If you’re a fan of purple, flowers, luscious scents or fine art, the 19th annual Willamette Valley Lavender Festival & Plein Air Art Show may just be the ticket if you’ve got some time to kill in July.
Centered around the Chehalem Cultural Center in Newberg, the event will kick off July 12 with a public reception from 5 to 7:30 p.m. for the artists involved in the Northwest Lavender Paint Out. Chamber Music Northwest will begin performing at 7 p.m. and food and drink vendors will be on hand during the show.
The festival and art show will kick into high gear from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. July 13-14 at the cultural center, with all manner of events and accoutrements on tap.
“Attendees will be able to explore the offerings of over 60 local artisans and crafters displaying items that showcase lavender in a myriad of forms,” a release said.
Fresh lavender, donated by Wayward Winds Lavender Farm, will be on sale with proceeds benefitting the cultural center and its public programming. There will also be live plein air painting and lavender plant demonstrations.
The artists will be fresh off participating in the plein art experience, where they take to nearby lavender fields to “capture the beauty of the aromatic plant and its surroundings,” the release said. More than 150 artists – both professional and amateur – are expected to participate.
Their work will be displayed in the cultural center’s grand ballroom and adjudicated by professional artist David Kinker, who is best know for his expansive realistic and surrealistic murals that fill walls at McMenamins locations, medical centers, private residences and the historic Tower Theater in Bend.
In addition, and over the entire two days of the festival, local musicians will be showcased in the forecourt before the cultural center. The lineup includes Nathanael Ankeny & Friends, the Corral Creek Bluegrass Band, Ellie and the Oaks, and Roundhouse Band.
The event is sponsored by the cultural center, Wayward Winds Lavender Farm and Durant at Red Ridge Farms. For more information, visit www.chelalemculturalcenter.org/lavender, email festivals@chehalemculturalcenter.org, call 503-487-6883 or visit the festival on Facebook at @WillametteValleyLavenderFestival or Instagram at @chehalemculturalcenter.
History
The festival began as the Yamhill Lavender Festival in 2005, when several Yamhill-area lavender farmers decided to plan a small event in that city as a local fundraiser.
That turned into an annual tradition, growing from a few booths to a city block to the nearby Beulah City Park in Yamhill, and then finally moving to the Chehalem Cultural Center in 2015. It has been held there ever since, although it was moved to an online celebration for two years during the pandemic.
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