For an afternoon of art and literature, head to Columbia Public Library's annual Fête. The event will take place on Sunday, May 21, at the library, 24 S. Sixth St. It will begin at 1:30 p.m.

"We've done this twice before and we called it an auction, but we're calling it a fête this year, because it's more of a celebration for the library," said Cle Berntheizel, committee member for the event. "We'll have an auction, live music and refreshments."

From 1:30 to 2:15 p.m., people will be able to preview the auction items, which will include books and artwork, and they will also be able to browse the buy-it-now table, which will feature books, paintings, prints, photography and more. During this time, a jazz trio will perform outside the library and complimentary refreshments will be available, said Karen Spina, committee member. The entertainment will be provided by the Columbia School of Music. Local bakers will make a variety of cakes, which will auctioned off as well.

"At 2:15, we'll have a short program to let people know why we're doing this," Spina shared, noting that the event is a fundraiser to help restore historic art pieces in the library's collection. Several pieces have already been restored or are in progress, thanks to funds from previous auctions. Spina noted that the opening remarks will also include information about Lloyd Mifflin and a possible reading of one of his sonnets. "It's important to me that people here in town and surrounding areas would begin to understand what a treasure Lloyd Mifflin is and how proud we should be with him and all that he did," Spina said.

At 3 p.m., the auction will begin. It will held on the library terrace, weather permitting. "Many of the books at the auction will signed by the authors," noted Mark Stewart, who is on the library board.

Berntheizel emphasized that the library has an extensive collection of art that has accumulated over the years. The idea for the fête came after the library completed an expansion, he said. "The library got bigger, but they ended up with less wall space to display all the art we have, so we had an idea to auction off some of the art that wouldn't be seen otherwise," he explained.

Spina said the committee is currently working on preserving the permanent art collection displayed at the library, with a goal of then focusing on the permanent collection of books kept in a climate-controlled room downstairs. "The library doesn't have a way to make some of these things available to the public, so ideally, we're looking at letting people reserve a time to see anything in the permanent collection," she explained. "We have some beautiful things down there that nobody gets to see."

The committee members all encourage anyone to come to the fête. "It's a wonderful way to spend a spring afternoon," Stewart said. "If you enjoy art and books, you'll get to meet like-minded people in your area. ... It's also a way to fund important work at the library."

For more information on the annual fête, visit https://columbiapubliclibrary.org/art-auction.