Art enthusiasts of all levels — and ages — can discover what it takes to create works of art during the annual Art Studio Tour to be held Saturday and Sunday, Sept. 23-24. More than 35 Rogue Valley artists will open their studios to the public from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. over the weekend for the self-guided tours sponsored by the Rogue Gallery and Art Center in Medford.

"I'm not an artist myself," says Jenny Belschwender, "but I think folks appreciate artwork more when they understand how much goes into creating a painting, a sculpture or a piece of stained glass. It's educational."

Belschwender and her parents attended the tour last year. She is a student at Rogue Community College who plants to study cultural anthropology at Southern Oregon University.

The studio tours, like home and garden tours, offer insightful peeks into private spaces, along with opportunities to take in new ideas and enjoy a little down-home hospitality.

"We were greeted warmly at each place we stopped," Belschwender says. "We enjoyed meeting the artists and got the impression that they really just wanted to show their work, introduce themselves and talk about their artistic processes.

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"The only time we felt uncomfortable was during a visit to a gallery in Ashland that was full of glass art. Clumsiness runs in our family, and we were afraid we'd break something," she adds, laughing.

One of Belschwender's favorite stops on the tour last year was Darla Baack's Fishbaack Art Glass Studio in Jacksonville.

"We learned so much about stained glass from Darla," says Belschwender. "I've always wanted to make my own stained glass pieces. She encouraged me and explained how to get started."

Another favorite of Belschwender's was Charlotte Peterson's watercolor studio in Central Point.

"Charlotte had tons of art displayed at her studio. We were able to see paintings that were in different stages of being finished, and she showed us how she started paintings with outlines in pencil before applying watercolor."

Both Baack and Peterson will participate in the studio tour again this year.

Nancy Jo Mullen's studio on Kings Highway in Medford is another stop on this year's tour. Though Mullen is accustomed to visitors at her studio, where she teaches monotype and woodcut printmaking, solar printing and etching, this is the first year she will participate in the tour. She says she's looking forward to it.

"It'll give me an opportunity to let people see what I do, and I hope to provide a deeper appreciation of how the printmaking process works," she says.

Some of Mullen's students will be working on their projects at her studio during the tour, and she plans to show a collection of different styles of prints that are hanging in her house. She also plans to demonstrate monotype printing and offer small printmaking projects for children. "They're (children) the true artists," Mullen says.

More demonstrations will be available at studios over the weekend, including glass blowing, digital imaging, oil and watercolor painting, sculpting, pottery throwing, tile making and more.

Photographer Tom Glassman will be on hand at the Rogue Gallery and Art Center to demonstrate the finer points of taking photographs and making prints using film and digital technology. He'll answer questions about imaging software, home printers and converting older film technology into digital media. Visitors are invited to bring their cameras, prints and negatives, and hands-on experience with current software and hardware also will be available.

Visitors may start the self-guided tours at any location, travel at their own pace and visit as many galleries as they wish each day. The tour features established artists along with emerging ones.

There are more than a dozen locations in Ashland scheduled for the tour. Ashland Artworks is host to five studios, five galleries and 13 artists, including potters, sculptors, painters, jewelers and more.

Four studios will be open in Medford, and — if a drive in the country sounds the most pleasing — studios will be open in Applegate, Jacksonville and Central Point.

Other artists who will be featured as part of the weekend tours include Nancy Y. Adams, Leslie Lee and Dennis Meiners in the Applegate; Bruce Bayard, Ann DiSalvo, Joan Brown, Cathy DeForest, Denise Souza Finney, Margaret Garrington, Gathering Glass Studio, Diana Hartel, Margie Mee, Sam Campbell, Kathleen Boyle Magnuson, Victoria McOmie, Mitzi Miles-Kubota and Susan Springer in Ashland; and Carol Cochran, Linda Curtis, Janet E. Higgins and Shari O'Neal Young in Medford.

Tickets to the tours cost $10 per person or $15 for a couple or family.

Tickets and brochures containing information about the artists and directions to their studios are available at the Rogue Gallery and Art Center, 40 S. Bartlett St., Medford. The gallery's hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday-Friday and 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday. See www.roguegallery.com or call 772-8118.

Other ticket outlets include Central Art Supply in Medford, Hanson Howard Gallery, Ashland Art Works and Gallery DeForest in Ashland and at GeBzz The Gallery in Jacksonville.