Founded in 2005 to make a measurable and positive difference for rural artists, the Southern Tier Biennial affords artists an opportunity to take part in the process of a professional art competition and be rewarded for those efforts. Past shows were tremendous successes, with hundreds of artists entering, creating exhibitions that showcased the vitality and diversity of visual art in the region. Each biennial is juried by new jurors and, therefore, the shows they create are different in tone and scope yet equally true to the definition of "a regional survey of visual art.” 
Accepted works are exhibited in the stunning Tri-County Arts Council Gallery in Olean, New York. This project is produced by the Tri-County Arts Council (Formerly the Cattaraugus County Arts Council), the Cattaraugus Region Community Foundation, and made possible by an endowment from the estate of F. Donald Kenney. 
​Entry fee is $40 for up to three works.
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 2025 Southern Tier Biennial Jurors:​

BARBARA RÄCKER
Barbara Räcker is the Director/Curator of the Cathy and Jesse Marion Art Gallery at SUNY Fredonia. With over 35 years of experience in curatorial roles across museums and university galleries, she has produced more than fifty exhibition catalogs and curated major shows including Eyes as Big as Plates, Imagined Histories, and Truppe Fledermaus. She has received support from the NEA, NYSCA, and other key institutions. Räcker also teaches ARTS 400: Senior Exhibition at SUNY Fredonia.
GLENN ZWEYGARDT
A master sculptor known for merging natural and industrial materials, Glenn Zweygardt is Professor Emeritus of Sculpture at the New York State College of Ceramics at Alfred University. His work, composed of bronze, glass, marble, steel, and stone, has earned international acclaim and membership in the Berman Group. Zweygardt continues to produce large-scale works from his workshop in Alfred Station, NY.
MARIA FERGUSON
Maria Ferguson is Director of the Bruce Gallery and an adjunct professor at PennWest Edinboro. She has curated over 20 exhibitions including Amy Tan’s Backyard Birds, Art that Matters to the Planet, and Hope is the Thing with Feathers: Contemporary Women Nature Artists. Formerly Curator at the Roger Tory Peterson Institute and Registrar at the Memphis Brooks Museum of Art, Ferguson holds an MA in Art History and a Certificate in Museum Studies from the University of Memphis.

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