Their work covers a wide range of media – from metal to clay to canvas and wearable fabric – and this year they hail from Alabama, California, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Texas, Virginia, West Virginia and Wisconsin. They were selected by a panel of judges from a pool of more than 200 applications.

The three-day festival takes place in the unique setting of Atalaya, a Moorish-style “castle” built during the Great Depression as a winter home and sculpture studio by Archer and Anna Hyatt Huntington, the New York philanthropists who also created Brookgreen Gardens across U.S. 17 from the oceanfront park.

Along with high-quality arts and crafts, the festival features continuous live music by accomplished local acts, and a food court offering Lowcountry seafood dishes, barbecue and other culinary highlights from local restaurants.

Festival hours are Friday, Sept. 28, from noon to 6 p.m., Saturday, Sept. 29, from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., and Sunday, Sept. 30, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Admission is $6 for adults. A multi-day pass is available for $10. Ages 15 and under are admitted free. The park admission fee is waived during the festival weekend.

The festival also shows off Huntington Beach State Park itself. Located along U.S. 17 in Murrells Inlet, the park offers its more than 600,000 visitors a year one of the most pristine beaches on the Grand Strand. The 2,500-acre park’s freshwater lagoon and salt marsh maritime forest also are outstanding examples of the state’s natural coastal environment and the park is widely regarded as one of the best birding sites along the East Coast. Its natural history is highlighted in the park’s environmental education center.

For more information, contact Park Manager Brenda Magers at (843) 237-4440 or This email address is being protected from spam bots, you need Javascript enabled to view it , Beth Fallaw of the S.C. Department of Parks, Recreation & Tourism at (803) 734-0450 or bfallaw@scprtcom, or visit the festival Web page at www.atalayafestival.com