Craftspeople, painters, photographers and printmakers interested in pursuing wholesale and retail markets are encouraged to attend one of four pre-jury workshops in mid-April and early-May.  These workshops orient artists and craftspeople interested in exhibiting at Kentucky Crafted: The Market, the annual combination wholesale/retail event at the Kentucky Fair and Exposition Center which draws nearly 500 wholesale buyers on trade days and thousands of customers on public days.  The 2005 Kentucky Crafted: The Market is tentatively scheduled for March 3-6.

To be eligible to exhibit at Kentucky Crafted: The Market, craft artists must apply to and be accepted through the jury process of the Kentucky Craft Marketing Program. Two-dimensional artists must apply to the Kentucky Arts Council and be accepted through a separate jury process.  Pre-jury workshops are not mandatory, but can be very helpful in understanding the criteria for acceptance, the application process and other opportunities available to artists and craftspeople through the Kentucky Arts Council and the Kentucky Craft Marketing Program.  Artists and craftspeople may bring samples of their work for review and discussion.  These workshops are free and open to all interested Kentucky artists and craftspeople. Registration is required.  Contact Melissa Nesselrode; toll free at 1-888-833-2787 ext. 4800 or Melissa.Nesselrode@ky.gov to register or for more information.

Madisonville, April 13, 6-8 p.m. (CST), Glema Mahr Center for the Arts

Somerset, May 3, 6-8 p.m. (EST), Somerset Community College

Morehead, May 6, 6-8 p.m. (EST), Morehead State University

Elizabethtown, May 11,6-8 p.m. (EST), Elizabethtown Community College

The Kentucky Arts Council is a state agency in the Commerce Cabinet.  Working in partnership with the National Endowment for the Arts, the Arts Council invests in programs that develop vibrant communities, provide lifelong education in the arts and support arts participation.  Every $1 in grant funds awarded by the Kentucky Arts Council helps grantees secure $20 in earned income and matching funds from individuals, philanthropic sources and other levels of government.

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