This July 12 and 13, visitors to Madison’s annual Art Fair on the Square will notice that the four streets that intersect to form Capital Square aren’t the only ones populated with white-tented artist booths. On Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard, which juts off the square toward Lake Monona, attendees will find over 100 Wisconsin-based artists at the aptly-named Art Fair Off the Square.
The Wisconsin Alliance of Artists and Craftspeople (WAAC) created Art Fair Off the Square 45 years ago, around the time when Art Fair on the Square was gaining traction. While Art Fair on the Square welcomes artists from all over the country, Art Fair Off the Square would be an event to showcase Wisconsin artists exclusively. The two events are unaffiliated with each other.
Rachel Christopoulos, a WAAC board member and painter who’s lived in Wisconsin all her life, sees Art Fair Off the Square as a necessary resource for local artists…