Hidden in the Hills celebrates 30 years of opening studio doors

Thirty years ago, Hidden in the Hills began with artists opening their studio doors and inviting people to come see what they were making. That basic idea has not changed much. Almost everything around it has.

The 30th annual Hidden in the Hills Artist Studio Tour returns Nov. 20-22 and Nov. 27-29, bringing 150 artists to 38 studios throughout Cave Creek, Carefree and north Scottsdale. The free, self-guided tour runs 10 a.m.-5 p.m. each day and is billed as Arizona’s largest and longest-running artist studio tour.

Thousands of visitors spend the two weekends moving from studio to studio, meeting artists, seeing where they work and browsing everything from paintings and ceramics to sculpture, photography, jewelry and mixed media. With the tour landing just before the holidays, it has also become a place to look for one-of-a-kind gifts.

For seven artists, this year carries another distinction: They were there at the beginning and have participated all 30 years. Cave Creek pencil artist Dick Mueller is one of them.

Mueller started the tour exhibiting graphite drawings on paper. These days, colored pencil makes up about two-thirds of his work, which often focuses on Western scenes, wildlife and people. “Brushes dry out, but pencils don’t,” Mueller said. “I tried painting early in my career, but I find pencils make it easier to capture the fine details of a subject or a scene.”

One of his earliest years as a studio host was memorable for a less artistic reason.

“Our house was being built and the contractor assured us that the windows would be done by the tour, but they weren’t,” he recalled. “I had to put cardboard in the windows and sleep in the kitchen overnight to protect our art and our guests’ art. I remember it being very cold.”

Mueller has now hosted for 29 years at Coyote Crossing Studio No. 2, overlooking Grapevine Wash.

Original and new artists

Robin Ray is another of the original seven. The Cave Creek artist and longtime host of Robin’s Nest Studio No. 28 has worked in painting, tapestry, papier-mâché, murals, sculpture and ceramics over the course of her career. She also spent 25 years teaching visual art at Cactus Shadows High School. But Hidden in the Hills is not only about the artists who have been there for decades.

First- and second-year participants are part of the 2026 tour, and artists travel from across Arizona to take part. This year’s participants include artists from Goodyear, Tucson, Chandler, Queen Creek and Fountain Hills, along with others from across the East and West valleys.

That mix gives longtime visitors a reason to come back. They can stop in on an artist they have followed for years, then head down the road and find someone new.

Jeanne Bonine takes the cover

For the 30th anniversary, one longtime Hidden in the Hills artist will be especially easy to spot.

North Scottsdale romantic realist painter Jeanne Bonine’s oil painting “Welcome to My World” was selected for the cover of the 2026 Hidden in the Hills Artist Directory.

Bonine, 82, has been painting professionally for more than 60 years. Even with a long list of career highlights, this recognition stands out for a different reason. 

“Although I have received many honors during 60 plus years of my art career, including covers of various art magazines, participating in museum shows, and having my work appear on special projects like Northwest Airlines International Airline menus, it is still exciting and meaningful to be elevated by my peers as I was chosen this year’s cover artist for Hidden in the Hills,” Bonine said.

She will welcome visitors to Studio No. 15, where guests can see “Welcome to My World” along with new oil paintings, originals and limited-edition giclées, hand-painted heirloom glass ornaments, mini oils, greeting cards and her coffee-table book, “Inspirations of Timeless Beauty.”

Bonine said she hopes the cover brings some new faces through the door. “I sincerely hope to touch all who enter my world,” she said.

That is still what Hidden in the Hills comes down to after 30 years: walking into a studio, talking with the person who made the work and seeing a side of the creative process that usually happens behind closed doors. The tour may be bigger now, but that part remains personal.

Hidden in the Hills admission is free. For the artist directory, studio locations and participating artists, visit HiddenInTheHills.org.