POINTILLISM ART BY BRIAN DELOZIER

For pointillism artist Brian Delozier, the best part of arts and craft festivals is interacting with the  crowd as folks watch him use Crayola markers to make dots into designs.

“It’s so sweet to see people’s reaction to my art. Since I’ve been doing it for so long, it’s not really anything that I feel is that special, but it’s so neat to be around people who have seen it for the first time,” he says. “It’s just great to see people light up over something that I created and enjoy creating.”

Delozier is a featured artist at The Other Art Festival On Walnut Street. Taking place from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., May 21-22 in Shadyside, the festival will feature paintings, sculptures, handmade jewelry, beaded works and pottery, as well as a green market. There also will be a Craft Marketplace featuring handmade soaps, clothing and home decor. 

The event is hosted by Howard Alan Events, a Florida-based company that produces art and craft shows across the country. Spokesperson Elizabeth Dashiell says in a press release the festival will feature more than 100 local and visiting artisans, each with their own booth along Walnut Street. It will offer a wide array of mediums and price ranges.

“The festival represents original, handcrafted artwork selected by an independent panel of expert judges from hundreds of applicants,” she adds.

Delozier, who lives in Reading, Pa., says a traumatic spinal injury he suffered on the ski slope at age 16 left him paralyzed, initially from the neck down. As a coping mechanism during his recovery, he dotted paper with markers, which eventually evolved into pictures. Today, Delozier, who walks with crutches and has limited mobility in his hands, makes intricately detailed pointillism designs that he calls Brian’s Dots. 

He says his art resembles the texture of fabric. 

“When someone goes up and looks at [the design], at first they’re like, ‘Can I touch this? How is this flat? How are you doing that?’” he says. “And then I can just show them right there how I’m doing it.”  

Delozier will display more than 60 nature-inspired pointillism designs along with a few paintings. 

“In the Northeast, the artist community is almost like a family of travelers from show to show helping each other out. Everybody’s so nice and supportive,” he says. “It’s so neat to see all the different types of ways people create things. I’ll walk around at our shows and be so inspired all the time.”

Among other artists and makers at the event will be woodworker Mike Grguras, leather bag-maker Alejandra Avila Segura and local photographer Jonathan Malek. For more information, visit here.