For decades, the 12-acre estate tucked beside the Overlea neighborhood has been one of Baltimore County’s best-kept secrets — a pond, a scatter of cabins, a grand main building, and the grave of the woman who gave it all away. Lillian Holt, born a McCormick, of the McCormick spice family, bequeathed her property to Baltimore County in the mid-1970s with a specific condition attached: that it become a public park and a center for the arts.
This Saturday, that fifty-year-old wish takes a major step forward. From 12 to 7 p.m. on August 29, Baltimore County Recreation and Parks debuts Art Fusion, a free festival built around the theme “Earth, Moon, and Stars,” and the first major public event under a new push to turn Holt Park and Center for the Arts into a year-round arts hub.
That push has a name behind it: Lou Joseph, who stepped into the newly created role of Arts, Culture and Events Coordinator for the county this past May. It’s one of two arts positions the county created this year, along with Delaney Cate, part of what Joseph describes as a priority of County Executive Kathryn Klausmeier — building up dedicated cultural staffing, with the festival and the broader revival of Holt Park as the first proving ground.
“We’re thinking about how to use the resources here — the cabins, the woods, the amphitheater — to have everything strategically focused, and make an exciting space for artists and audiences” Joseph said, walking the property’s grounds ahead of the festival.
Right now, of the park’s cabins, one serves as a nature center, one sits empty, and one is gutted for renovation — all slated to be fixed up as part of the same effort. The goal, eventually, is to free the park’s main building from doing “double, triple duty” as camp space, crafts classroom, and gallery all at once, so the gallery can stay a dedicated gallery year-round. Joseph is also exploring an artist-in-residence program and partnerships with arts and performance groups down the line.
Three outdoor sculptures going up for the festival by Scott Pennington will stay installed through the end of the year, a deliberate trial run. “It’s a little test to see how outdoor sculpture lasts out here,” Joseph said. “This isn’t a park that closes at night — it’s in the neighborhood. We’re hoping to be able to do more of that.” The festival will also feature art installations by Adewale Alli and Laure Drogoul.
Art Fusion itself is, as Joseph put it, “a little bit like a mini Artscape” — with live music, art installations, roughly 20 art vendors, food trucks, two art-making tents for kids and adults, and an indoor gallery exhibition curated by Liz Faust. The headliner is the Sun Ra Arkestra, the long-running, nationally touring Afro-futurist jazz ensemble, taking the amphitheater stage at 6 p.m.
Also performing: Baltimore’s own Afro House, recently named Best Performer in Baltimore magazine, presenting Kojo Astronaut; Mind on Fire, Kevin Sherry performing a new space-themed story for kids; and musicians Amy Reid and Herald. Rounding out the day’s cosmic throughline: an archery demo called “Shoot the Stars,” a visit from Monroe the owl (from Oregon Ridge), and an appearance by staff from Benjamin Banneker Historical Park honoring the 18th-century Black astronomer and almanac author.
On-site parking is limited, so the county is running a shuttle from Overlea High School rather than squeezing the neighborhood. “We don’t want to jam up the neighborhood,” Joseph said. “We want to keep our neighbors happy.”
If You Go
Art Fusion at Lillian Holt Park Saturday, August 29 · 12–7 p.m. · Free
Headliner Sun Ra Arkestra performs at 6 p.m. in the amphitheater, with sets throughout the day from Afro House, Mind on Fire, Kevin Sherry, Amy Reid, and Herald. Expect outdoor sculpture installations, a juried indoor gallery show, roughly 20 art vendors, food trucks, and family activity tents.
Parking is limited on-site; a shuttle runs from Overlea High School every 15 minutes
Performer Schedule
12:30 Kevin Sherry (solos stage)
1:30 Mind on Fire (amphitheater)
2:30 Amy Reid (solos stage)
3:30 Afro House (amphitheater)
4:30 Herald (solos stage)
6:00 Sun Ra Arkestra (amphitheater)
Public Sculptures and Activations
Fission, The Cosmic Inquiry and Celestial Assembly by Scott Pennington: three 9×9 sculptures constructed of shaped, brightly painted wood components referencing stars, meteors and 1950’s science fiction elements.
