Shake Rag Valley Center for The Arts

Shake Rag Alley is the historic heart of Mineral Point, where early miners clustered cabins in the valley around Federal Spring. The spring is still bubbling, and today a nonprofit arts education center, Shake Rag Alley, Inc., occupies nine buildings in the 2.5 acre oasis of gardens, trees, and rambling brick paths. Students come from all over the country to join in the creative fun that takes place here. Several buildings are used as classrooms, and some summer classes happen under the trees or under tents. Additional classroom space is available in studios nearby in this artist community which has 17 art studio-galleries within just a few blocks of Shake Rag Street.

Our faculty is drawn from a wealth of talented teachers, including nationally known artists from across the country and across the street. They are innovative craftsmen who enjoy trying new techniques and exploring the unusual. Nature and natural materials are strong elements in the design of classes and the orientation of teachers. There is a strong emphasis on performance arts as well as the visual, and early August finds theater, TV, and film professionals from Los Angeles, North Carolina, and New York on hand at Shake Rag to teach all aspects of stage and screen arts.

A new venture is the Alley Stage, a summer outdoor theater specializing in new and original plays, in an old quarry on the grounds, with a steep stone backdrop for the stage. Also on the grounds in the Carriage House is the Shake Rag Cafe, a charming place to sit indoors or out, sipping espresso. The Cafe, the brick patio, the Coach House office and lodging, and the Ellery House classrooms all offer free wireless computer access.
Shake Rag Alley is run by a board of eight heavy duty volunteers, who work their socks off, plus three nearly full-time, dedicated, hard-working staff, plus many additional volunteers who help with everything from folding brochures to weeding the grounds.

The several buildings that, with surrounding gardens, make up the Shake Rag Alley valley were separately owned and occupied from early days until recent decades. In the early 1970s, florist Al Felly acquired all of the properties, renovated the buildings, put in attractive flower gardens and pathways, and opened the area to public tours, with several craftsmen in the buildings making pottery, ironwork, stained glass, and other art for sale. Felly sold the property in 1990, and it went through several hands until purchased on October 14, 2004, through the generosity of many local contributors, and incorporated as a nonprofit 501(c)3 arts education organization. Doors opened two weeks later for after-school arts classes for local school children, a well-liked program that continues today, along with Shake Rag Alley's primary emphasis on adult art workshops.

Visitors are always welcome to stroll the grounds and peek into any of the historic buildings that are not occupied by classes in progress. The 1828 Log Cabin, oldest building in Mineral Point, contains displays of some of the many interesting art projects offered as workshops.