Name: Business of Art Conference 2026
Start: 2026-03-06T12:00:00-06:00
End: 2026-03-07T16:30:00-06:00
Location: Reiman Gardens

The Ames Community Arts Council will host the eighth annual Business of Art Conference on Fri., Mar. 6, and Sat., Mar. 7, 2026, at Reiman Gardens in Ames. This two day event is designed for creatives at every stage of their careers, offering professional development, networking, and inspiration.
Created to strengthen business skills and provide practical resources for both formally trained and self taught creatives, the conference gives artists the opportunity to build new competencies and connect with peers from across the region. Sessions will explore topics such as marketing beyond social media, strategic business development, time management, ethical business practices, and more. A full schedule is available on the event website. (https://www.amesart.org/business-of-art-conference.html)
Artists and students working in any creative discipline, whether part time, full time, emerging, or established, are encouraged to attend.
Registration is $100 for professionals and $50 for students. Registration covers both days of the conference; single day passes are not available. Lunch and light snacks are included.
Complete conference details and registration information can be found at www.amesart.org/business-of-art-conference. For questions, contact the Ames Community Arts Council at (515) 259 0494 or [email protected].
This year’s conference features keynote speaker Chad Elliott (www.chadelliott.net/art), an artist and musician known for work that inspires and uplifts through dream like imagery rooted in lived experience. Elliott holds a Bachelor of Arts in ceramics from Graceland University and has completed graduate coursework at the University of Montana. Early in his career, he earned “Best of Show” at the 1995 Iowa Student Artists Exhibit.
Elliott’s creative accomplishments span multiple disciplines. In 2008, he created the first ever People Project for ArtsLIVE during the University of Okoboji Winter Games, arranging 175 people on a frozen lake to form a stylized turtle captured in an aerial photograph. His extensive mural portfolio includes installations across Iowa and beyond, such as large scale works for the Spencer Community Theatre, Mohr Lumber in Coon Rapids, the Woody Guthrie Folk Music Center in Pampa, TX, and Crouse Park in Sparta, NC. Most recently, he completed murals on both sides of the Greene County Historical Museum in Jefferson, IA (2024). A full list of his murals can be found on his exhibitions page (http://www.elliottartstudio.com/exhibitions).
Elliott has served as an artist in residence with TreeBed Design in Vallejo, CA (2004), and Arts on Grand in Spencer, IA (2005–2008). After many years of creating art from his home, he opened Elliott Art Studio in Jefferson, IA, in 2023. The studio was recognized as a Senate Small Business of the Week in December 2024.
The Business of Art Conference is hosted by the Ames Community Arts Council and supported in part by the City of Ames Commission on the Arts (COTA), the Ames Regional Economic Alliance (AREA), and the Ames Writers Collective.