DIY Street Fair excited for live music attractions in 18th year

FERNDALE — Downtown Ferndale will be the host to more than 100 artists and live music this weekend with the return of the DIY Street Fair.

The 18th annual DIY Street Fair will take place in Ferndale Sept. 19-21 on East Nine Mile Road. The event is held in concurrence with the Funky Ferndale Art Fair on West Nine Mile Road.

Live musicians scheduled to perform include the Michigan Rattlers on Friday, JR JR on Saturday and Agent Orange on Sunday.

Artistic Director Krista Johnston was particularly excited about the fair’s music lineup and the different genres on display.

“It’s really shaping up to be this incredible weekend of music, and it’s rare these days to have an event that showcases music that’s free, and we don’t have an admission still,” she said. “We’re really trying to make sure that there are no barriers to entry.”

In addition to music, there will be more than 150 vendors in attendance offering their art, wares and crafted goods. There also will be a youth artist market located in the Ferndale Area District Library’s courtyard.

Johnston said it’s never hard to get participants signed up, but something she noticed this year more than any other was that artists have been picking and choosing which fairs they will do because of tough economic conditions. It’s something that reminds her of the 2008 recession, which coincidentally the DIY Street fair was born out of around the same time.

“People lost their jobs and they sold their artwork to keep afloat, and we made this festival celebrating those independent businesses,” she said. “It’s really now more than ever continuing that tradition, and it’s just so important to support artists right now. They’re really suffering in this economic climate, as a lot of people are, but I urge everyone to come down and talk to an artist, connect with them, see how passionate they are about their work, and pick up something, and you’ll have that memory of speaking to the artist and making that connection. It translates into your home, or if it’s a garment that you’re wearing, and it truly makes a difference in which is most likely your neighbors’ lives.”

Nicole Ray, of Brighton, has participated in the DIY Street Fair for 15 years with her shop, Sloe Gin Fizz, where she primarily creates and draws anthropomorphized animals in whimsical situations.

“It’s such a community-driven event.” she said of DIY. “It’s such a walkable community that everyone, you know, the whole family comes during the day and then the parents come back at night and see music. It was just kind of something for the whole family throughout the whole weekend, and you see a lot of the same faces throughout the weekend. So, I feel very connected to the people who come and shop there.”

Ray agreed with Johnston’s assessment of the current climate for artists. Ray started her business in 2008 at the same time as the recession with an Etsy shop as something fun to do while she was searching for a new job.

That being said, Ray said if she was deciding on starting Sloe Gin Fizz right now, she isn’t sure she could.

“It is kind of a tough time to be doing it,” she said. “It is kind of a similar field to 2008 in terms of (how) things are tough. Consumer confidence is not there, and it’s really easy to get lost in the void of social media and online, and there aren’t as many in-person opportunities that are being really well supported.”

“That said, I do feel like Michigan is a pretty special place in having moved here from New York. I feel like there’s something special about Michigan and the metro Detroit area that people seem to really get it and they want to support their local artists,” she continued. “If I was going to do it today and had to do it anywhere, I lucked out in moving here because it was not my plan to start this business, but it’s really just a very supportive and understanding community.”

The hours for the DIY Street Fair will be 6 to 11 p.m. Friday, Sept. 19; 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 20; and 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 21. For more information, visit ferndalediy.com.