Things were a little different in Ocala in 1966. 

The countywide population was 98,000. The community was just coming out of the starting gate on its way to becoming the Horse Capital of the World. Interstate 75 had only been open for two years. Few hereabouts knew what a retirement community was. Silver Springs was Florida’s biggest tourist attraction. And the cultural arts as we know them were nonexistent.

Today, nearly 440,000 people live in Marion County. No community in the country has more horses than ours. Silver Springs is a state park overlooked by the throngs who speed past Ocala enroute to Orlando’s theme parks. And the cultural arts are alive and well, thanks to the Appleton Museum, the Ocala Civic Theatre and a little group called Fine Arts for Ocala.

Most of the changes Ocala has seen were driven by external forces — the federal government, Disney, migrating seniors and wealthy horse breeders.

But the changes in the cultural arts scene? Homegrown, pure and simple. Especially Fine Arts for Ocala, or FAFO.

“FAFO started in a parking lot,” said Maggie Weakley, a local artist and one-time administrative coordinator for FAFO. “It was just a group of women who said, ‘Let’s start an art show.’”

And they did. The first show in ’66 was held in the then-Barnett Bank parking lot (the building that now houses Cantina restaurant in downtown Ocala) and had about 25 local artists.

“Back in the day, there was not a huge art scene in Ocala,” said Buff Moring, the FAFO board vice president whose parents, Randall and Susan Moring, served on the FAFO board when Buff was a child.

This year’s edition of the Ocala Art Show, which for years was known as just simply FAFO, will be held Saturday and Sunday, Oct. 25 and 26, in downtown Ocala. And the 58th FAFO Ocala Arts Show will be a far cry from the parking lot and the handful of local artists that was the first one.

This year’s Ocala Arts Festival will feature 150 artists — selected from some 3,000 applicants — who will come from as far away as California and Michigan. It will cover most of downtown Ocala and will offer $27,000 in prize money, including $5,000 to the best in show winner.

There are also a countywide youth art show and musical and dance performances by local youngsters, as well as live music in the downtown square throughout the weekend.

The art show isn’t FAFO’s only cultural arts gift to the community either. The group also sponsors the annual Symphony Under the Stars at the Ocala Golf Club, which is FAFO’s big fund raiser to generate money for the arts show.

Held each Mother’s Day, Symphony Under the Stars attracts about 4,000 spectators annually.

“I love how big it is,” Moring said of Symphony Under the Stars. “It’s sort of an amazing pop-up event every year.”

Added fellow FAFO board member Beth Cannon: “Symphony Under the Stars is a time when people get to experience the symphony in a way that is not intimidating. And it’s so social.”

So, does a group that puts on two of Ocala’s largest cultural arts events each year do it? Here’s the amazing part. FAFO has 25 volunteer board members and one part-time staff person.

“I think it’s remarkable the show we put on with an all-volunteer board and one part-time person,” said Cannon, who has been on the FAFO board for a decade. “It’s a tremendous amount of work … and we couldn’t do it without such a generous and hard-working board.”

Amy Casaletto, FAFO administrative coordinator who also works for the City of Ocala as a community events coordinator, has been involved in the art show since she was a public school student and entered the student art show, She said it is the board that makes FAFO so successful.

“It’s definitely a dedicated volunteer board,” she said. “They are very passionate and invested. There’s a lot of care and passion that go into putting it on.”

The FAFO art show has been growing along with Ocala. Part of that, obviously, can be attributed to the community’s growth. But a big part of it is that the show has gained a reputation among artists and art lovers as desirable venue to peddle their art.

“We get feedback from the artists and they keep coming back because while sales are not always that good, they love Ocala,” said Sagi Asokan, who has been a FAFO board member and advisor for more than 30 years.

“The feedback we get from the artists is that it’s an excellent art show,” Cannon said.

She said the biggest appeal to the artists – again 3,0000 submit samples to win one of the 150 slots – is the reception they get from FAFO. Not only do they make sales, but $27,000 in prize money is spread among 20 winning artists, selected by out-of-town jurors with art backgrounds. As a result, FAFO believes its art show is a good one, an up-and-coming one that is destined to stand with the best in Florida.

“The Ocala Arts Show is pretty good,” Asokan said. “We’re not top level, but we’re pretty good.”

The FAFO leaders say that what makes it so good, beyond the large, committed bord, is strong local support from the city, the college of Central Florida, the Marion County Public Schools and various local sponsors who annually give to FAFO to make the art show a success. One sponsor, Palm Chevrolet, this year’s presenting sponsor, has been a major donor for more than a decade and a half.

“They see the value of it, so they help us a lot,” Asokan said.

The Ocala Arts Show is also a juried show, meaning artists’ work is judge by art world professionals, and the FAFO board members agreed it is a big reason artists like coming to Ocala. Plus, they say they work hard to be organized so the artists are well informed and provided assistance in finding their spot, setting up and getting refreshments and a respite spot in the Brock City Center for the Arts during the show.

All this means growth for the festival – along with more people.

“The attendance has gotten better,” Asokan said. “Lately, the crowd has grown so much.”

Moring and Cannon both se the at show expanding as the downtown expands. The city’s new parking garage will help immensely the said. Currently, the downtown footprint limits the show’s size.

And what is the long-term goal?

“To expand the show to where it’s a destination show,” Cannon said, adding that Ocala has few festivals so there is room for the Ocala Art Show to grow.

And when the show is over? Well, the show goes on in the way of grants to various local arts groups and projects. 

FAFO provides grants to locl groups and projects ranging from $100 to $5,000. Some of the FAFO-supported projects in recent years include the Sculpture Walk at Tuscawilla Park, the Ed Crosky mural, Boys & Girls Club Drumming program, Kids Tag Art, Applaud the Arts, the Magnolia Art Xchange art incubator, and the Ocala Civic Theatre.

“I think one of the biggest flaws FAFO has is it doesn’t brag enough about all it does for the community,” Weakley said. “No one has any idea how much money it donates to the community.”