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Paul Giroux strums a guitar that will be up for sale at the Berkley Art Bash. The Berkley Art Bash will be the first event that Giroux has participated in to sell his guitars.
Photo by Donna Dalziel
BERKLEY — More than 100 artists will take over the downtown for the 21st annual Berkley Art Bash.
The Berkley Art Bash will take place from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday, June 10, on 12 Mile Road. It will feature more than 170 artists selling their art and wares to attendees, ranging from paintings, jewelry, pottery and more unique offerings.
This year’s event will see an increase in vendors over last year’s by 20, making it one of the biggest Berkley Art Bashes in the fair’s history.
“We had such an overwhelming response of artists applying this year,” Art Bash Director April McCrumb said. “We had the space for it. So we reconfigured things to get another 20-plus artists, makers — we’re still turning away people. People love the show and we’re very grateful that the word is out and that people want to be part of it.”
In addition to the art vendors, there also will be food trucks, face painting, balloon twisting and live music.
McCrumb said one of the big appeals to Art Bash, as opposed to similar events, is that it’s only one day, which she thinks customers and artists appreciate.
“I think that’s an appeal to a lot of the makers and artists as well, because sometimes those two- or three-day shows get grueling,” she said. “I think also what people love about the show, it’s one day and they’re showing up that one day. We’re pretty crowded — like a full day of people shopping.”
In addition to the vendors seeing a lot of customers perusing their items during the fair, McCrumb stated that the attendees trickle into local businesses in the downtown as well.
“It’s one of (the businesses) top days of the year,” she said. “That’s exciting to hear these artists are benefiting, but so are all the mom-and-pop shops and small businesses in downtown Berkley. You know, 12 Mile is a pretty busy road. Some people might not slow down. This gives the opportunity to slow down, walk in, take in all the sights and scenes and shops, and get a good feel for what Berkley is all about.”
Paul Giroux, of Giroux Custom Guitars, will be participating in his first Art Bash. The Berkley native has been building custom guitars since he was a kid, but he picked it back up in 2021 during the pandemic and became obsessed with it.
“I’ve been a woodworker since I was a kid, and I kind of got bored with custom furniture commissions. And I started playing music again during the pandemic, and this really took off and it was like this perfect match,” he said.
Giroux will be bringing around 14 custom guitars to sell for the event. Giroux Custom Guitars builds the electric guitars from top to bottom, including the necks.
None of the guitars Giroux is bringing are models that he’s sold before, as he wanted to bring something exclusive to Art Bash.
“They’re really a better fit for an Art Bash than for just a guitar store,” he said. “Because when people go into a guitar store, they expect to see Gibson and Fender, and that’s what they see. And that’s pretty much what all the stores carry, because Gibson and Fender require you to turn over a certain amount of sales every month in order to even carry their stock. So it’s really hard for independent builders to get into stores. So my guitars are more on the art side. I mean, they’re wonderfully playable. People really, really seem to like the way they feel in their hands, but they’re also great to look at, and I think that’s why they really stand out at the Art Bash.”
For more information on the Berkley Art Bash, visit berkleyartbash.com.
