Bellevue's belle: Arts and Crafts Fair is Eastside's premier summer event

It rained on the first fair. The head of the University of Washington art school said the event belonged in Seattle. Art sales totaled slightly more than $1,000. The parking lots were crammed and the 30 volunteers exhausted. Bellevue wasn't even incorporated.

Organizers declared it a success and couldn't wait to do it again. And they have, year after year.

The Bellevue Arts and Crafts Fair — called the Pacific Northwest Arts and Crafts Fair at its birth in 1947 — holds its 60th fair this week the way it began by featuring whimsical art and serious art; paintings, crafts, ceramics, wearables, furniture and glass.

Over the decades, the fair has launched art careers, funded an art school, opened an art gallery, served as the Eastside's social event of the summer and built the Bellevue Arts Museum.

Although the Fair has always been described as a promotion for art and artists and an opportunity to educate the community, the original purpose was to bring people to the fledgling Bellevue Square shopping center.

Bellevue Square developer Kemper Freeman Sr. got the idea from tenants Carl and Pat Pefley, owners of the Crabapple restaurant. They had invited Seattle artists to display their work at the restaurant. Customers loved it, bought art and asked for more.

Carl Pefley, who had been influenced by outdoor art shows when he lived in Laguna Beach, Calif., suggested holding a similar event under the building eaves of the then-open air shopping center. The other merchants, the Chamber of Commerce and community volunteers signed on to help.

Seventy artists showed their work at the September event in 1947. One, Dudley Carter, carved a stump left over from building the Square, during the fair. (Today that carving, "Bird Woman," sits near the Northeast Eighth Street entrance to the west parking garage at Bellevue Square.)

The second fair drew 250 artists, 60,000 visitors and 34 dogs. After the third fair, organizers decided to start an art collection and build a museum.

Freeman Sr. decided early on to keep it as an arts fair so he turned down offers to bring in carnival games and rides. Although artists from around the country were welcomed, the fair was considered local, even down to the food. Until recently, only local nonprofit community groups were allowed to operate food booths.

During the formative years, the event was managed by volunteers — mostly women who didn't work outside the home, but also entire families.

Pre- and post-fair parties sealed friendships. One time a group of husbands, in charge of hanging art, intentionally hung every painting upside down.

For some groups, such as the Bellevue Kiwanis Club, the longevity of the fair has been a big boon.

"We've been selling our barbecue beef sandwiches for about 40 years," said Adam Snyder, an Eastside attorney who chairs the sandwich booth. "This is our one-and-only fundraiser, and we put the proceeds right back into the community."

Over the years the group has raised about half of a million dollars to support youth activities, feeding programs and other community work.

"The fair is fun," Snyder said. "It ... holds our community together."

Sherry Grindeland is author of "Art: A Fair Legacy. The Journey from Fair to Museum," 2003. She can be reached at 206-515-5633 or sgrindeland@seattletimes.com