About

About Greenville Open Studios

Greenville Open Studios is an annual event which opens the studios of local visual artists to the public. Now entering its 19th year, Greenville Open Studios began as an idea cast about during a casual conversation between a small group of artists; they discussed doing something to raise awareness in the greater community of the tremendous creative energy in the area. The idea has evolved into a full-fledged annual event.

The 2020 self-guided tour will feature 133 artists and their studios. Studio locations vary throughout a 15-mile radius of downtown Greenville with Easley, Greer, Travelers Rest and Simpsonville included. This year, artists will choose their own hours, make appointments or only participate virtually from November 7 – 30. Each of the artists will also have a video of their studio which will be accessible through the Greenville Open Studios YouTube channel and the app. Open Studios catalogues for 2020 can be found at all the studios from November 7 – 30, in various retail locations and in the November 6th edition of the Greenville Journal.

The goals of Greenville Open Studios are to provide free and convenient community access to visual arts, to educate and create a dialogue between artists and the general public by opening artists’ place of work and inviting the community-at-large to participate in the creative process, and to create new marketing opportunities for artists. It is the organizers’ desire that the project will open up the world of visual artists to everyone – from the seasoned collector to the first-time art buyer to the curious general public.

Video produced by Matt Rouse Films

Objectives

1. To provide an educational experience to the entire community by inviting the general public to experience the life of local artists at work in the studio environment by giving people the chance to learn about the artistic process as well as sources of artistic inspiration.

2. To give the artists an opportunity to market their work to the local community.

3. To enhance the experience of collecting art by helping people to begin art collections or enhance existing ones.

4. To create greater awareness of the diversity and quality of local visual arts among the general public.

Weekend Resources

The Catalogue

The 2020 Open Studios catalogue will feature contact information, directions, maps and more!
Catalogues will be available in all of the artists’ studios, in various retail locations around town and in the November 6th edition of the Greenville Journal.

Open Studios 12 x 12 Virtual Exhibit

Visit the MAC Virtual Gallery to see, the 12 x 12 exhibit, a sampling of the works by the Greenville Open Studios 2020 artists. The exhibit will be up from November 7 – December 11, 2020. The virtual gallery provides another opportunity to see the artists’ works.

The App

The app is accessible for all smart phone devices. Search artists by medium and wheelchair accessibility. Choose and create a map of your favorites and travel to the studios through Google Maps. This year you can also view a video of each of the artist’s studios as well as their individual hours and contact info for appointments.

2020 Sponsors

The Board of Directors and staff of the Metropolitan Arts Council and the 133 participating artists would like to thank those businesses and individuals for making Greenville Open Studios 2020 possible for Greenville’s visual artists. We appreciate their commitment to the arts in Greenville and look forward to working with them in the future.

A big round of applause to the following for ensuring the success of Greenville Open Studios.