Corporate Membership 2013

The Best of Missouri Hands Corporate Members comprise an exceptional group of corporations dedicated to supporting our mission to interpret and preserve the artistic and cultural heritage of the arts of Missouri.

The Best of Missouri Hands offers excellent opportunities for corporations and other organizations to gain high visibility while providing vital support to our exhibitions and educational programs. If you or your business is interested in becoming a Corporate Member, please call 866.699.2664 or visit our Corporate Membership Page.

We are honored to be supported by the following Corporate Members:


The Allied Arts Council exists “to bring arts and people together.” Founded in 1963, the Council is one of the oldest State of Missouri arts agencies. The Council takes the lead in the St. Joseph community in organizing, fund-raising, advocating, educating, and servicing the local arts community. The Council provides educational programs, art exhibits, summer youth arts programs, and operates the annual Trails West!® arts festival.

Visit the Allied Arts Council website to learn more.


Alliance Art GalleryAlliance Art Gallery was formed and opened November 2003. We currently have 17 members representing all mediums of painting, graphite drawings, jewelry, pottery and fibers. There are currently 3 members who are founding members…Toto Rendlen, Pat Kerns and Brenda Beck Fisher. The founding members did not have to go through a jurying process but were welcomed in as already well known and established artists of the community. Any artist member since then has had to be juried in by presenting a sample of their work and having the gallery members voting them in. Each member must meet a few requirements to maintain membership such as attending monthly meetings and Second Saturday Gallery Nights on a regular basis and paying a monthly rent which varies depending on the number of days one can work at the gallery per month.

Visit the Alliance Art Gallery website to learn more.


Bluestem Missouri Crafts, Niche Magazine’s Top Retailer of American Crafts, is located in the heart of historic downtown Columbia. As a partnership of artists, Bluestem’s three-room gallery features the work of 325 artists and craftspeople from Missouri and its eight neighboring states. The dynamic and evolving collection includes clay, glass, wood, metal and fiber. From traditional to contemporary works, Bluestem’s nationally-recognized artists set the standard for regional excellence. Bluestem offers distinctive gift wrapping free of charge, information cards about each artist, and a knowledgeable sales staff ready to assist you.

Visit Bluestem Missouri Crafts’ website to learn more.


The Mission of the Columbia Art League is to provide the community with a stimulating environment for experiencing the visual arts through exhibitions, education, appreciation, promotion and creation of art. With 500 artist and art patron members, the Columbia Art League (CAL), is mid-Missouri’s largest fine arts organization. At its 9th Street gallery, visitors can see and purchase work created by local and mid-Missouri artists working in oil, watercolors, fiber, photography, clay, jewelry, metal, wood and mixed media. The gallery shows 6 exhibits a year, four of which are themed and juried and are open to both member and non-member artists, and two are unthemed, unjuried and only open to CAL members. Additionally, CAL organizes fine art classes for children and adults throughout the year, including a 9-week summer art camp program for children aged 5-13. CAL also organizes Columbia’s annual Art in the Park the first weekend of June each year. Aside from the Executive Director and Education Director, the gallery and all CAL’s activities are staffed by volunteers.

Visit the Columbia Art League’s website to learn more.


The Downtown Excelsior Partnership is a non-profit working to revitalize downtown Excelsior Springs through marketing, economic development and event planning. The ES Wine Fest, a celebration of art, food and Missouri wines, is their premier event held in June. Other events include Second Friday Art Crawls, shopping events and the new ES Beer Fest in October.

Visit the Downtown Excelsior Springs Partnership website to learn more.


The Downtown Hannibal Art Fair is Hannibal’s newest festival featuring fine artists and artisans. Though a fairly new festival, the foundation has been laid to build a top-notch art fair in “America’s Hometown” from the ground up.  Art is part of our history and the fabric of our community today.  Hannibalis home to many talented artists in all art forms, galleries and artist studios, a vibrant arts community, an award-winning arts council and a wealth of community arts programs, events and organizations.  Oh, and you might also know Hannibalas the home of Mark Twain!  The festival sponsor, Renaissance Hannibal, is a not-for-profit community organization with a mission to promote economic development in Hannibal’s downtown area. The festival planning committee is made up of professional artists with extensive art fair experience, arts council representatives with extensive festival planning background and downtown merchants and gallery owners with a great appreciation for the arts and their role in the community. The Downtown Hannibal Art Fair encourages Best of Missouri Hands members to apply for this new and exciting festival…and be a part of its growth.

Visit the Downtown Hannibal Art Fair website to learn more.


The Excelsior Springs Area Cultural Guild is dedicated to the cultural and artistic development of the Excelsior Springs Community.  The Guild supports arts education and provides art scholarships to students in the area.  The Guild also organizes arts events, such as the Excelsior Springs Gatsby Celebration.  The Gatsby Celebration features entertainment for all ages and features a Children’s Art Show & Tea, Parade, Original Poetry, Youth Vaudeville Review, Gatsby Days Dance, Live Music and more! Excelsior Springs, famous and infamous during the 20s and its mineral water heyday, is a resort town northeast of Kansas City.

