The March 8 Holmes Beach Night Market featured extended shopping hours in Holmes Beach, and lots of art.
HOMES BEACH – March 8 was the second Friday of the month, and the Holmes Beach Night Market packed the sidewalks with shoppers, diners and art lovers. This monthly event, allows shoppers in Holmes Beach to enjoy extended shopping hours at area businesses, and is a chance for the Artists’ Guild Gallery of Anna Maria Island (AGAMI) to show what the have to offer, including the monthly Featured Artist from the gallery.
Only 20 years since she began painting in 2004, AGAMI’s March Featured Artist, Carolann Garafola, would have even the most astute art critic believing she’s been doing it her whole life. A lifelong photographer, Garafola says it was a revelation by her husband that kicked off her interest in painting.
“I started painting in 2004 because my husband was a professional artist. He made a very good living as an illustrator and portrait artist,” Garafola said. “We traveled all across the United States and all over Europe. I would do all of his photography. I told him I would love to learn how to paint, and he told me that if a person has a good eye for photography, they can learn how to paint.”
Garafola started working with acrylics and some watercolor, but in 2019 she made the switch to oil as her media of choice. Many of her oil paintings are on display at AGAMI and available for purchase. She brings Florida’s many diverse animals, plants and bodies of water to life in stunning color. It was also 2019 when she retired from a busy career which included many years of public service, including being Mayor of Warren Township NJ, and started painting full time. While some artists prefer to paint plein air, which means they paint outside in front of the subject they are painting, Garafola says she is lucky enough to have a large studio at her home, and that’s where she does the bulk of her work, using her own photographs from which to paint. As an avid cyclist, she also finds inspiration from scenes she takes in during her rides.
In addition to Granola’s work, the gallery had artists demonstrations on the sidewalk in front of the gallery, live music from Larry Wilhelm, wine and snacks.
Other Holmes Beach businesses also took part, including: Pizzano’s Pizza and Grinders, DCoy Ducks, Small Town Creamery, howluckyami, Irene’s Clothing Store, Sand Dollar, The Feast, Hurricane Hank’s, Freckled Fin and The Doctor’s Office. It was a great evening for both art lovers and anyone looking for something unique they may only find on Anna Maria Island.
The next Holmes Beach Night Market will take place Friday, April 12 from 5 to 7:30 p.m. or later.
