Dozens came out to see brightly painted canvases and hand-crafted goods at the Cass Area Artists’ annual art show Saturday.

Despite this, the turnout was not as large as organizers had hoped.

The group hosted the art show from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, July 15, at the Council on Aging’s Lowe Center in Cassopolis. Eighteen artists from Cass County and surrounding areas came to the show to display and sell their art.

Though those who participated in the show still believe this year’s event was a success for the Cass Area Artists, visitor numbers were down from previous years, according to the show’s organizers.

The Cass Area Artists’ president Tom Rose said that though there was a strong stream of visitors to the show in the morning, by the afternoon, people coming to see the artwork had trickled off, leaving only a few to view the displays.

“The turnout is good, though not as good as we would have liked. The afternoon has been slow, probably due partially to the heat,” Rose said, as the event was hosted outdoors on a day that reached over 83 degrees.

Rose also contributed the lower turnout to the day the event was held.

Last year, the event was hosted the same weekend as Vandalia’s Underground Railroad Days festival, which he felt contributed to a high turnout for the art show, as many people came from Underground Railroad Days to see the artwork.

This year, the art show was moved to the weekend after the Underground Railroad Days festival, something Rose feels was a mistake. Next year, the Cass Area Artists will be looking to again host their art show the same weekend as the festival.

Jerry Sorn, another member of the Cass Area Artists, added that it was easier to convince people to come to the art show and “scooch down the road two miles” when they were already out and about at the Underground Railroad Days festival.

Despite the lower than usual turnout, many artists felt the show still was a success.

Rob Williams, a painter from Stevensville, has been displaying at the Cass Area Artists’ art show for the last two years. Last year, he left the show with several commissions lined up and had also sold a few sketches that he had done right there at the show. This year, he did not do nearly as well. Despite this, he still feels this year’s show could be beneficial to his business.

“You never know how you did at an art fair until several months later. You give away a lot of cards and have to wait and see who will call you. Sometimes it’s a surprise,” Williams said. “At a small little art show like this, you don’t expect to do too well, but I like the feeling here. It warrants coming back.”

One thing that did work for this year’s show better than previous years was the addition of live entertainment, which Rose said was a hit. Local musicians Rayme Bartemio and Rick Drews played time slot at the event.

Drive-Thru-Q, a barbeque food truck, was also at the event to provide food for visitors.

“Next year, we will have more picnic tables and seating for the entertainment,” Rose said. “People really seemed to enjoy sitting and lingering and having a nice place to eat.”

Even though this year’s turnout might not have been everything the Cass Area Artists hoped for, organizers still believe the art show is a good place for local artists to showcase their work.

“This year, we had more new artists than last year. We’re going to try do that again,” Rose said. “We are still going to continue to get good artists and have them show their work.”