The 24th annual Northeast Iowa Artists’ Studio Tour (NIAST Inc.) applications to exhibit are now available to area artists. Open link for a 2021 application PDF or go to www.iowaarttour.com click on the events/news tab or contact Darla Ellickson at darla@earloops.com or 563-382-2295. The 2021 Tour takes place October 8, 9 & 10, 2021. Studios are open 10 to 5 daily.
Media considered is limited to Fine Art and Fine Craft. Items include: Painting, sculpture, jewelry, photography, clay/ceramics, wood, glass, metal, printmaking, mixed media, handmade paper, fiber, etc. as appropriate at Fine Art Fairs. All works must be original in concept and design and must have been executed by the applicant: works from molds or kits, commercial or manufactured items, and buy/sell are not permitted. Tour exhibitors qualify as “fine artists,” meaning, “They possess the skill to expand and adapt even a high-end craft with individual vision.” Artist’s applications for tour entry are juried, and participants are selected for their work’s technique, quality, and vision, and their studios must reside within 40 miles of Decorah, in Iowa. Postmark deadline for submitting an application is April 1, 2021.
The self-guided Tour is specially timed to enjoy the fall color and travels in scenic northeast Iowa, for a behind-the-scenes view into the Artists’ personal workspace.
Participating in this event features inclusion of color photos of your artwork and contact information in top quality 20,000-25,000 brochures, complete with detailed map with GPS to studio locations. These brochures are distributed in many ways, including: being personally handed-out by the touring Artists throughout the country; through a bulk-mailing of over 9,000 brochures to the pre-qualified mailing lists of the Artists; to special requests to area Tourism venues; and from the tour drawing cards requesting information.
In 2020, due to health concerns of covid-19 the Tour was “Reimagined” and went totally online, made possible by a grant from the Iowa Department of Cultural Affairs, awarded to Northeast Iowa Resource Conservation and Development (RC&D). The grant provided assistance with updating the website, adding virtual appointments and online shopping options, printing 20,000 and mailing 9,000+ postcards, and creating process videos for each of the artists. Winneshiek County Development and Tourism coordinated with the project by videotaping process videos of each artist, plus organizing a downtown Decorah Artwalk.
More Sponsors in 2020: Major Studio Tour sponsor was Wennes Communications. Sponsors: Darla and Glen Ellickson of Ellickson Jewelry Studio & Gallery, and KCZQ Radio FM 102.3. Friends of the Arts include: Douglas Cole – Art Pottery and Paul Corbin – Pottery.
If you are interested in supporting area Tourism and the Arts by becoming a Sponsor, Advertiser, Friend, or Art Supporter, contact Glen Ellickson at 563-419-6963. 2021 brochures will be available in July.