Starting in 1991,[1] the Greater Reston Arts Center began staging what is now ranked as one of the major outdoor fine arts festivals in the nation,[2][3][4] and which grew both in critical reputation as well as attendance, with an estimated 30,000 visitors during the three-day festival.
[7] The festival usually showcases the works of about 200 juried artists from across the United States,[7] covering 16 categories[8][9] spanning most of the visual arts genres such as painting, drawing, printmaking, sculpture, fiber arts, and glass, as well as high-end crafts such as clothing, jewelry, and furniture.
The festival is usually staged in the month of May, with the exception of 2020, when the show was cancelled,[10] and of 2021, when it was held during September as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Over the years, the festival has used many notable jurors, such as artists Willem de Looper,[16] Mary Early,[17] Chawky Frenn,[18] Joseph Craig English,[19] J. J. McCracken,[20] and others, as well as museum directors such as Jack Rasmussen of the American University Museum at the Katzen Arts Center in Washington, DC,[21] Gerald Ross, Director of Exhibitions and Curator at the Maryland Institute College of Art (MICA) in Baltimore, MD,[22] Kenneth Trapp, Curator-in-Charge of the Smithsonian American Art Museum's Renwick Gallery,[23] and blogger, critic and author F. Lennox Campello, and Leanne Mella, a founding member of the Film and Video program at the Whitney Museum of American Art.
[4][26][27] Over the years many notable artists have participated in the festival, including Sheila Giolitti,[28] Joseph Craig English,[29] and others.