & culture reporting comes from the Estate of Myra Janco Daniels, the Charles M. and Joan R. Taylor Foundation, and Naomi Bloom in loving memory of her husband, Ron Wallace.
