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38th Annual Monmouth Festival of the Arts

PRESS RELEASE FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
contact: Margie Wold at

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

The 38th Annual Monmouth Festival of the Arts, New Jersey's largest art invitational, will take place April 5-9, 2008, at Monmouth Reform Temple, 332 Hance Avenue, Tinton Falls. It begins with the Artists Gala Reception at 7:30 p.m. on April 5. It is a great opportunity to meet the artists, enjoy a catered cocktail party, and browse the works in all media by more than 200 artists.

Visitors to the Saturday night Gala will also receive a ticket to attend all other Festival activities, including artist demonstrations, children's performances, workshops and educational symposiums from Sunday through Wednesday. Cost for the Gala is $50 advance, $55 door, and may be reserved by calling 732-747-8278 or 732-747-9365.

Michael P. Murray of Highlands is returning as the show's designer. Mr. Murray brings to MFA more than 16 years of professional experience in the arts and media relations, including five years at a leading gallery in New York where he curated several group and one-person exhibits for the contemporary Masters Robert Natkin, Fred Otnes, and Bruce Dorfman, among others.

Mr. Murray has managed and curated a contemporary fine arts gallery in Red Bank, served as a design associate in Charisma Design, LLC, Red Bank, and currently writes on the arts and other subjects as a freelance journalist.

Area art lovers enjoy the variety they find at the Monmouth Festival of the Arts. "This is a fabulous event that demonstrates broad public benefit serving lots of artists and the public. They have a strong arts education program. It is a definite benefit to the whole community," said one person attending the event.

Pre-arranged group tours, led by artists or our trained docents, can be pre-arranged for Monday, Tuesday or Wednesday, and are available for schools (with adult supervision), seniors or other groups. This kind of convenience is appreciated by many. "It is great that they offer transportation [to schools for tours]. They serve a large geographic area," commented one attendee. "Their partnerships with local arts groups is commendable as is bringing in students from Abbott districts."

Artists lead demonstrations throughout the Festival. On Sunday, there are demonstrations in: "Woodturning Artistry", "Watercolor Painting", "Abstract Art Painting", and "The Art of Cutting Paper". Monday's show features daytime demonstrations in: "Watercolor on Yupo Paper", "A Life with the Knife", "Simple Paper Quilted Flowers", "Enhancing Photography". The Monday Evening Program is Marie Maber's "Lee Miller and Her Friends". Tuesday offers: "Play Outside the Box", "Watercolor Tips & Techniques", "Woodturning; Design and Decoration", "Abstracts & Representational Themes", "Pen & Ink Drawing", and "Landscape Painting in Oil". The Tuesday Evening Program is "Visual Thinking" by Nanci Hersch. On Wednesday: "Illustration Board Watercolors", "Pastel Landscape", "Fabricating Sterling Silver Jewelry", "Chinese Brush Painting", "Hand Spinning" and "Watercolor Portrait".

On Sunday during the Festival, parents can browse the galleries while their children enjoy a special Kids Program. Throughout the Festival, Le Petit Café provides soups, lunches, light suppers, snacks and desserts to hungry patrons.

The MFA is made possible in part by the Monmouth County Arts Council through funding from the Monmouth County Board of Chosen Freeholders, the County Historical Commission, and the New Jersey State Council on the Arts/Department of State a Partner Agency of the National Endowment of the Arts.

For a complete schedule of events and times, visit the website www.monmouthfestivalofthearts.com, call 732-747-8278, or email to festival@monmouth.com. Daily admission to all events for Adults is $8, Seniors (65+) and Students (though h.s.) $5. Series ticket, $18 (Sunday-Wednesday).

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View the 2006 MFA PSA Video