Visit the Excelsior Springs Cultural Guild’s website to learn more about this organization.


While Augusta hosts a number of events throughout the year to the general public, don’t overlook the possibility that our historic town could also be the perfect place to host your special event. The Greater Augusta Chamber of Commerce and the Bed and Breakfast Association of Historic Augusta will work together to provide the food, space and lodging that will make your event a memorable one, whether it’s a reunion, a corporate meeting, a club party, a wedding or an antique show and sale. Your guests can enjoy the historic setting, shops, restaurants, bed and breakfasts and wineries during their stay. Located only one hour from downtown St. Louis and 30 minutes from Chesterfield means a convenient location that is easily found along scenic Highway 94.

Visit  the Greater Augusta Chamber of Commerce website to learn more.



MACAA is a statewide service organization dedicated to strengthening community arts throughout Missouri. Founded in 1979 with the belief that the arts make communities better places to live, MACAA programs are designed to enhance the ability of local leadership to address the distinct artistic and cultural needs of their community.  Leaders in the arts – individuals who give of themselves and whole-heartedly believe in the role the arts can, should and do play in their community. From an all-volunteer artist guild in Southwest Missouri presenting their annual member’s exhibit to a multi-staff metropolitan arts agency presenting a comprehensive public art program for residents and visitors alike. MACAA supports The Best of Missouri Hands, because like community arts agencies, local artists play a role in the community and they too work to enhance the communities they live in. Our agencies work hand in hand with the Best of Missouri Hands members through local gallery exhibits, festivals, art workshops and artist in residence programs – they serve on boards and committees of community arts agencies – and they too make our state a better place to live! MACAA is proud of the work of BOMH and gladly supports another organization who holds a similar belief that: The Arts Strengthen Communities.

Visit the MACAA’s website to learn more about this organization.


“Why not Missouri?” That’s the question Greg Wood and Danita Allen Wood kept asking themselves when they returned to their beloved home state in 1995.So, upon their return to their beloved state, they wondered why Missouri didn’t have a state magazine. They had both been in the magazine business their entire careers, and they knew about 25 other states, many with smaller populations, that had beautiful magazines. They would pore over them, talk to their editors and publishers, and ask themselves, “Why not here?” Through research, they learned that there once was a state magazine called Missouri Life. It started in 1973 but ceased publishing under that name in the late 1980s, after a series of ownership changes. It seemed to encompass all the things that should be in the magazine: Missouri’s stunning scenery, its fascinating people, its rich past, and energetic present. Today, they’re proud to deliver Missouri Life to 22,000 Missourians, and an audit of our circulation by an independent firm has shown us that each copy is read by 3.25 people, so we have about 72,000 readers. We have received many awards from state and international organizations. You can also find Missouri Life in most bookstores and magazine racks throughout the state.

Visit Missouri Life’s website to learn more about this organization.



Founded in 1978, PWA offers planning, architectural, interior and sustainable design services to a wide variety of education, corporate, healthcare, government and private clients throughout Missouri, the United States, and abroad. A leader in the sustainable design movement for over thirty years, the firm approaches each project with a fresh eye, an attention to detail, consideration for environmental and economic concerns, and a strong belief in collaborative effort. Over the years PWA staff have volunteered their time and efforts in community service to organizations such as The United Way, Central Missouri Food Bank, Rainbow House, Alzheimer’s Association, Habitat for Humanity, Ducks Unlimited, and Art in the Park. Staying connected to our community is an important part of who we are.

Visit Peckham & Wright Architects’ website to learn more about this organization.



“The Arts Live” was founded in 2010.  The philosophy is unique: connecting with and supporting artists, establishing a national artist’s database, producing an informative newsletter with the latest art news, artist updates and art happenings, and providing a listing of galleries, art organizations, art festivals and events. Our goal is promote the arts through the awareness of arists, programs and exhibitions. “The Arts Live” is a catalyst and supports a dynamic dialogue between artist, artworks, events, galleries, arts organizations, and those who work within, participate in or simply enjoy art. “The Arts Live” is the pre-eminent showcase for the arts to be an important part of the local, regional and national art scene.  It has begun rapidly moving the next generation of internet technology in support of the arts.

Visit The Arts Live’s website to learn more about this organization.


Waverly HouseOpening in 1987, they have become a regional destination for fine art, contemporary American Crafts, and our extensive year-round Christmas room. They are the only ‘American Style Preferred Gallery’ in Southwest Missouri.. Please come visit us in person to see our two floors of beautiful, artistic, and unusual objects to be treasured for years. Their upstairs fine art gallery features a collection of paintings, sculptures, and ceramics from some of the mid-west’s most outstanding artists. They host several juried invitational shows each year as well as shows featuring specific artists approximately six times per year.

Visit the Waverly House Gifts & Gallery’s website to learn more about this organization.

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