This past Saturday was my first foray into the annual art fair held in the Hyde Park neighborhood of Tampa. I’ve lived in Tampa for almost a decade, but always dismissed the art fair in Hyde Park as something snooty and featuring the kind of art that I would never in a million years be interested in. I figured this kind of event would be for those who could afford ridiculous “high art” or crap that only sells to people who have too much money to spend and too much space in their homes to fill.

Well, I finally checked out the Hyde Park Village Art Fair and I have to say most of my ideas about the annual event were unfounded. Sure there was that kind of art that is beyond the average persons realm of appreciation, but there was plenty of art that would appeal to a variety of tastes.

The fair was set up in a curving corridor through the heart of Hyde Park Village with over 50 stalls of fine art, photographs, glass work and jewelry. I will be honest outside of a minor few, there were no slouches in this bunch of artists on display. The quality overall was so high, I am thinking there was a screening process on just who could set up.

The abnormal and out of the ordinary style of art always attracts me, and there was plenty of that kind of stuff as well as more “acceptable” art too; from yard and interior sculpture to jewelry and photography you might find in a respectable doctors office to art that would please your grandmother or garden variety politician.

While none of the work really blew my mind, there were some I would have loved to buy...if I had the money. Some of the glass art in particular was fabulous. One stall owner, wearing horns in the spirit of the current holiday, had some spectacular drip style of glass work that I would have bought in a second if my pocket book would have allowed it. Another artist seemed to paint with glass and encase it in an almost marble like exterior. His pieces were wall size and must have been made at an extraordinary cost, but again I would have bought a piece or two if I could have afforded it.

The Hyde Park Village Art Fair also played host to plenty of painters who luxuriated in the technique of texture, which is something I have always loved. The impressionists were pioneers in this, and if you see one of Matisse’s or Gauguin’s work up close you know what I am talking about. I don’t know how widespread the texture “movement” is these days, especially in a place like Tampa, but I was surprised by the five or six artists who worked in this way so obviously.

Giving your average painting “texture” costs the artist a lot of money as you use a lot of paint to achieve your desired texture. One artist I talked to who used texture in her paintings of landscapes admitted that her costs were very high when it came to her paint supplies. But I told her it was worth it as what she turned out repeatedly was beautiful. She charged around $300 per wall size painting, I don’t know if that’s standard or not, but I imagine she has to charge that much considering she probably spent nearly $100 on paint alone to finish each piece.

Overall the prices were pretty steep, which you could probably expect, but there were some bargains if you looked hard enough. I don’t know how well the artists were selling, At a glance, I saw more spectators than buyers, but without asking about specifics, it’s only guesswork. Hyde Park usually has healthy traffic during the weekends with quality shops along the main streets, but I have a feeling the local store owners are always pleased with the Hyde Park Village Art Festival and the extra business it likely provides.