Entries are being accepted for Newtown Arts Festival 2023’s signature art.

A $1,000 award will be presented to the artist whose work is chosen as this year’s signature work.

The winning art will represent the festival on posters, T-shirts, and advertising.

Artists are invited to submit a piece of artwork representing “Arts in Newtown.”

The theme can include the visual arts (painting, collage, digital art, wood cuts, sculpture, fiber arts) music, drama, poetry, prose, dance, film, crafts, culinary, horticulture, a special place, special people, an identifying symbol, a tradition, etc. The artwork may include the festival title, date and tagline: Newtown Arts Festival 2023 / A Celebration of the Arts / September 22-24, 2023.

Target audience is the citizens and families of Newtown and the wider Fairfield County festival enthusiasts, musicians, artisans, theatre and film attendees, and dancers. Businesses as potential sponsors.

Submissions must be received by February 13, with final decision to be on February 20, 2023.

Digital visual design, painting, photography, printmaking, sculpting, mixed media, illustration. The art must be able to be adaptable for web, print media and social media. The artwork should also be suitable for display on professionally printed 16.5 x 23 posters and black or grey T-shirts.

The competition is open to all area artists.

Deadline for submission is February 13, 2023. For full information visit newtownartsfestival.com and click on the magenta bar near the top of the page (Artists: Click Here to Submit Art for 2023).

Now in its 11th year, Newtown Arts Festival celebrates the arts in the region with a weekend of music, art, dance, theater, crafts, food trucks, and a beer and wine garden.

The 2023 Festival is set for the weekend of September 22-24. The festival is sponsored by Newtown Cultural Arts Commission, and raises funds for scholarships for Newtown residents and grants for Newtown artists and for organizations that bring the arts to Newtown.

On hiatus during the 2020 pandemic, Newtown Arts Festival roared back in 2021 with a record number of artisans, attendees, and sponsors.

“Each year the festival gets larger and presents new art and experiences for the attendees,” said Newtown Cultural Arts Commission Chairman Laura E. Lerman.

The 2022 Newtown Arts Festival signature art was designed by Ryan Patrick, whose untitled work had a woodblock appearance and details including a rooster representing the Town seal, an American flag (a nod to the Main Street flagpole), and elements honoring Holcombe Hill and The Pleasance, among other Newtown locations.