More Contests Announced In Westfield For Halloween And Addamsfest – Westfield, NJ Patch

WESTFIELD, NJ — AddamsFest is conjuring artists of all ages to contribute their talents to two new programs as part of its annual upcoming festivities.

This year’s re-imagined AddamsFest will include The Painted Pumpkin Path and The Draw This in Your Style Addams Family Challenge — both of which will showcase local talent as Westfield celebrates native son Charles Addams and the Town’s 300th anniversary.

The Westfield State of Mind Pumpkin Painting Contest invites local artists to share their vision of Westfield’s history on everyone’s favorite Halloween decoration. Whether it’s representative of the Town’s colonial origins, a more recent moment in time, or even a depiction of life in 2020, the purpose is for artists to convey what they see in their community.

Thirty painted pumpkins, one for each decade of Westfield’s history, will be chosen from all submissions by the Westfield Public Arts Commission and displayed as an art installation in Mindowaskin Park from Oct. 25-31.

To enter, artists should submit a sketch of their vision (the final product will be paint only, no carving), along with their name, phone number and email, to publicart@westfieldnj.gov. Submissions are now open and will be accepted through Oct. 9.

Drawing contest

The Draw This in Your Style Addams Family Challenge also has kicked off, with results that promise to be as unexpected as Addams himself.

Draw This In Your Style, or DTIYS, is a social media-based challenge for artists that spans topics and invites creativity. The premise is that one artist shares an original drawing, and other artists then participate by re-imagining it in their own style and sharing it with a hashtag to collate a wide variety of results. With an AddamsFest spin, this challenge invites artists to share their own take on an iconic Charles Addams cartoon (below).

Prizes will be awarded for the creepiest, kookiest, and most creative versions, with top submissions selected for a virtual art exhibition.

To participate, post a photo of a completed work on Instagram with the hashtags #DrawThisInYourStyle_Addams no later than Oct. 20.

“Charles Addams has always had a special connection to the arts community, and I’m thrilled to add these new programs to AddamsFest,” said Councilwoman Dawn Mackey, AddamsFest Chairperson and Council Liaison to the Westfield Public Arts Commission. “The recent installation of the Art Takes Flight exhibit of butterflies was tremendously well-received by the community, and the Public Arts Commission is looking forward to bringing more art to Westfield in partnership with AddamsFest and Westfield 300.”