The City of Auburn plans to host its second annual Art in the Park event Saturday, Aug. 21, on the very same day that Auburn serves as co-host of the State of Maine Bicentennial Parade, presented by Poland Spring.
“Art in the Park” will be held at the corner of Main and Academy streets in downtown Auburn  and will include a juried art show with cash prizes, as well as a vendor area, where artists, food trucks and other vendors from near and far will connect with people who are there to take part in the parade festivities.
“After taking last year off, we are so excited to partner with L-A Arts once again,” said Haley Warden, member of the Auburn Parks and Recreation Advisory Board and Chair of Art in the Park 2021, in a news release. “Artists from across Maine are warmly invited to participate in this exceptional art event; details can be found at www.artinauburn.com.”
The juried art show will feature two well-known Maine artists who will serve as judges: Auburn’s own Andy Rosen and Kate Cargile. Cargile is an Auburn resident and is a long-time middle school art teacher. She works in a variety of media, including painting, drawing, printmaking, appliqué quilting, and papier-mâché sculpture. Rosen is an Auburn native whose artwork has appeared in national and international exhibitions, including the Portland Museum of Art, Jim Kempner Fine Arts (New York), Tacoma Museum of Art (Tacoma, Washington), Cuchifritos Gallery (New York), Pulse Art Fair (Miami), and Tetra Projects (traveling exhibition) Mytilene, Greece.
Artists registered for the juried show can submit two pieces of original work (3-D art is permitted).
The cost to register for the Juried Art Show is $35 (non-residents $45). For those wanting to sell their art or other products in the vendor area, there is a $20 registration fee for a 10×10 space (the vender area is open to anyone and is not required for participation in the juried art show).

The City also is delighted to announce that multiple public art pieces will be installed throughout the downtown district in the months ahead. “What began as one public art piece made possible by the Creative Communities Grant from the Maine Arts Commission (via L/A Arts
and L-A Metro Chamber of Commerce) quickly evolved into three incredible pieces,” said Auburn Recreation Director, Sabrina Best. “Auburn has a real appetite and excitement for public art and that’s contagious and so much fun. We are building a legacy of public art and it is a communitywide effort.”
Anniversary Park will be home to two of the new public art pieces. “The Fish,” a nine-foot stone sculpture by Maine artist Thomas Berger, which was unveiled at the July 30 Artwalk.
Following that, a piece by Auburn’s own Charlie Hewitt — an LED illuminated rose with the words, “French Beauty” — will be installed sometime this fall. The third piece of public art is Hugh Lassen’s “Bud Form,” a life-sized abstract sculpture that will stand roughly six feet tall (with the ability to rotate). The sculpture will be placed in Longley Park, near the start of the bridge in one of Auburn’s busiest gateways.

For more information, call the Auburn Recreation Department at 333-6611 or email Warden at hwarden@auburnmaine.gov.

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