Steve's Blog: Reporter loves Peter Anderson festival - WLOX.com - The News for South Mississippi

Steve's Blog: Reporter loves Peter Anderson festival

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By Steve Phillips - bio | email

OCEAN SPRINGS, MS (WLOX) - It must be the hidden artist inside me. I absolutely love the annual Peter Anderson Arts Festival in Ocean Springs.

I think I've attended every one of these annual events since my family moved to Ocean Springs some 20 years ago.

I've watched the crowds and the number of vendors swell over the years.

In recent years, we've enjoyed hosting visiting family from Illinois who've also discovered the festival fun. My two sisters have made several trips to the Mississippi Gulf Coast over the Peter Anderson weekend.

I usually get to play the role of "mule" and carry their bags of pottery and other purchases up and down the streets.

I don't mind the crowds and the weather is near perfect most festival weekends. I now have a special affinity for the vendors and their "working weekend".

Earlier this year, my wife and I ventured into the "arts and crafts" circuit. My love for photography has prompted us to become vendors at several shows along the coast. We're kind of "regulars" during the First Saturday events at the Mary C. and have truly enjoyed those events.

But it's tough being a vendor, whether it's pottery or photography. You generally get way more lookers than buyers; such is the craft show tradition. I suspect most of the vendors simply love sharing their artwork.

That's the case with me, I just enjoy sharing the photos and meeting the folks.

My wife and I have always been patrons of such shows; now we get to experience it behind the table.

But I won't be a vendor at this year's Peter Anderson show. I'll be a patron and a customer. And I'll be loving it, even when those bags get heavier as the day winds down.

Crowds in the tens of thousands attend this annual event. It's elbow to elbow during peak festival hours. But that's part of what makes it fun for me.

So many people in downtown Ocean Springs will be enjoying the artwork and enjoying the experience.

Hopefully, I'll be selling some photographs at next year's festival. But I hope to see you this weekend. I'm really looking forward to it.

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