Greenbelt prepares to celebrate Fourth of July

Day will begin with sculpture garden on lake

Kids ages 6 to 12 have worked collectively for a couple hours every day to carve, sand, prime and paint these sculptures as part of the visual arts portion of the summer day camp. Arts supervisor Nicole DeWald designs the works of art herself and then transposes them onto Styrofoam and plywood. The kids then carve them out.

‘‘We think it’s an important opportunity for kids to work collectively rather than on individual projects,” DeWald said. ‘‘They are able to work on a very large work and it’s very exciting to see it come together.”

This year’s theme was deep sea life, so the camp created an anglerfish, hatchetfish and a chimaera, all fish that inhabit the ocean floor.

On the Fourth of July, the campers will release their artistic creations onto Greenbelt Lake for their final aquatic journey.

After their moment in the sun, the sculptures will be kept in the community and displayed in local schools and libraries to live on after the celebration is over.

The garden takes place during the day at Buddy Attick Lake Park at 555 Crescent Road. There will be food sold from vendors and a craft tent from 4 to 7 p.m.

The evening will round out with a performance by the Greenbelt Concert Band at 7 p.m. and fireworks at about 9 p.m.

The recreation center will do everything it can to launch fireworks, DeWald said. As long as it is not raining at 9 p.m., the fireworks display will take place.

‘‘It’s a wonderful place to do fireworks,” DeWald said. ‘‘It’s a beautiful setting. It’s wonderful to see them firing overhead.”

The fun will continue July 6 with an Artful Afternoon at the Greenbelt Community Center.

There will be henna tattoos done by local henna artist Gowri Arakere. People can design their own or choose from one of her drawings. Award-winning artist Marla McLean will lead a wire mobile workshop from 1 to 3 p.m. where people can create free form sculptures with wire, bottle caps and beads.

The afternoon will wrap up with a variety show by Jesse and James, a pair from Frederick who perform tricks with their dogs, called ‘‘Mutts gone Nutts,” at 3 p.m.

‘‘It’s a little bit off of the beaten path,” arts assistant Barbara Davidson said. ‘‘It’s different from the artsy performances we usually have.”

For the Fourth of July, there is no alcohol permitted in the park. Fireworks, including sparklers are also not allowed.

In case of rain, all activities will be cancelled, except for fireworks which will take place the next day. For weather information on the day of the event, call 301-474-0646.

The parking spaces at the park are reserved for those with disabilities and special personnel, DeWald said. However, parking is available to the general public on Crescent Road and within the surrounding neighborhoods.

E-mail Kristi Tousignant at ktousignant@gazette.net