A record 55,000 people took to the streets of Del Ray Oct. 4 for the 19th annual Art on the Avenue, one of Alexandria’s premiere events and largest arts festivals in the mid-Atlantic region.

“This was an amazing day,” said organizer Pat Miller. “People were showing up the minute the streets were shut down at 8 a.m. even though the festival didn’t officially begin for another two hours.”

Sponsored by the Del Ray Business Association, artisans and craftsmen from throughout the region exhibited their wares along Mount Vernon Avenue as festival-goers enjoyed entertainment, children’s games and delicacies prepared by Del Ray restaurants.

New this year was a children’s art project featuring a recently retired DASH bus.

“We were looking for different ways to celebrate our 30th anniversary and this seemed like a good fit,” said DASH general manager and Del Ray resident Sandy Modell. “We partnered with students at T.C. Williams and Alexandria Country Day School, who primed the bus and sketched out some of the designs. Then the Del Ray Variety Store agreed to let us set it up in their parking lot for kids to add their handprints as part of the festival. It turned out to be great fun for everyone.”

“From one end of the street to the other, there were people as far as the eye could see.”

— Art on the Avenue founder Pat Miller

With this year’s festival barely behind her, Miller is already looking ahead to next year, when the event she founded turns 20.

“Next year we’ll come up with something special,” Miller said. “But first we want to get ideas from the community and artists, perhaps through surveys, so that we can incorporate those things into our 20th anniversary celebration.”

Miller was quick to credit the volunteers for the success of the event.

“From one end of the street to the other, there were people as far as the eye could see,” Miller said. “Yet everything went so smoothly because of the efforts of our volunteers. This event would not happen without them.”