A Bicycle Built for Two

Cyclist Elizabeth Walker of St. Petersburg holds a weathervane she and her husband Steve were buying Sunday, February 19 at the second annual Gulfport Masters Fine Arts Festival. “We’ve been looking for a bicycle weathervane forever,” Steve told metal artist Paul Guilmette of Port Charlotte, who uses new and recycled materials for his whimsical figures. Elizabeth said she and Steve picked a bicycle built for two “because we’ll never own one.” In the unlikely event that they did ride one together, she said, “I’d kill him or he’d kill me. I’d be back there drinking a beer and he’d be doing all the pedaling.”

The festival, a juried “boutique” show, focusing on fine art and fine craft, was held Saturday and Sunday at Veteran’s Park, and sponsored by the city of Gulfport, the Gulfport Merchants Association and the Gulfport Area Chamber of Commerce.

According to organizers, the festival is Gulfport’s “only two-day outdoor art event, intended to highlight not only the work of local and regional fine artists but also work from artists not previously represented in the area,” and “builds on Gulfport’s reputation as an arts destination.”