Wisconsin Fall Art Tour

View the work of 40 artists and artisans in and around Dodgeville.

By Barbara Humeston, Contributing Editor, Midwest Living

When autumn colors the hills of southwestern Wisconsin - an area I love to visit in fall - the potters, painters, weavers and woodworkers who live there invite visitors into their studios to chat, browse and buy one-of-a-kind works. Some 40 artists and artisans in and around southwest Wisconsin (and the nearby communities of Spring Green, Baraboo and Mineral Point participate in this Fall Art Tour.

Some of the studios are along the main streets in the small communities, and with the help of a map and easy-to-spot road signs, you'll also discover studios hidden among the hills. Visitors easily can spend the weekend exploring the route, which also ranks among the state's best autumn-color drives.

Some examples of what you'll find: Maya Madden and her husband, Wayne Farra, fashion intricate creations at No Rules Jewelry in a downtown workshop; Frank Polizzi throws hand-decorated pots in his studio in the picturesque countryside of rural Mineral Point; Audrey Christie creates wood-block designs in a limestone cottage north of Dodgeville.

You can stay at bed and breakfasts and small inns around the area such as the Victorian Gollmar Guest House in Baraboo (608/356-9432); Mineral Point's Brewery Creek Inn, once a stone warehouse (608/987-3298); and the Queen Ann-style Hill Street Bed and Breakfast in Spring Green (608/588-7751).

For other area lodgings, restaurants and a tour brochure that includes a map: Baraboo (800/227-2266); Mineral Point (888/764-6894).

Baraboo Chamber of Commerce >>
Dodgeville Chamber of Commerce >>
Mineral Point Chamber of Commerce >>
Spring Green Visitors Council >>
Gollmar Guest House >>
Brewery Creek Inn >>
Hill Street Bed and Breakfast >>