MARBLEHEAD — The sound of Abbott Hall’s bell chime at 6 p.m. on Wednesday not only signified the start of a new hour but also served as the opening chime for the 60th Marblehead Festival of Arts.
In the shadow of Abbott Hall’s historic facade, the winners of the 2026 Festival Awards were announced from each exhibit on display during the festival.
Each of the Festival’s exhibits is displayed in various locations around town. The award ceremony included recognition of “Best of the Show” winners.
The 2026 Marblehead Festival of Arts Best of Show winners were Diane Treadwell (Crafts); Amy Hourihan (Printmaking); Dawn Jenkins (Senior Art); Harper Mooney (Youth & Student Art); Kiki Taron Kinney (Sculpture); Leon Drachman (Paint the Town Exhibit); Yelena Kanevsky (Mixed Media); Ed Lewis (Digital Art); Ulrike Welsch (Photography – black and white); Glenn Engman (Photography – color); and Todd Zalewski (Drawing and Painting).
Three scholarships were awarded to Marblehead students at the ceremony.
Stanislav “Stan” Almeda, Sara “Sadie” Beane, and Quinn Scheib each received a $3,000 scholarship from the Festival of Arts.
According to the Festival of Arts website, “since 1986, the Marblehead Festival of Arts has awarded scholarships to high school seniors who reside in or attend schools in Marblehead and who are pursuing higher education in visual arts, performing arts, crafts, music, or drama. The Festival’s objective is to encourage students interested in pursuing the arts professionally to acquire a sound academic grounding in their chosen fields. The scholarship is awarded annually.”
