The Artists Collective | Spartanburg, partnering with other local arts groups, will host the fourth annual two-day Open Doors Studio Tour April 25 and 26 to showcase more than 40 artists’ working studio spaces and their works.
The participating artists have been included in a month-long tour preview exhibition at the Artists Collective | Spartanburg.
The Open Doors Studio tour is free and open to the public. An artists’ reception will be held from 5 to 8 p.m. Thursday, April 16, at the Artists Collective in conjunction with Spartanburg ArtWalk.
“We are happy to once again collaborate with the Spartanburg Art Museum, Chapman Cultural Center, the Artists’ Guild of Spartanburg, Mayfair Arts Studios and Arts Up SC,” says Beth Regula, chair of the Open Doors Tour and chair of the management board of the Artists Collective. “This not only showcases the great number of talented artists in this area, but the wonderful support they receive here.”
She continues: “The 49 participating artists have been showing pieces in the preview exhibit to help people to decide which artist they want to see more of or which studios they want to visit during the tour.”
During the self-guided Open Doors Tour, participating artists will open their studios to visitors to come to see how they produce their works. Visitors can pick and choose which studios to visit and when, on the schedule provided in catalogs produced for the event. They also can view all of the participants, their artwork and tips on how to participate in the tour as well as an interactive online map of the studios at opendoorstudios.art.
“We also are so grateful for the generous support of both the Piedmont Natural Gas/Duke Energy Foundation and Spartanburg County of the Open Doors Tour,” Regula adds. “Their support allows us to further assist our artists in the Open Doors Tour and provide the local and regional community with a wonderful, unique experience through art.”
“The Artists Collective hosts the Open Doors Studio Tour and the preview exhibition annually to promote and support artists beyond its membership,” notes Regula.
Artists on the tour will show their processes and work in a wide variety of forms and media, including photography, mixed media, jewelry, glass, painting, sculpture, printmaking, fiber art, ceramics and more.
“Art studio tours are a unique, fun attraction for all ages – from the seasoned art collector to the youngest art student,” Regula says. “The focus of the Open Doors tour is to provide both support for local visual artists and to heighten artistic and cultural awareness within our community. Collectors, supporters and the art-interested public will have the opportunity to see how art is created by visiting the artists in their studios all across the county.”
The studios are required to include a “working” artist space. All artists will show their creative process inside their studios, some doing demonstrations.
More than 1,000 pieces of artwork will be part of the tour. The tour includes painters, sculptors, potters, photographers, jewelers, printmakers, fiber artists and more. Participation in the event was opened to all local artists, whether they were members of any of the sponsoring organizations or not.