The Bozeman Artists’ Guild announced this week that the 24th annual studio tour will include a Belgrade corridor for the first time. Organizers described the expansion as a natural evolution of the valley’s creative ecosystem.

Guild president Marnie Holcomb said the decision reflects where artists actually live and work now. “We’re not leaving Bozeman,” she said. “We’re just acknowledging that the studio next to the coffee roaster on North 7th became a luxury condo showroom three years ago.”

This year’s tour features 42 artists across 18 locations. Seven of those locations are in Belgrade, clustered around the old grain elevator district where rents have not yet caught up to the concept of walkability. The remaining eleven are in Bozeman proper, mostly in basements and converted garages.

Ceramicist Tomas Rios has participated in the tour for six years. His studio moved from a storefront on Rouse Avenue to a former auto-body shop off Jackrabbit Lane last October. “The commute is longer but I can actually make the rent and the clay budget in the same month,” he said. “That feels like a luxury now.”

The tour map prints the Belgrade locations in a different color ink. Holcomb said this was a design choice, not a statement. The printed maps will be available at the Emerson Center, the Bozeman Public Library, and the Belgrade Community Library starting August 15.

A shuttle van will run between the two corridors on both tour days, September 12 and 13. The driver, a retired MSU facilities manager named Dale, said he’s looking forward to the conversation. “Usually I just drive the airport route,” he said. “This feels more honest somehow.”

The guild’s after-party remains at a downtown venue with a cash bar and donated appetizers. Several Belgrade-based artists said they plan to carpool the 20 minutes home afterward.