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River Clay Fine Arts Festival is Positively Wonderful!

Story Submission By: Noel King, River Clay Fine Arts Foundation Board of Directors
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Every year residents of Decatur that love the Arts, and those who simply love a wonderful time, attend River Clay Fine Arts Festival!

Held on the third full weekend of October, the festival kicks off on Friday, October 21, with  River Clay Rendezvous. Saturday and Sunday will offer families and arts patrons the opportunity to visit with artists, purchase art, create art, and more.

Juergen Beck / River Clay Fine Arts Festival

This year, the festival kicks off on Friday, October 21, with River Clay Rendezvous, a ticketed event offering arts patrons the first opportunity to view available art in our artist market. The first half of the event begins at 5 pm and takes place on the festival site, where attendees can meet our artists, enjoy music from the Decatur Youth Symphony Chamber Orchestra, enjoy light food and drink and socialize with friends. Later that evening, the party moves down the street to the beautiful Alabama Center for the Arts (ACA), where arts patrons will enjoy a wide selection of hors d’oeuvres from some of Decatur’s best restaurants while socializing with River Clay artists and dancing to the tunes of The Pragmatics. Rendezvous patrons will be also enjoy taking in the current art exhibit in the ACA galleries!

Saturday, October 22, 2022, from 9 am – 5 pm, and Sunday, October 23, 2022, from 10 am – 4 pm, the festival is open to the public with fun for everyone!

Young patrons will enjoy creating art at our children’s activity tent as well as seeing the works of student artists in our Decatur / Morgan County Student Art Exhibit. Adults will love shopping our artist market featuring the art of 70 talented artists from across 13 states.

All patrons will love learning about the artistic process as they watch artists create cool and unique chalk art as part of our Chalk Art competition. If that weren’t enough, there will be food trucks and music available throughout the day. All this fun for only $5 for the weekend (children 12 and under free with an adult).

Luke Hamilton / River Clay Fine Arts Festival
Juergen Beck / River Clay Fine Arts Festival
Juergen Beck / River Clay Fine Arts Festival

For those that want to help make River Clay 2022 a success, there are many opportunities to volunteer. Check out and sign up for the volunteer opportunities here!

Be sure to mark your calendar so you don’t miss the fun!  We look forward to seeing you on the Decatur City Hall Lawn, October 21 – 23, 2022!

Tickets to River Clay Rendezvous should be purchased in advance online here or by visiting the visual arts building of the Alabama Center for the Arts at 133 2nd Avenue NE, Decatur, AL 35601.

Noel King

Board of Directors, River Clay Fine Arts Festival

Noel King is a Decatur, Alabama, resident and the co-owner of King Insurance Agency.  He loves his hometown and enjoys giving back to the community.  Noel has served in leadership roles with the Kiwanis Club of Decatur, the Decatur Morgan County Chamber of Commerce, and the Carnegie Visual Arts Center and has offered support through service to numerous other organizations.  He is a true advocate for the Arts and currently serves on the boards of directors for River Clay Fine Arts Foundation and the Alabama Center for the Arts Foundation.

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