Chad Elliott of Jefferson painted a scene in the cellar of La Poste during last year’s festival. Photo: Art on the Prairie
The 13th annual Art on the Prairie festival bursts forth this weekend in downtown Perry. Aim for the historic Hotel Pattee and wander out from there 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday to find art exhibitions, live music, poetry readings and more than a few opportunities for holiday shopping. This year’s lineup includes 56 visual artists, 32 musicians and 23 poets (and probably 12 drummers drumming, 11 pipers piping, 10 lords a-leaping . . .)
Of course, even if you can’t go this weekend, Perry has plenty to offer year-round. New public artworks grace the historic downtown, and the beautifully restored former post office is now La Poste, which regularly hosts concerts. In 2019, Perry was one of just three Midwestern towns chosen to participate in “We the Many,” a project that used music and storytelling to promote creativity, empathy and optimism and expand ideas about what it means to be a Midwesterner.
