San Luis Obispo (SLO) Art in the Park was hosted on May 23 and 24 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at Santa Rosa Park with free admission. Vendors along the coast of California set up to sell their art. The festival hosted 140 vendors who hosted or sold their art, and the event had a local food vendor where attendees could buy food. 

When Steve Powers, a former show director, moved to SLO, he saw the need for art in the area, so he hosted SLO’s first Art in the Park three years ago. The festival has slowly grown into what it is today and will continue for the foreseeable future.

“I’ve been working with the show director for about five years now. I do my own art as well, but right now, I’m here working,”  Alison Ford said.

Vendor Patrick Rhames heard about the event from his daughter and was invited by his daughter to commute from Fresno, CA. to show his photography. This was the first time he showed his photography in SLO. 

Rhames’s interest in photography was sparked when he was a rookie in the police force and wanted to see action by taking photos at crime scenes. After his retirement, when he went on vacation to Ireland, he slowly started to practice photography professionally. 

“When I retired, I decided to buy a camera and started to do photography, and I liked it… All I do now is photography, ” Rhames said.

Artist James Hunter uses oil paints to make art that is purposefully different. His art  is colorful and connected to nature. James is from Sacramento, CA. and drove five hours to showcase his art for others to see in SLO; he also shows his art in San Diego, CA. 

“I was [painting] in my late teens [and] early twenties when my grandmother inspired me to start painting with oils, ” Hunter said.

Erin Bowling is a multi-faceted artist and works on multiple art pieces at a time, whether that be bags or canvas paintings. This was Bowling’s first year at Art in the Park, and she plans to attend again in the future. 

Bowling loves to paint, because it helps her to process her grief, and it gives her a reason to talk to others about her son, Connor Bowling, who committed suicide in Oct. 2024. Erin Bowling uses her art profits to help others who have gone through similar situations.  

“I am dealing with my grief [and] using my work to raise money and donate to places that give kids mental health services,” Erin Bowling said.