GREENFIELD — The Riley Festival is much more than a street festival.
It’s also an opportunity to showcase individuals’ creative pursuits.
Photography, poetry, fine arts and baking are just a few of the categories in which individuals compete each year as part of the popular four-day event, which kicks off next week.
Registration is still open online for a number of competitions. All are incorporating this year’s festival theme — “The Bumblebee” — a poem by festival namesake James Whitcomb Riley.
“All these shows and exhibits mark another addition to the festival and make it even more interesting for a variety of people to attend,” said Nancy Alldredge, a Riley Festival board member who has helped coordinate the event for the past 25 years.
This is the 51st year for the annual festival, which celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2019. It starts Thursday, Oct. 7 and runs through Sunday, Oct. 10.
Entry forms for the various contests are available at the festival’s website, www.rileyfestival.com
Fine Arts
Artists of various mediums are invited to show their stuff in the annual Fine Arts contest.
Categories include: watercolor/gouache; oil/acrylic; pastel/charcoal; ink/pencil; and graphics/prints. Entries must be framed with screw eyes, not sawtooth hangers.
Prizes will be awarded in various divisions: professional, advanced adult, beginning adult, ages 15-81, ages 1-14 and ages 6-9. Each participant is limited to four entries.
Artwork should be dropped off at the Bradley Hall events center, at 2 W. Main St., between 2 and 8 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 6, to be part of the public exhibit throughout the festival. Artwork can be retrieved between 3:30 and 5:30 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 10.
Home Arts & Quilt Show
The annual Home Arts & Quilt Show will be held at the county annex building, 111 American Legion Place. Quilters are invited to enter any quilt that has not previously been entered in this contest. Entries are sought in more than 100 categories of quilt-making and other needlecrafts. Home arts categories include food preparation and food preservation. Entrants have more than 50 categories from which to choose, from baking breads to canning and pickles. Entries will be received from noon to 6 p.m. Oct. 6. Awards will be handed out in junior (16 and younger) and senior (17 and older) divisions.
Little Miss and Mister
Pint-size princes and princesses will take part in the annual Little Miss and Mister contest at 5 p.m. Friday, Oct. 8, in the festival’s entertainment tent on South Street.
Contestants must live in Hancock County and be between 3 and 6 years old as of Oct. 1. All are encouraged to incorporate this year’s bumblebee theme into their apparel.
The contest is limited to 10 boys and 10 girls. Each will be scored on his or her smile, personality, theme attire and overall positive effect on the audience.
The winners proclaimed to be this year’s Little Miss and Mister will ride in the Riley Festival Parade on Oct. 8 and the Christmas Parade of Lights in December.
To register, visit RileyFestival.com or call the festival office at 317-462-2141.
Photography
Shutterbugs of all skill levels are invited to submit photographs to be displayed and judged in the Hancock County Courthouse annex. The exhibit will be open to the public during the festival.
Cash prizes will be awarded in three categories: children, intermediate and professional.
Photos should be dropped off at the annex between 8 a.m. and 6 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 6, and retrieved between 3:30 and 4:30 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 10. Guidelines for how photos should be mounted and presented are available at RileyFestival.com.
Poetry
The deadline for the annual poetry contest has already passed, but poets of all ages are welcome to stop by and recite a few lines at an open mic poetry night from 6 to 7:30 p.m. Friday, Oct. 8, in the festival’s entertainment tent.
Poems can be in any form — original or published — and small props are allowed. Poets may read up to two or three poems depending on the time and number of participants. Cash prizes will be awarded in three age groups: 12 and under, 13 to 17, and 18 and older.
Pumpkin Contest
Kids young and old are invited to enter the pumpkin decorating contest this year.
Participants are encouraged to decorate a pumpkin based on this year’s festival theme, “The Bumblebee,” using paper, glue, paint and other craft materials. Carving is not permitted. The maximum height is 18 inches tall.
Cash prizes will be awarded in three age categories: 10 and under; 11 to 17; and 18 and older. A viewer’s choice award will also be awarded based on votes from the public.
Decorated pumpkins can be dropped off at the Bradley Hall events center between 4 and 6 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 6, and retrieved by 5:15 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 10.
For more information on Riley Festival contests and events, visit RileyFestival.com or call the Riley Festival office at 317-462-2141.
