There’s art around every turn during ArtFields. The festival is now in its 11th year and has revitalized the small SC town of Lake City by turning the once-agricultural community into a living art gallery featuring artists from across the Southeast.
Step into The Nail Refinery and you’ll see people pampering themselves to a mani-pedi, but with a quick look to your left, you’ll see Columbia artist Ellie Marie Rose’s 90" x 69" “Katheryne the Gallant” oil painting. Peer into the window of the Lake City Chamber of Commerce and you’ll see local artist Cameron Porter’s “Gateways” wood sculpture, a four-foot-tall installation cut and shaped with imagination. It could be yours for $2,000.
Located just an hour and a half from Columbia via a scenic country drive down Highway 378, the free festival has expanded to 11 days this year and runs through Saturday, April 29.
Each year, the nonprofit awards $145,000 in cash prizes that are split between artists chosen by the people and by an expert panel of judges. This year, the selection panel included Michael Neumeister, Curator at the Columbia Museum of Art.
Being chosen as one of the ~400 pieces of art in the festival is an accomplishment unto itself, and this year’s festival features 17 Midlands-based artists that we’re highlighting in the table above. We’ve also created a map so you can easily find each artist.
