Mayfaire-by-the-Lake is a Mother's Day tradition in Lakeland and a great place to browse for original artwork in a variety of media. | Polk Museum of Art
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Mother’s Day weekend coincides with Lakeland’s liveliest and most established arts festival, Mayfaire-by-the-Lake.

Created in 1971 as a small crafts fair on the lawn of the Lakeland Public Library, Mayfaire has become one of the best outdoor fine arts exhibitions in Florida.

When: May 10 and 11, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

This year’s edition, presented by Citizens Bank & Trust and The Ruthvens, and organized by the Ashley Gibson Barnett Museum of Art, will have more than 150 artists exhibiting along the shore of Lake Morton, at 177 booths.

There is a guide to the participating artists here.

There’s a festival guide here.

Admission is free.

Parking: There is parking available at the northeast corner of the intersection of Lime Street and Massachusetts Avenue, and at the campus of Florida Southern College (areas marked in orange on the map below).

There’s a parking shuttle from FSC to the festival.

The artists are competing for prizes:

  • Best of Show $5,000
  • Awards of Excellence (2), $2,000
  • Awards of Distinction (4), $1,000
  • Merit Awards (6), $500
  • Honorable Mention Awards (5), $200

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Robert Meyerowitz has been a reporter, editor and foreign correspondent. He covered Central America and the Middle East, he was the cofounder and editor of the Anchorage Press in Alaska, and he taught journalism at the University of Alaska. He comes to Lakeland from Park City, Utah, where he edited The Park Record.

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