First-ever St. Peter Art Stroll launches Saturday

ST. PETER, Minn. (KEYC) - “Art creates health and well-being in public spaces, people’s homes, and in businesses,” said St. Peter Art Stroll Co-organizer & Multimedia Artist, Cheryl Casten. “Aesthetics makes us feel alive,”

Saturday was a day for first-ever St. Peter Art Stroll: an open studio event where people can visit St. Peter artists in their studios or at impromptu spaces hosted by businesses all throughout town.

St. Peter Art Stroll organizer and artist Bryan Holland created the Art Stroll to expose and connect local artists in the area.

“We’ve been realizing there’s so many, you know, wonderful artists in town and it’s a chance for them to get seen,” said Holland. “I think that they may not have the opportunity to otherwise, and there’s also a lot of variety as far as media.”

For Casten, the beauty of art is not just about displaying; it’s about people connecting.

“We want artists to connect and communicate with each other,” said Casten. “We want to build artistic community and creativity and just kind of have a volcano of art. Just organizing this has been amazing just going to other artists’ studios meeting new artists that I didn’t even know were in town and I’ve been here 20 years.”

A total of 24 artists and about 10 business hosts participated in the Art Stroll.

Featured art included paintings, sculptures, photography, jewelry, ceramics, and more.

“Going to shows like this, selling my work, and talking to people has been something that I’ve always enjoyed doing,” said ceramics artist Shawn Bagley. “And it’s something that I’m really glad to have this opportunity to be here.”

Participating locations had Art Stroll signs in lawns or windowsills to signal and welcome attendees inside.

Organizers plan to make the Art Stroll an annual event for St. Peter.

“I think it’s been great,” exclaimed Holland. “We’ve we’ve been busy all day. And yeah, it’s fun to see so many people coming out. Yeah, we had no idea what to expect. We’ve been kind of planning some things -- we get a lot of groundwork laid out for next year. But yeah, we’re excited.”

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