51st Mount Gretna Outdoor Art Show fills the Chautauqua’s winding paths

The 51st Mount Gretna Outdoor Art Show took over the Pennsylvania Chautauqua this weekend, bringing artisans from all across the country to set up their booths through the area’s winding paths.

Kerry Royer, director of the art show since 2018, said the event is just one of the Chautauqua’s many summer events, but it ends up feeling like the finale.

“It feels like we’re always building toward the art show because it’s the end of the summer and it’s always the third full weekend,” she said on Sunday, “They put on so many interesting and absorbing programs, and then this is a big celebration.”

Thousands of people come to check out the jewelry, metalwork, woodwork, photography, paintings, sculptures, glasswork, and much more. Beyond shopping, the art show offered food, live music, and the second annual Mount Gretna International Film Festival at the Gretna Playhouse.

For artists to be a part of the weekend, they have to go through a jury process. Royer said they send three photos of their art and a photo of their booth to a jury of four people made up of professional artists and educators. They’re scored based on the provided images, and organizers work to make sure there’s a variety of different mediums represented.

The jurors are always changing, so the show is different every year.

“One of the reasons we’re one of the best shows in the country is because we have a very strict jury process,” Royer said. “The artists who are here have been curated, and the artists themselves have to be here the whole time at the booth. When people are coming here to buy, they know that they’re getting something that is truly art and that is truly handmade. They know that they’re coming here to see really high-caliber art.”

This year, 50 of the 200 artists were new to the Mount Gretna Outdoor Art Show. Some of the new artists were surprised by the support they get from the guests, Royer said. 

“I know several artists who come to this show, and they’re here the first time, and they sell so much of their work on Saturday that they’re astonished, and they are working Saturday night to make more art to bring for Sunday,” she said. “I had an artist tell me that he sold so much jewelry that he is concerned for his next show because he’s really low on inventory.”

John Robeson, with Standing People Woodworking, wasn’t a first-time exhibitor, but was one of the people who ran low on his work. He said he brought 14 handmade mirrors along with a wood statue, a table, and a bench. A few hours from the end of the first day, he was down to two mirrors and his larger pieces.

“I’m sort of bewildered by my success,” Robeson said. “I don’t know how to bring enough stuff to have stuff for two days. I don’t know how to be any more productive than I am at this point.”

At age 81, he traveled up from the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia. He’ll be driving back home with thousands of dollars of earnings from his work. He said he sold almost $1,000 worth of pieces in just half an hour at one point in the day.

Sara Borey and Cesar Sertzen with Shade Metals sold plant- and fungi-inspired jewelry. Borey said this was their second year at the Mount Gretna show.

“My husband did it by himself last year, and then he said it was so good I had to come this year, too,” Borey said. “It’s both of us this year, and the baby’s with Grandma.”

Shade Metals goes to different shows every weekend to sell their art. Mount Gretna, Borey said, is special because of its landscape.

“I think it’s one of the more beautiful shows that we do,” she said. “We do a lot of shows in urban settings, which is nice for its own reason, but here, because we do the plant and mushroom jewelry, it feels like we belong here.”

Borey said the customers and the volunteers running the show were great, which Royer echoed.

“It truly takes a village to put this show together,” she said. “We have so many volunteers, and there are jobs that everyone can help with, and everyone can feel a part of this amazing event in our town. I really want to acknowledge that so many people give their time and energy into making this show a success.”