SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. — From north to south, the Lake Tahoe Basin is a hub for local creators, artists and designers. For the first time, Tahoe community members and visitors can experience a culmination of local and international artists’ work at the inaugural Reno Tahoe International Art Show, also known as the RTIA, taking place Sept. 9-11 at the Reno-Sparks Convention Center in Reno.

In a proactive effort to showcase the vast amount of regional talent in the area as well as connect artists from around the world together in one space, this event brings the Reno and Lake Tahoe communities together to exhibit what the Reno/Tahoe arts and culture scene resembles. 

“Many artists and organizations work with more of an ‘island approach’ and we’re able to put them together in one place along with the regional artists to present to attendees to ultimately provide the message that this is what Reno/Tahoe is,” said CEO and co-founder of the RTIA Briana Dolan. “We have this enormous baseline of artists and talent near and far, and we are looking forward to showcasing that in Reno.”  

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With the effort to bring together local art organizations and individual artists in one space, Dolan and co-founder Kevin O’Keefe have been working towards bringing this event to fruition for over a year. Dolan is optimistic not only about the inaugural event, but also what this event will do for the Reno/Tahoe art community. 

“It’s always been the overall vision with the end goal being to be able to position Reno and Tahoe and the region as an arts and culture destination, as a center for emerging art,” Dolan said. “People don’t typically associate that with the area currently, and we want to be able to change the perception in a positive way.”

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With the intention of bringing a new view of the Reno/Tahoe arts and culture scene, the Lake Tahoe Visitors Authority is a banner sponsor for the event, and is looking forward to supporting and promoting the South Tahoe region. 

“Our participation is by means of sponsorship and Visit Lake Tahoe brand activation to promote the South Shore of Lake Tahoe to the show attendees,” LTVA’s Chief Marketing Officer Tony Lyle said. “Due to our sponsorship, the RTIA has provided pavilion space for the Tahoe Art League, to be called the Visit Lake Tahoe Pavilion, which will feature South Shore artists and their work.” 

When the event was in the preliminary stages of planning, O’Keefe and Dolan visited Scott Forrest, owner of Scott Forrest Fine Art Studio and Tahoe Art League board member, to discuss bringing the Tahoe element to the RTIA, as well as involving the Tahoe Art League in the event.     

“The [Tahoe] Art League has been around since 1964, it’s a year older than the city itself, and it’s the oldest nonprofit organization in the region,” Forrest said. “The Art League has done a whole lot for the [South Tahoe] community.”

With private panel space at the RTIA, Forrest will be hanging the art for the show, creating an art gallery that effectively showcases the regional artists in the Visit Lake Tahoe Pavilion. 

“This is what a community can do together, people don’t know what they don’t know,” Forrest said. “Sitting down and discussing plans for not just this show, but other plans for Tahoe, with the pillars of the local arts and culture community is so great, and it makes it even more exciting for the years to come for this event.”

In addition to the Tahoe Art League’s pavilion space, exhibits from many individual local artists as well as organizations will be displayed at the event. 

A North Lake Tahoe local artist, Susan Bloom, is excited about showcasing her art in the event.

“I’ve painted over 300 paintings and recently have been working towards putting myself more out there in the local art community,” Bloom said. “As soon as I saw the RTIA, I contacted them to ask what the criteria is, and was just thrilled to get further involved in such a great event that is bringing the local art community together.”

Along with Bloom’s artwork and the Tahoe Art League, spectators can enjoy other Tahoe local art from Piper J. Gallery, Mountain Arts Collective, Marcus Ashley Gallery, Tahoe Fluid Art, and many more local galleries and individual exhibitors. Spectators can also enjoy live music, award-winning film showings, art installations from Burning Man, an awards ceremony, and real-time, interactive art panels. 

“This event, in no way, is going to fail,” Forrest said. “This is too good, with good people running it, that will make the RTIA a big picture success and truly honor the artists of the area.” 

For more information on the Reno Tahoe International Art Show, visit: https://www.rtiashow.com.

For a full list of exhibitors, visit https://www.rtiashow.com/exhibitors.

Madison Schultz is a reporter for the Tahoe Daily Tribune, a sister publication of the Sun.