Each year Kearney, Neb., has three well-established craft shows at the Buffalo County Fairgrounds: the Fall Festival of Crafts show, the Spring Festival of Crafts show and the Holiday Splendor crafts show. Each of the shows feature more than a 100 booths while the Holiday Splendor show also offers festive baked goods.
This annual fair takes place on the Canoe House Lawn, on the University of Iowa campus in Iowa City. The juried show features an eclectic mix of artists representing disciplines such as painting, jewelry, woodworking and ceramics. The fair takes place in conjunction with the Fine Arts Council of the University of Iowa.
The Des Moines Arts Festival not only showcases art from the Midwest and throughout the country, but also features musical and theatrical performances and the Interrobang Film Festival. Each art discipline, such as ceramics, fiber, jewlery or metalworks, has its own gallery. The statewide paper, "The Des Moines Register," hosts the festival, which has 24 food booths, a sculpture garden and other contests and activities. A jury selects 185 artists from an applicant pool of thousands.
Since 1989, the Cottonwood Festival has taken place each summer in Hastings, Neb. at the Brickyard Park. The 27-acre park has an amphitheater, hillside seating for musical performances and a playground. In addition to displaying and selling their art, artists demonstrate a variety of techniques, including glass-blowing, sculpting and weaving. Advanced tickets are $10 and children younger than 10 get in free.