Fox River Arts Ramble features art, food and music June 3

The Fox River Arts Ramble is a one-day self-guided art tour of various locations in the Fox Valley. This area is rich in art, artists, and art locations. This free event runs from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, June 3. Each location will feature various art and artists.

The locations taking part this year are: Geneva Public Library and Proud Fox Gallery in Geneva; Water Street Studios in Batavia; and 3 AM Studio, 116 Gallery, JTM Designs and Fine Line Creative Arts Center, all in St. Charles.

Proud Fox Gallery & Frame Shop will have a large selection of new, local and international, original and print art to view and purchase.

Stop by the Geneva Public Library to view the "Inner Experiences" art exhibit on display that features the work of Chicago-based artist Dimitri Pavlotsky. The exhibition is on view in the library's lobby gallery and a gallery talk will take place at the beginning of each hour during the Ramble.

Water Street Studios in Batavia will have a family-friendly open house with free art activities for all ages, tours of Water Street Studios' historic building and resident artists' studios and three Innovative exhibitions.

If you visit the 116 Gallery in St. Charles, you can view the current show, "Unbroken," a group exhibition with over 30 artists featured.

3 AM Studios in St. Charles is always a fun space to visit. The owners, Todd Willing and Kelly Swayne will ensure you have a great time.

JTM Designs, another location in St. Charles, is home to jewelry artist Sally Smith. At Smith's jewelry studio you can find unique, one-of-a-kind creations made with equal parts love and chaos.

Outdoor artisan market

Fine Line Creative Arts Center in St. Charles will have an outdoor artisan market packed with local artisans selling hand-crafted items, art demonstrations, live music, great food and beer. This year's booth artists include Jen Original Jewelry Designs, Sue Dix Ceramics, Cara Buono and SKG Artworks.

Jane Cooper owns Jen Original Jewelry Designs. Using a semi-precious stone as a starting point, Cooper creates one-of-a-kind wearable art. A distinctive feature of Cooper's jewelry is "piercing," which involves carefully cutting shapes into the metal backplates to highlight parts of the stones underneath.

Sue Dix is a ceramics artist from Elgin. While Dix does create mugs and bowls, one of her more unique items is the small dishes she makes. These small dishes are embellished with animal line drawings full of whimsey.

Caro Buono is a fiber artist who creates wearable garments by upcycling. Buono is passionate about using fabric manipulation, cutting, patternmaking, layering and seaming to achieve playful movement and structure in her pieces.

SKG Artworks has art to make you smile. Owner Debby Olsen paints on canvas, paper, wood, glass and ceramic tiles, combining abstract and folk art. Olsen often used run-off paint from acrylic paintings to create small original pieces of art on ceramic tiles to be used as coasters or as cards and magnets.

With a fantastic mix of wall art, functional and decorative ceramics, jewelry, glass, clothing and more, it's a great place to shop for local hand-crafted items.

Art demonstrations

While the outdoor artisan market is one reason to visit the event, it is not the only reason.

This year's art demonstrations at Fine Line include: glass blowing by Alan Shontz, Gelli plate printing by Carol Kazwick; and blacksmithing by Dan Caldwell.

Fatima Figueiredo will be spending the afternoon showing off her watercolor skills. There will also be weaving, dyeing and wheel-throwing demonstrations.

If you have ever thought about taking a class at Fine Line, this is a great way to visit the campus and meet some of the artists who teach at Fine Line.

A food truck and a locally crafted beer vendor will be onsite throughout the day. Inches Taco Food Truck from Elgin will be selling their great Mexican food, while Riverlands Brewing Company from St. Charles will have a few excellent beer options for you to drink as you wander around the Fine Line grounds.

Live music

Bird Garden Studios in St. Charles, which seasoned producer Ryan Caldwell runs, has once again found a great group of local musicians to provide live music throughout the day in one-hour slots beginning at 10 a.m. Caldwell will run sound to ensure the best possible sound.

The first artist is Zack Edwards. Edwards, a multi-instrumentalist from the powerhouse quintet the Vultures, is a one-man band with a smooth, gritty voice and guitar style! Featuring a snarling mix of blues and indie rock, you can't help but nod along.

Next up is Katie Bogal, a singer-songwriter living in Aurora. Bogal delivers fun pop music that will get stuck in your head. Her nuclear smile and exquisite suits are just garnishes to her delightful sunny day love songs about her wife. It's impossible to avoid the joy that Katie radiates every time she plays.

Midday sees the return of the ever-popular Invisible Cartoons. This five-piece rock outfit features electric dance movies, crazy costumes, and a Keytar! Their self-branded "Smile Rock" draws heavily from Funk, Bubble Gum Pop, Metal, Synth Rock, and more.

Kicked by a Hand, a proudly gay pop punk/ska group fronted by R.J. Ramanauskas will take the stage at 1 p.m. Their stripped-down solo acoustic set will surely put some pep in your step. They sing high-energy and cathartic songs about everything from punk rock gatekeepers to lingering houseguests.

A veteran of the Chicagoland music scene, Daniel Izaaks, the next act, draws inspiration from rock and roll icons and classics throughout every decade. Whether it's grooving a Rolling Stones tune, rocking out on a Jack White song, or slowing things down with a soulful ballad, Izaaks takes contemporary and classic hits and gives them a flavor all his own.

The final act is Matt Shuken of Matt Shuken and the Ramblers and The Black Bolts. Shuken is a long-haired, string-bending, shredding rock and roller. Anyone craving the raw edge of classics like Little Richard, Jimi Hendrix, and the Who will be over the moon to hear this man perform.

Passport

A new feature of this year's Fox River Arts Ramble is the Passport. You can pick up a passport at the first venue you visit. Visit three other venues (making a total of 4) throughout the day and you can enter to win some great raffle prizes.

The Fox River Arts Ramble takes place on Saturday, June 3, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. It is a free event and will go ahead, rain or shine. It is a great way to get out and support local artists and art organizations in the Fox Valley area while listening to great music and enjoying great food and beer. There are some great places taking part in the event this year and the Fine Line Creative Arts Center is a great place to visit on your day of art in Fox Valley.

The Outdoor Market Artists include: Art for All Elgin, Matt Brej Ceramics, Cara Buono, Monica Casey, Sue Dix Ceramics, DD Designs, Teresa Harbaugh, Hot Potato Glass, Jeanette Hubiak, Indie Art Park, Tessa Koller, Andrea Krause, Jen Original Jewelry Designs, Ellen Phillips Baskets, Muriel Reymond, Amy Simpson Glass, SKG Artworks, Designs by Starla, Wildhill Pottery, and J.L. Younglove Ceramics.

Live music from: 10:00 Zack Edwards at 10 a.m., Katie Bogal at 11 a.m., Invisible Cartoons at noon, Kicked by a Hand at 1 p.m., Daniel Izzaks at 2 p.m., and Matt Shuken at 3 p.m.

To find out more visit www.fineline.org/pages/fox-river-arts-ramble.

To find out more about other locations taking part, visit www.foxriverarts.com.

Fine Line Creative Arts Center is located at 37W570 Bolcum Road in St. Charles. For details, call (630) 584-9443 or visit www.fineline.org.