Goshen’s ninth annual Arts on the Millrace (AotM) took place on Saturday. The event featured over 44 artists, local guilds and local musicians. 

“It’s a curated event where the community can connect with — and shop — master artists, but in a casual, family-friendly, outdoor setting,” said Adrienne Nesbitt, director of events and co-founder of AotM. 

Arts on the Millrace is a juried event, located near downtown Goshen at Powerhouse Park and stretching south along the Millrace trail. It was a sunny Saturday in Goshen, so the Millrace welcomed many faces throughout the day. The activities included live music, food and drinks, a kid’s activities area, and for many, shopping in the artist’s booths.

Some of the featured musicians of the morning included Goshen College’s Music Together team and Joe Baughman + The Righteous Few. Both performances were attended by a large crowd. In the afternoon, Indigo Mood, Starheart and The Dawg performed from the AotM stage.

The artists that were at the event showcased their talents, using a huge variety of mediums — paper-quilling, painting, photography, woodworking, stained glass,pottery and many more. Since it is a juried event, a panel of judges decide on Best In Show, the Jake Lowen Craftsmanship Award and Best Tent Aesthetic, while the people that attended had the opportunity to vote for the People’s Choice Award. 

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Arts on the Millrace was forced to move to a virtual setting while many other artist showcases like this one were forced to be canceled. In September of 2020, AotM took to Facebook. It became “a big online art sale,” according to Nesbitt. Since 2020, AotM has been in person. 

“We’re thrilled to present the event the way it was meant to be experienced,” said Nesbitt.

This year’s Up and Coming Artists were Analise Potsander, Eli Toth-Perez, Magdalena Bridger-Ulloa and Selah Potsander. Analise presented paper-quillings, Toth-Perez presented paintings, Bridger-Ulloa presented ink and digital drawings, and Selah presented drawings. These artists were new to Arts on the Millrace.

All of the artists present on Saturday had the opportunity to showcase their hard work, as well as sell to anyone that was interested. Each of the 50 booths along the Elkhart River had interested patrons in their tents throughout the entire day to purchase works, or even just to peruse all of the works presented. Maddie Bollinger, a sophomore elementary education major, attended the event during the morning and enjoyed her time looking around and making purchases at the event. 

“With all of the stops throughout my morning, I really enjoyed everything that I saw and had to tell myself to stop spending money,” said Bollinger. “I found [a] green ring after I had already bought a pair of earrings. They matched each other, so I had to buy the earrings. I don’t regret it.”

While this year’s Arts on the Millrace has passed, next fall will mark the 10th AotM, and it will not be one to miss. The event will feature new artists, musicians and activities, as well as artists that have been at previous events.