West Point’s Creative Economy

For more than four decades, Labor Day Weekend in West Point has been synonymous with the Prairie Arts Festival. For attendees and residents, it brings arts, crafts, food, music, and summer heat. For many vendors, it’s one stop along a circuit of festivals that generates a livelihood.

But for folks like Lisa Klutts, Director of Community Development at the West Point Clay County Growth Alliance, arts and cultural events like Prairie Arts create a much more significant impact.

Of course, Klutts notes the quality of life aspect: “It’s a tremendous thing for the whole community. It brings in people who shop, and it’s a big tradition. Class reunions and families organize around it.”

At the same time, The Prairie Arts Festival translates into direct dollars. According to a 2013 study conducted for the Growth Alliance, an estimated 20,000 tourists spend more than $1 million in West Point that weekend, from hotels and restaurants to gas and incidentals. Even the local Wal-mart feels the love.

That amount surprised even Klutts. “People don’t think about everything that goes along with a major cultural event like that. What I especially love are the folks who come back after the Festival to explore what else West Point has to offer. Maybe they saw a mural above a vendor tent and it got their interest.”

This proves one important point: art means business.

The Prairie Arts Festival isn’t West Point’s only cultural asset, either. There are several others, including The Black Prairie Blues Festival, which happens the same weekend as Prairie Arts Festival, and the Black Prairie Blues Museum. Although run separately, the blues festival and museum attract a different vein of blues enthusiasts from all over the world. With the museum’s plan for a modern facility on the Mississippi Blues Trail, Klutts hopes the anticipated increase in tourism will translate not only into a financial impact for West Point, but also provide an educational resource for children.

Public art is no stranger to West Point, either. Usually associated with much larger cities, murals have long been a part of the town’s history. With a resurgence that Klutts attributes to tremendous efforts by artist Deborah Mansfield, West Point is home to a growing number of new murals, both in public spaces and businesses. “Deborah has two great qualities that helped,” says Klutts. “She brings an outside eye along with a larger than life personality that can make things happen.”

Although the first new murals created a bit of stir for some residents, people now embrace the bright and bold colors as part of West Point’s personality. What Klutts loves most is the mix of old and new murals that reflect some of the town’s history of public art, and the visibility and interest in West Point it creates.

Given this economic impact, does Klutts see a way to cultivate and keep young artists to ensure the growth of West Point’s arts and culture? “We need to have conversations in order to keep young people here. See the talent, ask them what is needed, and provide encouragement. I see incubators in other towns. I’d love for someone to see a mural here, get inspired, and open a business. We can work together to help them do that.”

Is there a secret to collaboration in this regard? Klutts says yes, although perhaps it’s more of a common-sense, relationship approach than a magic bullet: learn folks’ personalities and see who can be put together to get a project done. When it works, it hits a home run.

West Point is up to bat and it’s looking great: arts and culture is certainly one business that fuels this Mississippi town’s heartbeat.