“A Top 25 Arts Destination!”
— American Style magazine
Eureka Springs is one of the most celebrated destinations in the central United States for the arts and cultural heritage traveler; and has been recognized by major organizations across the country. It has been designated by the National Trust for Historic Preservation as one of America’s “Dozen Distinctive Destinations;” and has been selected as an America in Bloom national awards winner. For the past two years, American Style magazine named Eureka Springs as a “Top Twenty-five Arts Destination.” We have been described in every edition of Jim Villani’s book, The 100 Best Small Art Towns in America. In addition to being a Preserve America community, most of our town is listed as nationally significant on the National Register of Historic Places.
A destination of choice for artists since the 1800’s, Eureka Springs is currently home to over two hundred working artists and more than twenty art galleries. For a comprehensive listing of Eureka Springs visual artists visit: www.eurekaspringsartists.com.
While in town, be sure to drop in at the new North Main Street Art Colony where you will find artists working in their studios and displaying their creations in a vibrant setting of outdoor sculpture and murals. You will find that the galleries of Eureka Springs are a joy to shop for the creative outpourings from over 1,900 artists of local, national and international note. Iron masks to raku pottery, smoke drawings, oil paintings, traditional crafts, etchings, marble and bronze sculptures, exotic fantasy art, Native American art, fine glass — the list goes on and on.
The Sacred Arts Museum on the grounds of the Great Passion Play is a large collection portraying Christ and the Christian life in a variety of media. One of the oldest pieces in this rare collection dates back to 800 A.D. www.greatpassionplay.com The Eureka Springs Historical Museum also features an extensive collection of the work of previous generations of local artists of note as well as local history. www.eshm.org
Not all of Eureka Springs’ fine art is in galleries or museums. A growing body of public art expresses the essence of our community. A parking lot wall adjacent to North Main Street showcases the work of 27 regional painters at The ARTery, an evolving outdoor art gallery of architectural scale work. Adjacent to The ARTery is the recently restored Centennial Mural – a wonderful expression of both the historical and artistic past of Eureka Springs. On summertime Sunday evenings, the wall of another nearby historic building becomes a cinema screen for neighborhood movie events to which visitors are cordially invited to be part of the fun! www.lucky13cinema.org
For those who wish to expand their own personal creative art experiences, the Eureka Springs School of the Arts offers an interesting array of art workshops for adults and children in three sessions each year. Visit their website to learn what will be offered, www.esartschool.com
The Writers Colony at Dairy Hollow, a program of the Communication Arts Institute, offers a supportive environment and uninterrupted residency for writers of all genres. The Colony attracts writers, songwriters, and composers from throughout the United States and around the world. WCDH also offers a monthly Poetluck and other events open to both visitors and residents. www.writerscolony.org will tell you of their activities.
Also of both historical and literary note, our Carnegie Public Library has been a community hub since 1912. They welcome visitors to browse through their collection of historic photos or check email on one of their computers or use their WiFi connection.
Main Stage Creative Community Center, a 9600-square-foot facility located on North Main Street, is currently renovating an 1889 commercial building. Upon completion of the $1.5 million renovation, this facility will offer learning centers for dance, theatre, music, arts, filmmaking and more. Their programming includes 1-2 week summer camps for specific arts open to residents and visitors as well as daily activities www.MainStageCenter.com
The City Auditorium, located in the heart of Eureka Springs’ historic downtown district, originally opened more than seventy-five years ago with John Philip Sousa performing. In 2004, the Auditorium underwent a major renovation courtesy of a grant from the National Parks Service “Save America’s Treasures” program and city matching funds. The Auditorium, which boasts excellent acoustics in an intimate setting, has featured such well-known performers as: Willie Nelson, Bill Cosby, Ray Charles, Chick Corea, Bela Fleck and the Flecktones, Buddy Guy, Alison Krauss and Union Station, Ricky Skaggs, Ani DiFranco and The Indigo Girls. The Auditorium also holds the heart of the local community as a venue for the Eureka Theatre Company, and our own many benefits and celebrations. www.theaud.org
Since 1956, the Inspiration Point Fine Arts Colony has trained and developed young, aspiring opera singers and orchestral players from all over the world. This open-air performance venue offers Opera in the Ozarks each summer in Eureka Springs – six operas performed in repertory for six weeks with a live orchestra. IPFAC has a place of prestigious acclaim amongst the international opera community. www.opera.org
Eureka Springs celebrates our rich artistic heritage every spring during the May Festival of the Arts. The entire month is dedicated to all the arts. Theatre, large and intimate art exhibitions, lively Yard Art contest, Sculptures in the Springs, indoor and outdoor concerts, poetry readings, Books in Bloom book fair in a splendid garden, the always interesting ARTrageous Parade and White Street Studio Walk — join the locals in celebrating the art they love! www.eurekasprings.org
Year-round visitors can listen to solo musicians or bands playing in the historic Basin Spring Park bandshell and our lively nightclubs and cafes. Eureka Springs hosts numerous music festivals throughout the year: Eureka Springs Blues Fest, The Ozark Folk Festival (for more than 50 years), Bigtime Festival with FeatFest, Eureka Springs Bluegrass Festival, Africa in the Ozarks. Celtic culture and music experiences are also offered in concerts throughout the year and on Burns Weekend in January. www.papermoonattractions.com
Surrounded by two beautiful lakes and two scenic rivers, nestled into twenty hills and hollows, Eureka Springs is a jewel set in an artists’ paradise in the colorful Ozark Mountains of Arkansas.
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