News Release

SYRACUSE — Chautauqua-Wawasee recently received a $4,000 grant from The Indiana Arts Commission, through the St. Joseph County Foundation, which serves Elkhart, Fulton, Kosciusko, Marshall, Starke and St. Joseph counties. The grant supports arts experiences, arts education and the arts economy to enhance the quality of life for Indiana’s people and places.

There are six different programs in the Chautauqua-Wawasee Visual Arts Series which will be partially funded by the grant.

Programs in 2025 include the beginning pottery workshop in August and the beginning stained glass workshop in September. Under the instruction of local artists, participants will learn the basics of how to create their own beautiful art pieces. Chautauqua-Wawasee partnered with the Syracuse Parks Department for these two workshops.

In 2026, there are four returning popular programs starting with the Chautauqua Plein Air Paint Out, which attracts about 20 regional and local plein air artists. For two days in May, the artists paint at various locations around the lake and on the second day, the art is available for sale as part of the Wawasee Fine Arts Festival, which is in its 12th year.

Approximately 40 juried artists will showcase and sell their art pieces in addition to interacting with festival participants. The Wawasee Fine Arts Festival also provides a hands-on kids area where the youngest participants can have fun creating their own masterpieces. The week following the Wawasee Fine Arts Festival is the third annual Wawasee Plein Air Workshop. Attendees are inspired and led by an Indiana expert plein air artist through demonstrations and one-on-one coaching.

The final of six programs, Weekly Plein Air Gatherings on Wednesday evenings in June are designed for beginning artists who want to experience plein air painting with a group mentor. Chautauqua-Wawasee will partner with the Indiana Plein Air Artists Association for the Plein Air paint out, workshop and weekly gatherings.

Chautauqua-Wawasee provides programs focused on the four Chautauqua pillars: arts, education, faith and recreation. This Visual Arts Series allows people in Syracuse and the region to experience different art mediums for free or at a reduced cost thanks in part to the IAC Grant.

“Chautauqua-Wawasee is pleased to receive this grant award and put it toward the six different art programs throughout the year to create a meaningful impact for our year-round residents, lake residents and visitors to the area,” said Dave Berry, program champion for the Visual Arts Series. The Wawasee Fine Arts Festival yearly attendance continues to grow by the number of artists participating and the festival goers.

The addition of the kids area brings families to the festival to interact with the artist vendors, buy art and create their own art. The Plein Air Paint Outs draw artists from the area, other places in Indiana and neighboring states. In the past and in 2025, all of the workshops sold out weeks before the starting date. They are filling a need for people to be able to encounter and appreciate art in many formats.

This series aims to provide affordable art programming for anyone living, raising a family, working in or visiting the area. With the continued support of popular programs and different options, Syracuse is attracting quality artists representing multiple mediums not only to Syracuse, but to the region.

Can Syracuse become an artist destination? The answer is yes because with the continued growth in the interest of art and multiple art opportunities, Syracuse is definitely a viable artist destination.