Idyll Dandy Arts (or just Ida) is a Southern, rural community land project and educational space tucked into the hills of Middle Tennessee. The mostly wooded hollow provides space for a gaggle of queer, trans and gender non-conforming residents and our neighbors, friends and visitors.

The residents and the larger Ida community work to provide a safer space for queer, trans, and gender non-conforming people with varying experiences, identities, and abilities. Visiting Ida offers time and space for play and work projects and for making art and learning rural living skills and maybe most importantly–making connections with each other and the land. Ida is host to garden interns in the spring and summer and hosts artists residents and workshops and musical performances throughout the year. Idapalooza is Ida’s annual summer music festival and community coming as well as the primary fundraiser for Ida’s annual land payment.

Those of us who live at Ida love the wooded hills and hollows, the South, and the opportunity to create (creating art, creating gardens, creating community). We hope to share this space with queer and trans people who may have historically been isolated from these experiences–we love visitors! And it’s nice for the residents to know when to expect company; please send us a message before your visit. Questions and visitor inquiries should be e-mailed to idapalooza@gmail.com.

Photo by Agatha: www.flickr.com/photos/agatha-ate