Scott Pennington is a Baltimore-based artist specializing in large-scale participatory installation and sculptural assemblage works. Drawing upon his background as a furniture and cabinet-maker, Pennington utilizes woodworking and construction techniques to create colorful, detailed works of art that engage varied audiences and invigorate public spaces. Pennington’s work suggests a tangible, yet illusory reality that examines labor, consumer culture, and the pursuit of simple pleasures, and the construction of nostalgic human connections both genuine and fictitious.
Compass by Laure Drogoul: a 23 x 23 x 9 ft sculpture made of wood, metal foil, fabric, video and light; it is a sculpture inspired by the magnetic fields of the earth. The work considers location as it relates to migrating patterns of the flora and fauna on the planet and reflects upon humankind’s navigational direction.
Laure Drogoul is an interdisciplinary artist, olfactory spelunker, and cobbler of situations who lives in Baltimore, Maryland. Laure works with a wide range of media including sculpture, performance, and events that invite the viewer to be an active participant. She has exhibited and performed widely, including The International House of Japan in Tokyo, Corcoran Gallery of Art, Washington Project for the Arts, Baltimore Museum of Art, PS122 and The Center for Architecture in New York as well as many street corners, vacant lots, alleys, and underutilized urban spaces. She has received Maryland State Artist Awards and a Franklin Furnace Award for performance art and has been a recipient of a US/Japan Creative Artist Fellowship. In 2006 Ms. Drogoul was honored with Baltimore’s Janet and Walter Sondheim Prize
NEOM by Adewale Alli: one 8 ft tall alien-like sculpture flanked by three 6×8 ft paintings, installed within the trellis structure at Holt Park.
Adewale Alli is a Baltimore-based Nigerian visual artist and the founder of NEOM Studios, a creative space in the Station North Arts District dedicated to exploring the intersection of art, science, and spirituality. His work is known for its boldly sculptural, performative, and multimedia approach, often blending painting with chemical experiments, layered materials, and cosmic themes
Rainbow Rider by Bike Powered Events: Participants ride stationary bikes which illuminate towering LED sculptures, which evoke carnival high strikers. Each tower is controlled by a single bike, giving participants the ability to interact simultaneously.
Utilizing stationary bikes, Bike Powered Events create interactive installations that generate positive energy (electricity!), collaboration, and well-being for all ages and fitness levels. Since 2009, Bike Powered Events has engaged offices, schools, expos, festivals, and conventions nationwide.
Juried Art Exhibition: “Earth, Moon and Stars” Juror: Liz Faust, Goucher College, Featuring: John Bohl, Justin Gray, Yulia Hanansen, Terence Hannum, Laure Drogoul, Natan Lawson, Mary Opasik, Michael Schwartz, Kate Smith-Morse, and Alexandra Watson-Fowler
Art Vendors: Black Genius Art Show, Blackwing Designs, Lindsay Bottos, Sarah Burrier, Adam Candelaria , Bonnie Crawford, Antoinette Dickison, Adiante Franszoon, Rachel Glen, Justin Gray Design / Jani Hileman, Jords Hoard, Moody Dear, Negative Affect, Natan Lawson, Trish Leeb Design Werks, LFD Studios, L Ray Clay, Erika Samis, Kristin Tata, Trash Talk / Alanna Berman, and Freesia Zhuang
Food and Drink Vendors: Glizzy’s Wagyu Dogs, Ministry of Brewing, Clear Skies Meadery, Once Upon a Potato, Tacos La Dama
Children’s Activities: Kumisiaga: community fiber project, Jewelry Making: beaded jewelry with planets and stars, Planet Prints: using sponge prints to paint and put in buttons, Cyanotypes: sun prints based on earth imagery, Button Making: mission badges, sun prints, zodiac, constellations, others, Printmaking: building celestial images using relief prints
