Artists from Natchez and throughout the region will display and sell their works at the fall Art & Soul festival, Sept. 30 and Oct. 1 in downtown Natchez.

For artist Jan Slack of Dahlonega, Ga., the festival will be an opportunity to showcase some of her newest works and at the same time to visit Natchez for the first time.

&uot;I’ve heard wonderful things about Natchez,&uot; she said. &uot;I’ve done shows throughout the years off and on, a number in the Atlanta area where I live and in Seattle when I lived there.&uot;

Slack, who usually has worked in clay and has taught pottery making, has moved into a non-traditional venue, three-dimensional collages in mixed media.

&uot;I come from a family of artists,&uot; Slack said. &uot;My mom is an artist and all my sisters are artists.

One sister, Marsha Richter, of Gainesville, Ga., will accompany her to Natchez, Slack said. Richter also will bring art to show and sell.

The response to a call for artists has been excellent, said Tammi Gardner, executive director of the Natchez Downtown Development Association, the sponsoring agency. More than 25 artists have entered, including sculptors, painters, jewelry designers and woodworkers.

They are from Georgia, Texas, Louisiana and Mississippi cities including Natchez.

&uot;This is our first year, and we consider it a building block for the future,&uot; Gardner said. &uot;It can grow every year. We just have to show the artists this is a good place to sell art.&uot;

With its love of the arts and the ease with which Natchez people have a good party, Gardner looks for a successful Friday night and Saturday.

The sidewalk festival will begin with music and an introduction to the artists Friday night. On Saturday, the booths will open again, with music, food and family activities throughout the day.

The event meshes with the Downtown Development group’s missions to cultivate the ever-growing artist community in Natchez, to promote the city’s rich cultural diversity and to bring more people downtown, Gardner said.

Committees working on the event are busy with many details, Gardner said. Organizing food vendors, musical groups and volunteers to do many different tasks is going well, she said.

More information about the festival is available by

calling Gardner at 601-442-2929.