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The show must go on! Artists tough out bad weather at Virginia Beach Surf Art Expo

More than 50 artists were invited to set up shop this weekend, and although many Memorial Day events were cancelled or postponed, the artists stuck it out.

VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. — Despite the less-than-ideal weather, a few artists at the Oceanfront are still selling their work in the Virginia Beach Surf Art Expo.

More than 50 local and regional artists were invited to set up shop this weekend.

Although many Memorial Day events were cancelled or postponed, the artists stuck it out.

"The Virginia Beach Surf Art Expo - yes, it has grown into a big event," said Jody Woodward - one of the organizers of the expo. "We're here for all the artists to sell their wares."

"I got this really cool thing that goes around the door frame," one patron showed us. "So, they have all different things, and you put it on the door frame. So, in this case, it's a VW bus."

"Rain isn't so much a problem. The wind is a problem with the tents," Woodward said.

"So everybody else, you know - some people did pack up," said Zack Stout of Stout Statuary. "Some vendors, you know, they sell canvas paintings. It's gonna blow away in the wind, so they obviously packed up," he said. "I've got this sturdy tent. I make concrete statues, so I'm not really worried. If I get rained on, I'm happy. If I don't, I'm happy."

Marie Parker, whose shop is called "Scrub and Bubbles" told us: "I got a commercial sized tent and these tents are anchored down to huge cement blocks, so that's why I can stay. I wouldn't be able to stay out here with my own personal tent. The winds too strong."

"This is actually the first time we've done this setup," Amy Schmidt with "Coastal Etching" told us.. "Usually we are in a tent. We were determined to make this happen, so we tied everything up to the trailer. We had to eliminate a little bit, But we're still here," she said.

"We're warriors," Woodward said. "You have to be warriors when you do events outdoors. I've been doing events outdoors for over 20 years, and you know what? I had to take my parka out of the closet," she said. 

"Memorial Day weekend - I've never done it. I'm usually in flip flops and shorts, but you just gotta... You gotta work with what you got," Woodward said.

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