By Molly Olson, Media Coordinator Intern ​ The Ames Community Arts Council hosted its annual Ames Area Studio Tour last weekend as an opportunity for the public to tour 13 art studios in the local area. This year’s participating artists included: Brett Beasley, College of Design, Ciccotti Art Glass, Creative Artists’ Studio of Ames, Brush Paint & Craft Studio, Caroline Freese, Greg Lamont, Linda Hardie, Kaukab Merchant, Matthew & Sara Merritt, Bill Rickard and Melissa Stenstrom. New this year, studio tour attendees also had the opportunity to enter into a raffle for their chance to receive a gift basket featuring donations from Morning Bell Coffee Roasters, Little Woods Herbs & Teas, The Maintenance Shop and Salt-Lickers. Congrats to this year’s recipient, DJ Lauridsen, who is pictured on the right with studio tour artist Kaukab Merchant. Keep reading to see photos from this year's studio tour!

Brett Beasley Ceramics
Guests were able to check out unique utilitarian pottery pieces at Brett Beasley’s studio. A crowd favorite was Brett’s “Fishy Friend,” (pictured below) which was displayed as a fun storage solution!

Ceramicist Brett Beasley works in his studio as guests take a look at his collection of fundamental pottery and ceramic sculptures.
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Iowa State College of Design 
Iowa State University’s College of Design opened its doors to guests for an inside look at the school’s ceramics, printmaking, textiles, woods, metals, photography, digital media and painting studios. Design students spoke with studio tour attendees about the projects they have been working on. 

In the College of Design ceramics studio, a student begins painting her project.
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Ciccotti Art Glass 
Art Ciccotti displayed his beautiful hand-blown glass pieces and hosted demonstrations to show guests how he takes a project from start to finish.

Art Ciccotti puts the blowpipe into the kiln to create a glass bowl. Art enjoys exploring new color combinations, shapes and functionality.

Brush Paint & Craft Studio 
At Brush Paint & Craft Studio, attendees were able to get an inside look into a “painting party.” Studio tour participants were also invited to join in on the step-by-step painting process.

​Linda Hardie 
Linda Hardie welcomed guests by showing them her display room of beautiful pottery pieces. She also had a wheel throwing station available for families to make their own artwork.

​Kaukab Merchant
Multimedia artist Kaukab Merchant welcomed guests to her 4U2C Studio, which featured many beautiful paintings. Originally from Pakistan, Kaukab incorporates traditional motifs, embroidery, fabric patterns and oil paintings. Throughout the weekend, she also spoke with studio tour attendees about her many accomplishments as an artist, such as when she decorated the First Family's Christmas tree in the White House. 

Bill Rickard
Woodworker Bill Rickard showed guests what he has been working on, including furniture items, art pieces, greenwood carvings and more. 

​Melissa Stenstrom
Melissa welcomed the public into her shop and was excited to talk about the process she goes through to create new jewelry items. Melissa showed guests the materials she uses (sliver, gold, gemstones and pearls) and discussed some of the unique projects she’s worked on for her clients.

​Matthew & Sara Merritt 
At the Merritt residence, Matthew demonstrated his work in digital illustration while Sara demonstrated zen doodles and showcased her work with oil and ink paints. 

Matthew Merritt has a love for pop culture, which is evident in his unique workspace. 

​Creative Artists Studio (CASA), Greg Lamont and Caroline Freese 
CASA provides a creative space to artists who work in many different types of art. During the tour, CASA artists Greg Lamont and Caroline Freese discussed their craft, demonstrated pottery throwing and pieces available for purchase. Guest artist Tunde Odunlade (pictured below) also had his work presented in CASA's gallery. 

Greg (left) specializes in functional pottery, while Caroline (right) works in acrylic painting, digital designs and ceramics.

By Molly Olson, Media Coordinator Intern

The Ames Community Arts Council hosted a panel discussion, entitled, “Polish your Pitch,” on Thursday, Aug. 30 at the Octagon Center for the Arts. The event was moderated by Michael Morain, Communications Manager of the Iowa Department of Cultural Affairs. Attendees also had the opportunity to hear from four additional professionals, including Holly Boman of the Iowa State Center, Ronna Lawless of the Story City Herald, Stan Rabe of the Ames Community Theater (ACTORS) and Carole Horowitz, a long time arts advocate.

Throughout the discussion, the panelists provided helpful solutions on how to effectively communicate the value of their work and attract the public to come to their events.

As a public relations student and intern at the Ames Community Arts Council, here are five things I took away from attending in this event:

Focus your aim.
To polish your pitch, make sure to narrow down on the main goal(s) of your PR and marketing tactics. Ask yourself these questions: Who is the target audience? How do I want the target audience to respond? Why do I want them to come to our event?

Simplify the pitch.
Fight against shrinking attention spans by keeping the pitch simple. Get to the main points of your pitch quickly by including the 5 W’s: who, what, where, when and why.

Establish authentic and strong relationships with the media.
Networking with reporters at local news outlets, such as the Ames Tribune and the Story City Herald, can help in the promotion of your upcoming event. Morain, who formerly worked at the Des Moines Register, suggested to keep the format and timing of your pitch in mind. Reporters (and editors, too) will happily accept a well written story idea, but make sure to be respectful of their time. Consider pitching the basic details to the reporter two to three months prior to the event. Send a reminder two weeks prior to the event, and if it receives coverage, send a thank you within one week after.

Make use of the resources available in your community.
Many small organizations may be limited on resources. If you’re looking for some help in this area, consider students. In Ames, you may reach out to PR, marketing or event management professors to see if they would be interested in working on a project for your organization.

Keep trying, keep trying, keep trying.
You may not receive the kind of media coverage you want the first time. It’s okay to go back to the drawing board. To help stand out from your competition, Morain recommended to “follow up and follow through.” Don't hesitate to send a reminder before and a thank you note after.

Follow the Ames Community Arts Council on Facebook and Instagram to learn more about our professional development events.