In Mt. Morris, straw is the big draw

MT. MORRIS – StrawFest Day serves as the culmination of a 17-day festival dedicated to sculptors who do wonders with straw and those fascinated with such work.

It’s also a chance for this Ogle County town of 3,000 to demonstrate its hospitality.

Although the primary objective is to have a great StrawFest, it’s also part of an effort to make Mt. Morris a destination – to draw people in, organizer Jeff Bold said.

“We’re here to create a unique rural environment,” Bold said. “You can go by the campus anytime, and I guarantee there’s at least a dozen people up there – just this constant flow of people.”

The U.S. National Straw Sculpting Competition started in Rochelle in 2016.

Sculptor Fran Volz, who has a studio in Rochelle, visited the village of Höchenschwand, Germany. That’s where he attended its straw-sculpting competition, born from a European harvest tradition of making figures from wheat and straw to represent pagan spirits. The Höchenschwand festival draws thousands of visitors, so Volz brought the concept to northern Illinois.

In 2017, it moved to Mt. Morris, where it’s hosted by Encore! Mt. Morris – part of the village’s economic development corporation.

This year’s StrawFest Day had a good turnout, Bold said, adding that measuring attendance of a single day doesn’t give a full picture.

Speaking of pictures, there’s still a chance to pose with one of the sculptures. Bold said they stay up at least for a couple of weeks after the conclusion of the festival.

For StrawFest Day, the downtown campus was a mix of live music, a craft market, blacksmith demonstrations and, of course, lots of straw.

In addition to food, there were mechanical bull rides and a children’s area.

“In general, I think the event went well,” Bold said. “The weather was rough the first two Saturdays, but we couldn’t have asked for better weather on the 27th.”

Four straw sculptures were entered in this year’s competition, and they were showcased alongside entries from past years.

First place for People’s Choice and for Artist’s Choice was “Sunday Bath,” an elephant dousing itself in “water” created by Steve Lentz of Montello, Wisconsin.

Juan Zelaya of Hoffman Estates was awarded second in both categories for “The Catch,” a bear holding a fish.

“The Hero Within,” a Superman sculpture made by Doreen White of Forreston, took third place for People’s Choice. Chris and Cecilia Mann of Rockford won third place for Artist’s Choice with their sculpture “Die Schnecke,” which is German for “The Snail.”

Sculptures must be a minimum of 6.5 feet in height, length or width and at least 90% straw on the surface, according to competition rules.

“We’d like to be able to recruit more sculptors, so we’re always looking for new people,” Bold said.

Some straw sculptures will be set up in St. Charles later this year as part of the city’s scarecrow festival, Bold said. It’s a good way to cross-market, he said.

The next competition is scheduled for Aug. 11 to 27, 2023. StrawFest Day will be Aug. 26.

Bold noted that this year’s U.S. National Straw Sculpting Competition didn’t have a sponsor, and Encore! Mt. Morris is accepting donations to help offset expenses. To donate or to discuss a sponsorship, contact Bold at jbold@encoremtmorris.com.