February 11th, 2026
Welcome to our series, Spotlighting Wisconsin! This series spotlights arts organizations across the state (including some of our wonderful grantees), and showcases the amazing work they do in their communities, along with sharing the why, or what drives them as an organization to do the work they do.
River Arts, Inc.
Prairie du Sac, Wisconsin
River Arts Inc. (RAI) was founded in 1997 and achieved 501(c)(3) nonprofit status in 1998, initially serving as the lead capital fundraising organization for the Sauk Prairie community’s River Arts Center. After completing this charge in 2000, RAI transitioned into an arts presenting organization, producing an annual performance series in the Sauk Prairie River Arts Center's 500 seat theater and curating exhibitions in the adjacent 1,700 square foot gallery. Guided by its mission to enrich community life through accessible, high quality arts experiences, River Arts strives to cultivate creativity, connection, and cultural vitality in the Sauk Prairie area.
In 2011, the organization relocated its administrative offices to River Arts on Water, a retail gallery, concert venue, and gathering space on the banks of the Wisconsin River in Prairie du Sac, devoted to cultural and ecological vitality. Continued growth followed through strong community support, leading River Arts Inc. to purchase its downtown property in 2017 and expand its vision of lifelong learning by offering art workshops for all ages in the Studio. In 2023, the completion of Leola Hall, a 200 seat black box theatre made possible through the generous gift of Leola Culver, further advanced River Arts’ vision of a thriving, inclusive arts community by enabling more flexible and innovative performing arts programming.
- Sat & Sun, February 21-22: Oil and Cold Wax Exploratory Workshop with Rick Ross - River Arts on Water Gallery - 9am-4pm
- Fri, February 27: A Rock 'N' Roll Tribute from Elvis to the Beatles featuring The Neverly Brothers - Sauk Prairie River Arts Center - 7pm
- Thurs, March 5: Featured Artist Reception: Diana Ferguson, Randy Glysch, & Anita Loeb - River Arts on Water Gallery - 5:30-7:30pm
- Fri, March 13: A Celtic Journey with Harp & Song featuring Shari Sarazin - River Arts on Water Gallery - 7pm
- Sat, March 21: Pysanky Eggs Workshop with Jaroslava Sobiskova - River Arts on Water Gallery - 10am-1pm
- Sat & Sun, March 28-29: High Drama: Colored Pencil on Dark Paper Workshop with Rhonda Nass - River Arts on Water Gallery 9am-4pm