Sonora Art Trails launched its first Open Studio Tour in 2006.  In that first weekend event we drew around 300 visitors from in and out of the county.  The feedback we received exceeded our expectations.  The 2009 art tour will be our fourth annual event.   

We are grateful and we are committed to give back to our community.  We receive community wide support through many organizations and businesses such as; Sonora Sunrise Rotary, Central Sierra Arts Council, Mother Lode Art Association, Black Oak Casino, Sierra Instant Print, and Sonora Fitness.  These businesses, individuals and artists have come together to keep this worthwhile annual event going. 

Visitors to our annual events come from all over the region.  We’ve joined countless other counties who have learned that in the geographical areas where there was a continuous annual tour, positive development occurred and artists were, if not thriving than doing pretty darn well.  Which then of course positively impacts their communities.  We were often told that where artists live and work, communities thrive.  

Small cities across the country have recognized the economic and civic contributions artists make to an area and know that the Arts can turn a point on a map into a sought-after destination.   

Participating artists spend their time, treasure and talent creating the infrastructure of this project.   Our participating artists have continued to be more and more collaborative, supportive and helpful.   We have many hero’s involved in this growing annual community event and we have hope that this tour will continue to thrive for years to come.  This year we will concentrate more on partnering with local hospitality and entertainment businesses to make this open studio tour even more successful.   We’ve found that tourists want to know, “What else is there to do here”?  We want them to have a complete happy weekend experience.  

Patricia Cherry