Paradise Garden Foundation presents the fourth Outsider Art Trail Tour on Saturday, June 5, offering a great road-trip option for anyone ready to get out and explore after being cooped up during the pandemic.
Take a drive deep into the heart of southern small-town charm and quirk, wander down some rural byways, and celebrate the beginning of summer amid the leafy beauty of Northwest Georgia.
Start your day early at a “picker’s paradise” as you dig for treasures at Trade Day, a giant outdoor flea market just outside downtown Summerville that has been a Chattooga County tradition since 1976.
Explore two remarkable outdoor art environments on foot – world famous Howard Finster’s Paradise Garden in Summerville and Calhoun's The Rock Garden, featuring more than 50 diminutive buildings, crafted from tiny stones, shells, glass fragments and more, that are modeled on famous cathedrals and other landmarks.
Visit and be tempted to start or add to your collection at two folk art spaces in Summerville -- Folk America Gallery, and Finster Framing & Art Gallery.
In a storefront right around the corner from Finster Framing, visit the art space of Olivia Myers,
showcasing slab pottery and abstract paintings.
Somewhere in between, lunch on the patio or cool off inside at Jefferson’s for juicy burgers and salads, or pick up take-out from any Summerville restaurant to picnic at Paradise Garden.
The Outsider Art Trail Tour is a self-guided, dog-friendly, get-outta-the-house event designed as a day of discovery and art at a chill pace. The tour is free with Paradise Garden admission ($15
adults/$5 children), with donations appreciated at the Rock Garden, as well.
Trade Day opens at 7 a.m. (just half a mile south of Paradise Garden), galleries and art environments 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Pick-up your Outsider Art Trail “Passport” at any location, and as you tour, earn stamps to qualify for a drawing for free prizes, including an overnight Airbnb stay at Paradise Garden.
Make the Outsider Art Trail Tour a full weekend adventure. Consider two nearby state parks for an array of overnight accommodations – James H. “Sloppy” Floyd State Park and Cloudland Canyon State Park – www.gastateparks.org/reservations.
The Outsider Art Trail Tour is organized by Paradise Garden Foundation: www.ParadiseGardenFoundation.org/, click on Outsider Art Trail Tour.