“Virtually every article about Berkeley Springs mentions its status as an art town,” said Sally Marshall, president of the Travel Berkeley Springs, the local CVB. “Travelers drawn by art spend money,” noted Marshall. “They come to shop and are also an ideal audience for our main attraction which is the spas and warm mineral springs.”

Indeed, the synergy between art and a tourism industry based on spas has forged a close working relationship between the Morgan Arts Council as the lead organization in the arts, and Travel Berkeley Springs. In 2005, Berkeley Springs won the Governor’s Art Award for Creative Community because of this working relationship and its results.

The Morgan Arts Council (MAC) has worked for 30 years making the arts a prime ingredient in the steady growth of tourism in Berkeley Springs. One of its greatest accomplishments is the transformation of an abandoned century-old cold storage building in the center of town into the 40,000 square foot Ice House art center.

“The impact of the Ice House is tremendous,” said Mary Hott, Executive Director of MAC. “Within a month of acquiring the building in 1996, virtually every surrounding property changed hands with a boost in price.” Several nearby buildings are being renovated as retail space, banking on the Ice House as the draw for tourists and shoppers.

MAC’s most recent venture is directly aimed at the art tourist. “Hundreds of people come to Berkeley Springs every weekend, year ‘round,” said Hott. “Hundreds more are second home owners who visit regularly. In September, we are initiating 35 weeks of Art Saturdays to offer directly to them.”

Hott described the new program as a pair of Saturday morning art classes; one for children and one for adults. Media offered in the classes range from bookbinding and fiber art to found objects and performance skills. “They are structured so someone can do just one and walk away with a product or hands-on art experience. Or people can come back and build on what they learn,” she said. In addition to the regular artist/teachers, special workshops with visiting artists are integrated into the schedule. “We have two Saturdays of classes aimed at creating holiday gifts scheduled for December,” said Hott.

In addition to MAC’s efforts, the twice-a-year Berkeley Springs Studio Tour brings hundreds of visitors to see more than a dozen studios in town and around the county in spring and fall, and participating artists report excellent sales during the visits. Eight curated art exhibits a year are also held at the Ice House Gallery with Artwalk openings on Friday nights involving other art locations around town. Hundreds attend. In fact, more people visited the Ice House Gallery in a year than live in Morgan County. Art entrepreneurs are just as busy: there are seven galleries and shops selling more than $800,000 of local, regional and national art annually.

Several dining locations in town also emphasize art, selling it from their walls, including Tari’s Cafe and Gallery, which has two rooms of the popular restaurant and the adjacent Wild Woman shop used as showcases for local art. Sales of art account for almost a third of Tari’s revenue. In addition, the restaurant called Lot 12 Publick House showcases not only the delectable food of James Beard regional finalist chef Damian Heath but also the paintings and prints of his talented parents, artists Jan and Jonathan Heath, arguably among the most successful of the county’s more than 150 working artists. La Luna Wine Bar and Gallery, a newly-opened night spot on the main street, features the art of its owner, Steve Donnely.

With all the art activity contributing to the thriving downtown, it is no surprise to hear on West Virginia Public Radio that some town or another in the state wants to use art to revitalize itself and become “just like Berkeley Springs.”