Improvements planned for Grayslake arts fest

With attendance down due to a number of factors, organizers of Grayslake's 21st annual Arts Festival on Saturday were already looking ahead to 2017.

"There's two other fairs going on in Libertyville and Antioch this weekend, it's Father's Day weekend and it's hot," said Barbara Murray of Spring Grove, who's had a ceramics booth at the festival for the last several years. "I've got to be honest - there haven't been a lot of people here, all day."

But Phil Bruno, the festival's chairman, said plans are already in the works to add wine tastings to next year's event, as well as move it to a different weekend that won't face so much competition.

"We thought we'd try something different," said Bruno, who pointed to the success of the village's craft beer festival, held earlier this month, as a reason that wine would make a natural pairing with art.

Attendees who made it out Saturday enjoyed several live bands, 28 different artists' stalls with vendors hailing from Illinois and Wisconsin, children's activities and dance performances.

Mae Smith, daughter Laura Raykiewicz and granddaughter Emily Raykiewicz of Wadsworth were delighted to run into Hannah Frank, a mixed-media artist and fellow graduate of Grayslake Central High School whom she hadn't seen in a decade, and from whom she bought a print.

"It was just amazing to see her and the work she's doing," Raykiewicz said.