Long Island Arts Council hosts inaugural South Shore Arts Festival at Freeport Recreation Center

The Long Island Arts Council at Freeport hosted its inaugural South Shore Arts Festival at the Freeport Recreation Center on Sunday, Oct. 6, coinciding with the council’s 50th anniversary and thus marking a significant milestone for the organization.

The organization was created in 1974 to bring arts to Freeport and has tirelessly done so since; programming summer concerts, putting up a new artist’s work at the recreation center’s Art Alcove every two months, hosting residencies and workshops, and much more.

Local artists showcased their original work at the festival, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., and the festival attracted hundreds of attendees, solidifying the event as a new cultural attraction in the community.

“Thirteen or 14 artists showed up,” Larry Dresner, the council’s executive director, said. “We had … several hundred folks stopping by … the artists were very happy with the response and the foot traffic, so they’re interested in doing it again next year.”

According to Dresner, the festival drew a solid turnout of between 450 and 550 attendees, giving the council confidence that it can grow the event in the years to come.

“Everyone who signed up showed up,” Dresner said about the artists’ participation.

The festival featured a diverse array of original artwork, ranging from paintings to pottery and jewelry. Artists were pleased with the foot traffic and the opportunity to sell their creations.

Dresner emphasized that the feedback from artists was overwhelmingly positive, with many expressing interest in returning in 2025.

“They made money,” Dresner said. “They’re happy with the size of crowds coming in, and they want … to make sure that they know about the next thing.”

In addition to showcasing visual art, the event served as a learning experience for the council, which sought to understand how best to market future festivals.

While the festival was a success, Dresner admitted that he was initially worried about how many people would attend. “I was just nervous about how many people show up,” he said, adding that the strong turnout and enthusiastic reception helped alleviate those concerns.

“As long as the artists were happy and positive, that’s just good to move on the next year and make it bigger and better,” he said.

Next year, the council is planning to expand the festival, Dresner said, including adding food vendors, live music and possibly a beer garden.

“Next year, we want to maybe, we talked about bringing it over to the Guy Lombardo Marina,” Dresner said. “So I want to see about setting up a food court. I want to see if I could get permission to do a beer garden, have some live music.”

The festival also benefitted the local arts economy, providing a platform for artists and increasing awareness of the council’s role in the community. Dresner added that he believes the event will help “put Freeport on the map” when it comes to local arts, attracting more attention to the organization’s work.

“The Arts Festival was a great success,” Freeport Mayor Robert Kennedy said. “We had local and area vendors with hand-crafted items. We also had great foot traffic. I’d like to thank Larry Dresner of the South Shore Arts Council, who coordinated and supervised the event. One of the nice things about this type of event is that people get to meet the person who created the work. You get all sorts of interesting information to make the item that much more special.” 

According to Dresner, he and the arts council are already planning their next major events.

“We have our jury photography show that’s coming up in November at the Freeport Memorial Library, that’s like our 44th annual photography show,” Dresner noted.

Black History Month programming will follow in February, highlighting Black artists in the community.

“We might try to do something in the winter,” Dresner said, hinting at additional events that might be on tap.