NATCHEZ &8212; His art gallery in Bay St. Louis became much more than a business for Jerry Dixon, who moved to Natchez following Hurricane Katrina.

His successful gallery gave him opportunities to do what he loves most &8212; enjoy the company of artists.

It took little time for Dixon to look around and find artists in Natchez, both those who had lived here for years and those who, like him, had moved to the area only recently.

Further, Dixon saw right away that a tour of artists&8217; studios, one similar to a tour he organized in Bay St. Louis, surely would be successful in Natchez.

On Saturday, Nov. 25, from 1 to 7 p.m., 17 different locations in Natchez will feature 32 different artists &8212; a free tour in which studios, galleries and artists will combine to give visitors opportunities to view art, talk to artists and, if they choose, to buy art works.

&8220;I like to do things that work,&8221; Dixon said. &8220;I know this works. It&8217;s an idea you can carry out wherever you are.&8221;

The last studio tour he organized on the Gulf Coast featured 150 artists. &8220;People came from everywhere. It was a great success.&8221;

The success spreads from studios and galleries on tour to other businesses in the community, Dixon said.

&8220;Arts means business. When people come to art tours, they also go to shops, eat in restaurants &8212; it all mushrooms and becomes better and better,&8221; Dixon said.

As Dixon toyed with the idea of a Natchez art studio tour, he found others urging him on, including Rolland Golden, a South Louisiana artists who, with his wife, Stella, recently bought a house in Natchez.

Their property was damaged in Hurricane Katrina, and they were looking around for a place to retire.

&8220;We&8217;d been coming here for 40 years, and Stella said why don&8217;t we move to Natchez. I&8217;m happy to be here,&8221; Golden said. &8220;We found this house and bought it, and I feel right at home here.&8221;

Keith Karlson is another new artist-resident, who, like Dixon, came from Bay St. Louis.

A photographer, he has turned his camera on Natchez, particularly architectural details, a body of work he calls &8220;Natchez Close Up.&8221;

After the hurricane, the decision came down to whether to rebuild or relocate, Karlson said.

&8220;Do we rebuild? It was too hard to think about that,&8221; he said. &8220;We looked at Alabama, Georgia; we wanted to stay in Mississippi. Then we thought, how silly, we need to move to Natchez.&8221;

Esther Carpenter returned to her hometown recently and will welcome visitors to her studio in The Elms, the family home where she lives on the corner of Washington and Martin Luther King streets.

Her decorative painting has adorned floors, walls and furnishings in collaboration with some of the well-known interior designers of America.

Examples of both her decorative painting and her canvases will be included in her studio display.

&8220;Basically, when I gave up cooking, I wanted something creative to do,&8221; she said, referring to a highly acclaimed restaurant she owned and operated for years in California.

Natchez artist Helen Langlow, whose work is found in many prestigious galleries and who has won numerous awards for her paintings, also will be among those whose art will be on view during the tour.

A complete list of artists and addresses of galleries and studios is available in a brochure found at downtown galleries.

More information also is available at South Union Interiors, 601-304-0606; at Different Accents, 601-442-3516; and by calling Jerry Dixon, 228-671-1280.