The Somerville Arts Council and Greg Cook, the fellow behind last year’s “Pity Party,” presented “The Tiny Tall Ships Festival” in Somerville’s Union Square from 3 to 6 p.m. Saturday, May 14. The free community shindig was a celebration of everything tiny and nautical for people of all ages. Small ships, sea monsters and other floating sculptures bobbed in kiddie pools spread across Union Square. Children and grown-ups made their own tiny boats to race in temporary lagoons. Pirates and mermaids attended. Plus a tattoo contest, stories for children, sand castle building, crafts, and nautical/pirate/mermaid/fishy tunes.

Playing in the lagoon made by Hilary Scott. (Greg Cook)
Playing in the lagoon made by Hilary Scott. (Greg Cook)
Visitors play with Fish McGill's ships at The Tiny Tall Ships Festival, May 14, 2016. (Greg Cook)
Visitors play with Fish McGill’s ships at The Tiny Tall Ships Festival, May 14, 2016. (Greg Cook)
Somerville Ukulele Club performs. (Greg Cook)
Somerville Ukulele Club performs. (Greg Cook)
A boy checks out Mitch Ryerson's solar-powered-wind-powered sailboat. (Greg Cook)
A boy checks out Mitch Ryerson’s solar-powered-wind-powered sailboat. (Greg Cook)
Mermaids! Jessicalee on the right. (Greg Cook)
Mermaids! Jessicalee on the right. (Greg Cook)
Kerri McGill's narwhal ring-toss. (Greg Cook)
Kerri McGill’s narwhal ring-toss. (Greg Cook)
 Jodie Smith of the USS Constitution Museum helps visitors engineer ships from tin foil. (Greg Cook)
Jodie Smith of the USS Constitution Museum helps visitors engineer ships from tin foil. (Greg Cook)
Testing out boats in chutes made by Hilary Scott. (Greg Cook)
Testing out boats in chutes made by Hilary Scott. (Greg Cook)
Loreto Paz Ansaldo tells stories in Spanish and English. (Greg Cook)
Loreto Paz Ansaldo tells stories in Spanish and English. (Greg Cook)
Grant Goodman and Lydia Thompson arrived just after their wedding. "WE came straight from the restaurant," Lydia said. (Josh Reynolds)
Grant Goodman and Lydia Thompson arrived just after their wedding. “WE came straight from the restaurant,” Lydia said. (Josh Reynolds)
The wedding rings of Lydia Thompson and Grant Goodman, who said they came to the festival immediately after getting married. (Greg Cook)
The wedding rings of Lydia Thompson and Grant Goodman, who said they came to the festival immediately after getting married. (Greg Cook)
Fiber artist Amanda Cook and oceanographer Amanda Babson (not pictured) presented a tapestry illustrating the effects of global warming. (Greg Cook)
Fiber artist Amanda Cook and oceanographer Amanda Babson (not pictured) presented a tapestry illustrating the effects of global warming. (Greg Cook)
ARRR!!!, a group founded by Brown University students and alumni that is "dedicated to the singin' of sea shanties in a style we call a capirate: unaccompanied and in pirate garb." (Greg Cook)
ARRR!!!, a group founded by Brown University students and alumni that is “dedicated to the singin’ of sea shanties in a style we call a capirate: unaccompanied and in pirate garb.” (Greg Cook)
Alex Salsberg drew pirate caricatures of visitors. (Greg Cook)
Alex Salsberg drew pirate caricatures of visitors. (Greg Cook)
The Tiny Tall Ships Festival in Somerville's Union Square on May 14, 2016. (Greg Cook)
The Tiny Tall Ships Festival in Somerville’s Union Square on May 14, 2016. (Greg Cook)
Cathy and Dan Moynihan ready Dan's sea monsters for the festival. (Greg Cook)
Cathy and Dan Moynihan ready Dan’s sea monsters for the festival. (Greg Cook)
Ktron shows off her One-Eyed Willie tattoo during the Tattoo Contest. (Greg Cook)
Ktron shows off her One-Eyed Willie tattoo during the Tattoo Contest. (Greg Cook)
Tattoo Contest. (Greg Cook)
Tattoo Contest. (Greg Cook)
The winner of the Tattoo Contest. (Greg Cook)
The winner of the Tattoo Contest. (Greg Cook)
The Bharat Babies, a Somerville publisher of children's books about India's heritage, with founder Sailaja Joshi (left) and Amy Maranville, author of “Hanuman and the Orange Sun” and other picture books. (Greg Cook)
The Bharat Babies, a Somerville publisher of children’s books about India’s heritage, with founder Sailaja Joshi (left) and Amy Maranville, author of “Hanuman and the Orange Sun” and other picture books. (Greg Cook)
Shark attack at the temporary lagoon created by Hilary Scott. (Greg Cook)
Shark attack at the temporary lagoon created by Hilary Scott. (Greg Cook)
Sandcastle Matt (Kaliner) works in the sandbox. (Greg Cook)
Sandcastle Matt (Kaliner) works in the sandbox. (Greg Cook)
Sandcastle Matt (Kaliner) works in the sandbox. (Greg Cook)
Sandcastle Matt (Kaliner) works in the sandbox. (Greg Cook)
Decorating Rachel Mello's lazer-cut paper ships. (Greg Cook)
Decorating Rachel Mello’s lazer-cut paper ships. (Greg Cook)
Decorating Rachel Mello's lazer-cut paper ships. (Greg Cook)
Decorating Rachel Mello’s lazer-cut paper ships. (Greg Cook)
