Art After Dark is ultimately a partnership between venues (businesses, galleries, nonprofits) and artists. The venues are the ones who register for the event and they select which artists they will feature. The SLO County Arts Council's role in this is to help venues connect with artists and to coordinate each venue's event into the broader walking tour that the community knows and loves. We do not, however, select artists to be featured or directly match artists with participating venues.

All venues will have access to the Art After Dark Artist Directory. Some venues will select artists/performers/writers already in their networks. Others will browse the profiles in the directory to find a good match. SLO County Arts does not select artists to be featured or directly match artists with participating venues.

Your profile in the directory gives you visibility to the venues who are coordinating their Art After Dark events and increased potential to be selected, but it does not guarantee you to be featured. If a participating venue thinks your work would be a good fit for their space, they'll contact you based on the information included in your profile. You can also reach out directly to regularly-participating businesses to introduce yourself and let them know you are interested in showing work during Art After Dark, or encourage a business you already have a relationship with to work with you and register!