Haliburton’s Rails End Gallery Hosts Again in 2024

For their 4th Slow Art Day, held in 2024, Rails End Gallery and Arts Center in Haliburton, Canada, invited visitors to look slowly at art from their annual local artist exhibition and then vote for their favorite.

Voting station at the Slow Art Day event

Slow Looking Prompts

Wendy Wood, Not all dreams are happy ones, acrylic on canvas, 2024

David Douglas, Eurydice Hunting Antlers, found art assemblage, 2024

Gregor Gillespie, Unscheduled Departure, wood and stone, 2024 

Voting station at the Slow Art Day event

Slow Art Day coincided with the final day of their annual exhibition, making the Slow Art Day event their finale.

For Slow Art Day 2024, staff at the Gallery prepared cards with leading questions that visitors could reference while they looked.

A magnifying glass was also provided to visitors to take a (literal) close look at the art. Ahead of time, each artist had been asked to write a statement which was placed in a binder. Much to the surprise of the Gallery staff, one mother who took part in the event even read aloud from the binder for her children. 

Note that Rails End Gallery is a registered nonprofit with an active and arts-minded volunteer community.

Many large museums including the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York and the Art Gallery of Toronto (Canada’s largest museum) lead the Slow Art Day movement, but we also have a growing number of smaller locations like Rails End Gallery.

We look forward to seeing whatever Rails End Gallery and Arts Center come up with for Slow Art Day this year.

-Johanna, Ashley, Jessica Jane, and Phyl

P.S. Stay up to date with events at Rails End Gallery and Arts Center through their Instagram

Stop and Smell the Roses: Slow Art Drive-By at Eaton Gallery

For their second Slow Art Day, The Eaton Gallery in Bloomington, Illinois, organized a “drive-by” exhibit in the Gallery’s window display, inviting the local community to slow down and enjoy floral still-life paintings by local artist Herb Eaton. 

Herb Eaton, Still Life with Grace. 3ft x 4 ft, oil on canvas.
Herb Eaton, Single Petal of a Rose. 24×18 oil on canvas board.

Pamela Eaton, Gallery owner, aims to make art more accessible in a relaxed setting, and provide a space to support local artists.

From the 10th to the 30th of April, the Gallery created a drive-by window exhibit for viewers to pause and look slowly at a selection of artworks. They were then invited to share their thoughts and reflections in a variety of ways: write a note and drop it in the Gallery’s mail slot, send an email, or leave a post on the Gallery’s Facebook page.

The exhibit got great press coverage from local news outlets, both last year and this year. An article by week.com includes a video interview with Pamela Eaton, where she explains that Slow Art Day is an opportunity for people to simultaneously develop an appreciation for art and local artists.

“We are so busy hurrying around. When you slow down and pay attention to your space and place you start to see more value in them. That’s probably one of the values of COVID, it’s slowed us all down.”

Pamela Eaton

Eaton Gallery’s press release

The Eaton Gallery received a lot of great feedback from participants:

Kind of makes you think of the beauty of life and the changes through the years. The petals are beautiful but life happens and the years change us, but the beauty still remains in our memories.

Viewer’s quote

I drove by today, slowly passing by in my car to admire A Single Petal of a Rose which I love more and more each time I see it.

Viewer’s quote

Walked by Saturday to enjoy the paintings in your window… peaceful and full of color.

Viewer’s quote



Looking forward to coming inside and seeing more of the art and the space.

Viewer’s quote



Beautiful work.

Viewer’s quote



Brightened up my walk downtown.

Viewer’s quote



The Eaton Gallery’s creative drive-by solution to sharing art with the local community during Covid19 has helped viewers and participants slow down and feel connected. At Slow Art Day HQ, we agree with Pamala Eaton: “When you slow down and pay attention to your space and place you start to see more value in them.”

We look forward to Eaton Gallery’s Slow Art Day in 2022.



Johanna, Jessica, Ashley, and Phyl