AUGUSTA, Ga. (WJBF)- Arts in the Heart is back for another year to celebrate all things art. That includes music and food of course.

“This is our second time, we really love Augusta, it’s a beautiful main street, here and we’re from Charleston, South Carolina– so, it’s not too far from us. But, yeah, it’s just a beautiful experience, great people, good vibes, and good art,” L.J. Eidolin Art- Artist Jason Weatherspoon said.

Many artists who attended this year’s event, say this is not their first go-around.

“This is my third time, and I was just here in 2021, and I was blessed to win third place,” N2d Arts Inc. Artist David Anderson said.

Artists like David Anderson tell me, his work is about more than just an image on an object. 

“Like they say, a picture is worth a thousand words, and now and days with all of this book banging and all of that stuff– you put the words into a picture– how can they deny people looking at the picture and reading it. So, anything I do, it has to have a story behind it.” 

Anderson’s story behind his work comes from his grandmother’s efforts for a better life. 

“She was back in Arkansas picking cotton and she needed a new pair of church shoes. So, she was pregnant with my aunt, and she had to pick cotton an extra month and a half to save two dollars and 50 cents to buy some church shoes,” Anderson said.  

And it’s the art that people like Anderson and Jason Weatherspoon create that keep visitors coming back each year. 

“We try to come every year, it’s a great event where everybody can come together down in Augusta– it’s kind of a melting pot of a lot of things. And food, and traditions that you don’t get everyday. So, it’s just a wonderful time and it’s a great day to be out here and we’re just enjoying the festivities,” Festival Visitor Bernard Marshall said.

Weatherspoon tells me Arts in the Heart is a great way to showcase every aspect of art, no matter what form. 

“We decided to elevate digital into the fine art realm. So, we have all of our own equipment, we do all of our own printing, we stretch everything, we even do these nice panels which I cut out of maple.” 

The art downtown still travels far distances once the festival is all said and done, but many artists get their recognition in the heart on Broad.