Communiversity ArtsFest brought more than 40,000 people to downtown Princeton, many on Sunday for the huge street fair.
PRINCETON - Thousands of people crowded into downtown Princeton Sunday to see and hear from more than 225 local artists, crafters, merchants, performers and nonprofits at the 46th annual Communiversity ArtsFest.
The weekend festival, which closed streets in and around Palmer Square, is sponsored by The Arts Council of Princeton in collaboration with the town and Princeton University.
"Communiversity ArtsFest draws over 40,000 art lovers and fun seekers to downtown Princeton, making it Central New Jersey's largest and longest running cultural event," Arts Council of Princeton said on its website.
Arts Council of Princeton volunteer Melanie Winstead said she signed up to help with the organization in the winter and Communiversity is her first event.
"It's exciting," Winstead said. "I heard it wasn't as busy last year but there are tons of people here." The streets were so crowded in certain areas that people were unable to move.
Winstead said she was happy to give people information and guide them around the street fair but she also volunteered for personal gains.
"I'm an artist," Winstead said. "I'm just trying to come out and meet artists in the area. It was the perfect opportunity. I can see how other artists are running their tables and maybe take some ideas for myself."
One table Winstead said she enjoyed helping out at was an organization making hats out of recycled materials.
Giselle Dsouza of Giselle's Naturals - a company in Princeton that makes all-natural skin care products - said out of all the vendor events she has attended, Princeton's Communiversity draws the most interest from people. This is her second year attending the street fair.
"I want people to learn about all-natural products," Dsouza said. "It's better for you. I got everyone, my friends, family, using this stuff. I definitely see more interest in all-natural products coming from Princeton than in other places."
West-Windsor resident Jeffrey Bolden said he enjoyed learning from nonprofits and activists at the street fair such as Princeton University's Tigers for Israel, a student organization that aims to spread information on campus about Israel, the Mid-East and the Palestinian-Israeli conflict.
"I was really, really happy to hear from them," Bolden said.
Bolden joked he also got to do "real-estate-broker shopping" which is something he "didn't think he would do" at the street fair.
"I ended up talking to three different real estate agents," Bolden said. "I wanted to see how well they could each sell themselves in five minutes."
Communiversity brings various events to Princeton to promote the arts. It was held April 15-17 and Sunday's street fair was held from 1 to 6 p.m.
Lindsay Rittenhouse may be reached at lrittenhouse@njadvancemedia.com. Find NJ.com on Facebook.