The Austin Area Arts Center is busy this time of year. From children’s classes to upcoming shows, the AAAC has something plenty of art to go around.

Children’s class

Kim Finnegan will host a children’s art class for third-graders and up from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. on Saturday, March 24.

Bits and pieces of odds and ends, recyclables and found objects will be used in the creation of unique art pieces. The purpose of this class is to raise awareness of our need to reduce, reuse and recycle as much as possible while having fun doing it. The students are asked to bring any of their used, recycled, natural and found treasures along and see what can be done with them. The class will be held at the AAAC located in Oak Park Mall.

For more information, call the Center at 507-433-8451, find it on Facebook or visit the web site at www.austinareaartcenter.com. Regular business hours are Wednesday through Sunday from noon to 4 p.m. Pre-registration and pre-payment are required. Fees are $15 for non-members, $12 for members.

Calling all artists

The Austin Area Art Center is seeking artists of all ethnic and cultural backgrounds to exhibit their best work during the month of April. In an attempt to embrace and celebrate the rich cultural heritage present in the greater Austin area, the Art Center will host its first Cultural Diversity Art Exhibit. The Center would like to extend an invitation to people of all ethnic and cultural backgrounds to join in this celebration. This exhibit will concentrate on the visual arts, such as painting, photography, sculpture, mixed media, jewelry, and pottery. It is scheduled to coincide with the The Taste of Nations to be held 11 a.m.-2 p.m. April 21 at Oak Park Mall.

It’s open to the public with no entry fees required. Participating artists need to have their work (up to four pieces) in to the AAAC no later than 4 p.m. Sunday, April 1. All paintings must be framed and ready to hang with a wire hanger and all pieces must be for sale. Commission rates will be paid to the Art Center on all art sold.

All artwork will remain on display from April 4 through April 29. A reception will be held in honor of the artists during the “Taste of Nation” celebration.

City Meets Country

The Austin Area Art Center is inviting Artists from around the area to participate in its juried show titled “City Meets Country.”

Artists are welcome to show up to three pieces of their best landscape and cityscape paintings, drawings, 3-D art, and photographs. They will be on display May 2-27 at the AAAC.

Cash awards are $100 for first prize, $75 for second prize, and $50 for third prize.

All items submitted for review require the following fees: First item is $20 (non-refundable), second and third are each $5. If an artist’s work is juried into the show, each item must be for sale and properly displayed. If the work sells, standard commission fees apply at 40 percent for non-members and 30 percent for members. The Art Center takes those fees out of sales total.

For the review, please take photos of the work and submit them as follows: JPEG Format, longest side at 800 pixels and at 75 DPI. Photos of the work must be submitted along with descriptions of it by April 9. Email aaacoil@smig.net or send them in on a CD postmarked no later then the April 9. The background on all images should be white so that the background is not distracting from the art’s originality.

The jury, made up of board members from the Art Center and other art related organizations in Austin, will evaluate the works on April 14 and then notify applicants of the results. If an artist’s work is juried in, he or she will be responsible to get it to the center from noon to 4 p.m. April 25-27.

The show comes down on May 28. Artists should arrange to pick up their items within a week of them coming down. No items may be taken down early. Artists can pick up their work during regular operating hours.