Muskoka Arts & Crafts is the true heart of visual arts in the province’s favourite vacation area. One of Ontario’s oldest and most well established arts organizations, Muskoka Arts & Crafts has grown since its inception in 1963 to include nearly 400 artists and arts supporters, and has become an innovative force in the community at large.

For artists, Muskoka Arts & Crafts is one of the benefits of living in Muskoka, a source of support through like-minded people that fosters creative growth and a feeling of community. In turn, the promotion of the arts through Muskoka Arts & Crafts and its members has made Muskoka a vibrant and culturally engaged destination for visitors, local residents and summer residents alike.

Muskoka Arts & Crafts is a non-profit organization that is completely self-supporting. Its annual Christmas, Spring Members’ and Who Art Thou events feature the work of its many members, and the Chapel Gallery in Bracebridge, which Muskoka Arts & Crafts calls home, hosts an ongoing cycle of juried exhibitions by local and visiting artists. Muskoka Arts & Crafts’ Summer Show, which has been a feature in the community for 47 years, attracts hundreds of artists from across the country, and is visited each year by over 20,000 people.

In April of 2008, an initiative launched by Muskoka Arts & Crafts culminated in the Muskoka District Council declaring the District Municipality of Muskoka as a Designated Arts Community, a testament to the vitality of the area’s arts scene and its potential as a fundamental building block for year-round art tourism in Muskoka.

Muskoka Arts & Crafts’ web site is updated regularly with information about gallery exhibitions, members’ studios and workshops taking place in the area or at the Chapel Gallery. In 2008, the organization produced its annual Muskoka Arts & Crafts' Guidebook, a beautiful full colour publication that will be the definitive guide to visual arts in the area.

Membership in Muskoka Arts & Crafts is open to any person who owns property or lives in Muskoka.

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

STAFF
Elene Freer: Curator/Coordinator