GALLERY RECEPTION AT THE COLUMBIA ART LEAGUE

Check in for ArtSmart 2023 begins Friday afternoon on April 14, 2023. Friday is an excellent day to chill out and mingle with your fellow artists and friends. Part of our festivities will include a trip downtown to the Columbia Art League (CAL). We will provide a shuttle which will begin picking passengers up at the hotel a little after 4:00 pm on Friday. The shuttle will run intermittenly from the hotel to CAL and back again until 6:30 pm.

We will be visiting the Columbia Art League, which is a gallery member of the Best of Missouri Hands. You will find BOMH members works in their retail area, and you can often spot the works of our members in one of their ongoing and ever-changing exhibits. We welcome the opportunity to visit the gallery on Friday night where light refreshments will be served.

During your time in downtown Columbia, feel free to take in some of the other local art establishments such as Bluestem Art Gallery, Orr Street Gallery and Artlandish…all which are within walking distance from CAL. Downtown Columbia is also very rich in public art from painted electrical boxes, murals, and sculptures which brighten and enhance your downtown experience. Maps of downtown Columbia will be provided in your welcome packets.

Should you have an extended weekend in Columbia while attending ArtSmart, we encourage you to return to the downtown area and thoroughly take in the thriving art district.

The Columbia Art League is also well known for throwing one of the top ranked art shows in the state, Art in the Park, which is held every June at Stephens Park. Again, you will find many Best of Missouri Hands members who participate in this outstanding art show which highly anticipated event each year.

The Art League is Columbia’s oldest gallery founded in 1959, awarded non-profit status in 1977. 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.

Make plans to catch the free shuttle on Friday afternoon to visit the Columbia Art League, meet Kelsey Hammond, Executive Director of CAL and Art in the Park, enjoy some art, light appetizers and if you are up to it, take a little walk about downtown to enjoy more art.

The Art League is located at 207 South Ninth Street.