The Dazzling Daylilies Celebration is set to begin on June 20, and there will be a new look and name to the event held at the Western Kentucky Botanical Gardens.
Rather than being called the “Dazzling Daylilies Festival,” the 11th annual event is being called the “Dazzling Daylilies Celebration.”
“It’s adapted according to COVID-19 guidelines,” said Susie Tyler, director of the Botanical Garden. “We felt like ‘festival’ should go out of the window this year.”
The celebration kicks off that Saturday with the first ever Plein Air event — when artists paint outdoors — and there’s a $300 cash prize for the winner.
“It’s a boon for the artist and the community. People get to see people paint, and it’s pretty much a good day to have a good time,” said Selma Wiesenberg, director of Owensboro Art Guild. “They’ll spread out all over the gardens.”
Tyler said it should be a “delightful time” to paint in the open air.
“We feel like the garden is an ideal spot for Plein Air painting,” she said. “You won’t believe it, you’ll have to get out here. There are thousands of (daylilies). And they’re all about to bloom.”
Volunteers are needed for two-hour increments from to check in artists and their paintings.
Opening night will showcase hot air balloons alongside the daylilies, and Owensboro Symphony’s Jazz Trio will play at the gazebo from 6-8 p.m. Youths get in free opening night.