Mitch Ryerson fills the pool for his solar-powered-wind-powered sailboat. (Greg Cook)
Mitch Ryerson fills the pool for his solar-powered-wind-powered sailboat. (Greg Cook)
Another mermaid. (Greg Cook)
Another mermaid. (Greg Cook)
A human lighthouse. (Greg Cook)
A human lighthouse. (Greg Cook)
Ktron's pirate and mermaid. (Greg Cook)
Ktron’s pirate and mermaid. (Greg Cook)
Mermaid Jessicalee arrives to The Tiny Tall Ships Festival. (Greg Cook)
Mermaid Jessicalee arrives to The Tiny Tall Ships Festival. (Greg Cook)
Heather Kapplow's "Petitions to Poseidon" inviteed visitors to write notes in bottles to the ancient sea deity about their fears of living in a region made increasingly vulnerable to flooding by global warming. (Greg Cook)
Heather Kapplow’s “Petitions to Poseidon” inviteed visitors to write notes in bottles to the ancient sea deity about their fears of living in a region made increasingly vulnerable to flooding by global warming. (Greg Cook)
Heather Kapplow's "Petitions to Poseidon" table. (Greg Cook)
Heather Kapplow’s “Petitions to Poseidon” table. (Greg Cook)
Artist Emily Arkin fills a pool. (Greg Cook)
Artist Emily Arkin fills a pool. (Greg Cook)
Oceanographer Amanda Babson of Citizens Climate Lobby of Rhode Island talks about sea level rise caused by global warming. (Greg Cook)
Oceanographer Amanda Babson of Citizens Climate Lobby of Rhode Island talks about sea level rise caused by global warming. (Greg Cook)
Loreto Paz Ansaldo folds origami boats with visitors. (Greg Cook)
Loreto Paz Ansaldo folds origami boats with visitors. (Greg Cook)
Darcy Chen sells her Plus octopuses. (Greg Cook)
Darcy Chen sells her Plus octopuses. (Greg Cook)
A group photo of people who came to The Tiny Tall Ships Festival in costume. (Greg Cook)
A group photo of people who came to The Tiny Tall Ships Festival in costume. (Greg Cook)
Cory Curtin's black ship. (Greg Cook)
Cory Curtin’s black ship. (Greg Cook)
Sandbox fun. (Greg Cook)
Sandbox fun. (Greg Cook)
Below the Gaff, a pirate themed celtic folk rock band from western Massachusetts. (Greg Cook)
Below the Gaff, a pirate themed celtic folk rock band from western Massachusetts. (Greg Cook)
"Pirates of the Caribbean"'s Captain Jack Sparrow and friend. (Greg Cook)
“Pirates of the Caribbean”‘s Captain Jack Sparrow and friend. (Greg Cook)
Filling a pool full of sea monsters created by Emily Arkin and Alex Feinstein. (Greg Cook)
Filling a pool full of sea monsters created by Emily Arkin and Alex Feinstein. (Greg Cook)
A pirate works with Jodie Smith of the USS Constitution Museum to make a ship. (Greg Cook)
A pirate works with Jodie Smith of the USS Constitution Museum to make a ship. (Greg Cook)
Bob Smith wanders by the lagoon with his fishing rod. (Greg Cook)
Bob Smith wanders by the lagoon with his fishing rod. (Greg Cook)
Check out this tattoo on Amy Maranville, author of picture books published by Bharat Babies. (Greg Cook)
Check out this tattoo on Amy Maranville, author of picture books published by Bharat Babies. (Greg Cook)
Pop-up cards by Lovepop. (Greg Cook)
Pop-up cards by Lovepop. (Greg Cook)
The Tiny Tall Ships Festival in Somerville's Union Square on May 14, 2016. (Greg Cook)
The Tiny Tall Ships Festival in Somerville’s Union Square on May 14, 2016. (Greg Cook)
Somerville Ukulele Club performs. (Greg Cook)
Somerville Ukulele Club performs. (Greg Cook)
Mango Island sets up her sea monster. (Greg Cook)
Mango Island sets up her sea monster. (Greg Cook)
Cory Curtin steers his black ship by remote control. (Greg Cook)
Cory Curtin steers his black ship by remote control. (Greg Cook)
Unpacking Randy Regier's walnut-shell three-masters. (Greg Cook)
Unpacking Randy Regier’s walnut-shell three-masters. (Greg Cook)
Fish McGill sets up his boats with sails decorated with pictures inspired by a Japanese folktale about a boy born from a peach who grows up to become a samurai and befriends a group of animals who team up to build a boat. (Greg Cook)
Fish McGill sets up his boats with sails decorated with pictures inspired by a Japanese folktale about a boy born from a peach who grows up to become a samurai and befriends a group of animals who team up to build a boat. (Greg Cook)
Alex Feinstein arranges the sea monsters that she made with Emily Arkin. (Greg Cook)
Alex Feinstein arranges the sea monsters that she made with Emily Arkin. (Greg Cook)
Tiny Tall Ships Festival organizers Greg Cook and Nina Eichner. (Kerri McGill)
Tiny Tall Ships Festival organizers Greg Cook and Nina Eichner. (Kerri McGill)
Somerville Arts Council Executive Director Greg Jenkins cleans up sand after the festival. (Greg Cook)
Somerville Arts Council Executive Director Greg Jenkins cleans up sand after the festival. (Greg Cook)
Tiny Tall Ships Festival poster, an actual wood-cut by Kari Percival.
Tiny Tall Ships Festival poster, an actual wood-cut by Kari Percival.