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TAHLEQUAH, OK - The 31st Annual Trail of Tears Art Show and Sale will open Saturday, May 4 at the Cherokee Heritage Center. The event will begin at 10 a.m. with an art show preview and sales followed by a luncheon and awards presentations. Lunch is $25 per person. For reservations, please call 918-456-6007.

Each year the Trail of Tears Art Show attracts some of the most outstanding artists in the nation. More than 150 artists will compete for $12,500 in prize money.

Categories for the show include pottery, basketry, bead work, textiles, jewelry, paintings, sculpture, graphics, miniatures and Trail of Tears Theme. The Trail of Tears Theme category will include original works in any medium that shows a directly interpretable relationship to any Indian tribe's "Trail of Tears" or removal theme.

The winner of the Grand Award will receive $1,500. The Grand Award will be given to the work judged the most significant expression of art that exhibits the best overall quality, composition, technical achievement and historical accuracy using the criteria established for each category.

"It is exciting to hear buyers comment on the outstanding quality of art to be found in this show,” stated Tom Mooney, archivist and curator of the Cherokee Heritage Center. “One buyer noted that the cost of art here was a fraction of what might be expected in other markets for a similar piece. Several buyers now return each year."

For buyers who cannot be attend, photographs of the entries will be available on the Center's website.

The Trail of Tears Art Show will hang through May 26. The event is sponsored by Bank of Oklahoma and the Oklahoma Arts Council. For more information, call 918-456-6007.