I am so excited that this week is Gallery Tour! Twice a year (in July and in December) galleries across Madison County coordinate one GIGANTIC open house. This is the time to put on some comfortable shoes, get your friends, your family, your date, your kids and make the loop. Four hours is barely enough time to take in all the amazing art in our city, but you’ll just have to come back in December then!

The Galleries
Here is a list of the participating galleries:
- The Little Green Store
- Huntsville Art League
- Lowe Mill Arts & Entertainment
- Huntsville Museum of Art
- Artistic Images Gallery
- 16 Main Gallery
- The Flying Monkey Arts
- Reflectives, Frame & Art Gallery
- Faulkner Gallery & Studio [spacer size=”0″]
get your Art Game Plan
Southern Hospitality comes with the tour, and hors d’oevres will be served at all locations…so don’t worry about feeling faint throughout the night. I’ve got some survival tips to ensure you have a great night of art.

Dress for success
You won’t be able to absorb all the art if all you can think about is how you wished you had worn different shoes. Put your comfy shoes in the car before you leave the house. No one will be looking at your feet.
Strategize
Click on this link to see all the different locations. Click here for a downloadable map of all the galleries. Pick your favorite 2 or 3 to be sure and not miss…and keep in mind some galleries will take longer to go through than others. Huntsville Museum of Art, Lowe Mill/Flying Monkey for example have many studios to go through.
Prepare for the kids
If you’ve got kids, bring a survival pack for little kiddos. Your kids may not be as enthralled by the conversations you will have with artists or friends you see along the way, so bring something to keep them happy so YOU can enjoy the conversations. (I speak from experience! Some studios might have activities for the kids, but it’s best to bring your own…it’s important for kids to be exposed to art though, so by all means bring them!)

Art Supplies
Did you know that the Gallery Tours support the Huntsville Alliance for Arts Education? Each location will have a place for you to leave art supplies like sharpies, crayola markers, pencils, drawing paper or pads, erasers, etc. You can find out more about that here.
It’s sure to be a GREAT evening…they always are, so make your plans now and see you on the tour!
Event Information
Date: Thursday July 20th
Time: 5-9pm
Location: Art galleries throughout town. Click here for locations

Guest blogger for We Are Huntsville. Are you interested in writing a post for our site? Email katelyn@wearehuntsville.com.