ST. GEORGE — The “Arts to Zion” art and studio tour is back with a more expansive approach to exploring the arts in Southern Utah. The five-day event kicks off Thursday and runs though Jan. 21 in various locations throughout Washington County, from Ivins to Springdale.
“We’re incorporating dance and music as part of the tour for the ticketholders,” Bobbi Wan-kier, executive director of Arts to Zion, said in a press release.
As with previous years, attendees still have the opportunity to visit local galleries and the more intimate private studios, but this time around the performing arts aspect of the event has been amplified with the help of local jazz musician Carlyle Potter, who is the new performance arts coordinator for Arts to Zion.
While past tours have featured music this year’s tour promises a wider range of music, dance and even poetry.
“It started out with adding more music to different venues,” Potter said. “When the opportunity arose, we took it.”
The event will start Thursday with the private and home studios open to ticket holders from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. As with previous years, entrance to all the public galleries is free during the tour, according to the press release.
Included for ticket holders on the tour are the private studios of 11 artists, in addition to two commercial artists, at their places of work.
“The studio tour highlights the amount of talented people we have in Southern Utah,” said Ron Brown, Arts to Zion board chairman. “Because of the natural beauty we have, it inspires artists and brings a lot of people here.”
The private and home studio tours will continue from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. through the duration of the event; however, only select home studios will be open for the tour on Sunday. They are designated on the tickets as “Schedule B.”
Tourgoers will collect card punches at each stop to be eligible for a prize drawing when they turn in their tickets at the end of the tour.
In addition to the tour, there are a variety of special events during the five-day celebration of the arts, including a “Youth Artist Tribute” at the DiFiore Center and an art conversation Thursday at the St. George Art Museum on.
Dixie State University’s Sears Art Museum Gallery will host musical and dance performances throughout the day on Friday alongside its current art exhibition by the late Leo Krikorian.
On Saturday, a trio of galleries in Springdale will host a “Fine Art Walk.” In addition, music can be found at Cable Mountain Lodge and and the Zion Canyon Brew Pub that day.
And on Sunday, the galleries at Kayenta’s Coyote Gulch Art Village in Ivins will host another Fine Art Walk with artists in residence at the galleries.
Finally, on Jan. 21, Arts to Zion turns its focus toward history in the Silver Reef area of Leeds with a mini-powwow featuring local Paiute performers and artists at the Silver Reef Museum, 1903 Wells Fargo Road. There will also be a book signing featuring a number of local photography and history books at the museum during this time.
Tickets for the tour are $10. Entrance to all the public galleries is free during the tour, and all the public galleries are ADA-accessible. Free printed maps are available at ticket sale locations, including Arts to Zion/Gallery 35 and the DiFiore Center in St. George, the Springdale Tourism Center, and the Silver Reef Museum in Leeds.
For more information, visit the Arts to Zion website.
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