(Oakland) The ninth annual self-guided Iowa Art Tour is scheduled for September 16, 17, and 18.
Becca Castle Laughlin, the Project Coordinator for Golden Hills Resource Conservation and Development, says in 2014, a group of southwest Iowa artists came together to pull off a regional event to connect their rural communities with a self-guided “Art Tour” to showcase their artworks, studios, galleries, and hometowns. The first year included nine participating communities and thirty artists.
Castle-Laughlin says the success of the Southwest Iowa Art Tour has grown to eleven communities, sixteen gathering places, and more than seventy local artists.
Castle-Laughlin says the tour features all artworks from fiber art, life-sized sculptures, pottery, painting, metal works, jewelry, and glassware from over seventy artists. She encourages attendees to go to the website to check out the locations of the various art exhibits.
The Friday, September 16, “sneak peek” hours are from 4:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. at 10 of the 16 locations.
This year a special “sneak peek” will be held on Friday, September 16, from 4:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. at ten of the sixteen gathering locations at Clarinda, Essex, Macedonia, Malvern, Neola, and Villisca. The other gathering locations are Avoca, rural Clarinda, rural Essex, Harlan, and rural Malvern.
The Oakland, Iowa-based Golden Hills Resource Conservation and Development coordinate the Southwest Iowa Art Tour and local participating artists’ collaborative efforts. The event is free to the public.
Click HERE to see the list of gatherings and locations
