The Emerging Artist program was created to recognize the talent of young local artists and to offer them the prospect of being a part of an international award-winning fine art festival each May. Now in its 20th year, the program is an innovative and resourceful tool that mentors students in the art world. Students are encouraged to express themselves artistically and learn the process of exhibiting. .

The uniqueness of Cottonwood Art Festival’s Emerging Artists program is that it is only available to senior high school age students. The knowledge they receive from this experience is invaluable and is a respectable introduction to a career in art. Interested students are required to develop an art concept, an artist statement and produce images of their work. Their work in total is submitted to the festival for review and then sent in for jury to the Cottonwood Art Festival

It is through the generosity of Neighborhood Credit Union that students are afforded an opportunity to exhibit not only at the Eisemann Center, and sell their work at the Cottonwood Art Festival, but they are also given placement awards along with scholarship money towards their post-secondary education. 

Selected visual art students have the privilege of:

• Displaying their work at the Charles W. Eisemann Center in the Forrest and Virginia Green Mezzanine-Gallery during the month of April
• Rare and maybe the first opportunity of selling their work, alongside Cottonwood’s slate of professional and renowned artists at the Cottonwood Art Festival
• Opportunity to receive placement awards and scholarships presented by program sponsor Neighborhood Credit Union. 

For additional information on the Emerging Artist Program email cottonwood@cor.gov.