HOUSTON — The Bayou City Arts Festival welcomed more than 250 artists from around the country to Sam Houston Park in downtown Houston Saturday.
There's love and passion in this work. It's why Sidney Carter gets up and picks up his paintbrushes every morning. He worked on a painting during the festival.
"I love to listen to music that’s what I do when I get up in the morning, I turn my jazz on, and I go to work," he said.
Music gets him going and it's evident in the music-inspired pieces that fill his tent inside the Bayou City Arts Festival. He's from Atlanta, Georgia but has been coming to Houston for decades to sell and share his work.
"It’s relaxing it’s rewarding. It’s my gift," he said.
Inside Sam Houston Park, there’s art and enrichment for young people, but for those looking to shop, you can take your pick from 250 artists from across the country, including two more from Canada.
Visitors will find pieces from 19 disciplines: paintings, clay, glass drawings and much more.
"Houston is a hub, and there is something for everyone here," said Wendi Meisberger with the Bayou City Arts Festival.
The downtown streets are lined with vendors. Anjali Nanda made the quick drive from Katy. She's sharing talent and a lot of Indian culture through her work.
"The art forms you see here are basically about 5000- to 2500-year-old art forms from parts of India," she said.
She says the form is how a piece is created, and the meaning each image represents. She's keeping with tradition, while adding a few modern touches for contemporary homes.
"The paintings that we do have meanings and it brings those blessings into the home. So, initially, these were done on mud plaster walls outside the home and it is believed that when I'm drawing lotus, it will bring spiritual awakening to my home," Nanda said.
Sunday, March 23 is the final day of the Bayou City Arts Festival.