The Hartselle Fine Arts Center will be showcasing local artists this weekend as Arts and Crafts on College Street.

The event begins on Friday night with an open house from 5-8 p.m. Arts and Crafts on College Street will continue on Saturday and Sunday.

HFAC director Kelley Redmond said the show is an opportunity to give back to the community.

“This is a chance to showcase the art and talent of our local artists,” Redmond said. “We have so much talent in Hartselle that we wanted to do our part to support our local artists.

“The residents and the city of Hartselle have been so supportive to us through the years. We just wanted to give something back.”

Mitch Coon(seated) and Gayle Strider are the artists of the month at the Hartselle Fine Arts Center. | Randy Garrison

The event is free and open to the public all three days. She also added that free refreshments will be available on Friday night for anyone who comes by and looks at the artwork.

Redmond said the arts and crafts will be for sale by the artists as well, which could be used as Christmas gifts.

“There’s something for everyone,” Redmond said. “Come by, get some refreshments, enjoy the Christmas music and look at arts and crafts inside our building.”

In addition to the show, this is also the first public viewing of the Fine Arts Center’s Artist of the Month. The artists selected for this honor are Gayle Strider and Mitch Coon.

Redmond said the artwork was set up in November, with the help of Anne Tucker from Slate Gallery and Framing.

“Some of the pieces of artwork are for sale, but other pieces were commissioned for others, which are not for sale,” Redmond said. “We’ve already had a lot of positive feedback for our Artist of the Month. Everyone’s been really receptive of it. I think it’s something that people will enjoy when they visit the Fine Arts Center.”

Redmond said the Artist of the Month display will be up until the end of December. They will select a new artist each month beginning in January.