A Fancy Weekend–Unplugged & Plein Air

Ah, the second week of September is here, and we can look forward to two stellar events:  Plein Air Grand Marais and North House Folk School’s Unplugged xvii. Lots to do and see. And, of course, as the photograph above shows, fall colors are starting in the woods, and the weather has been perfect.

Plein Air Grand Marais, co-sponsored by the Johnson Heritage Post and Outdoor Painters of Minnesota, has been on-going for almost a week now and early paintings from the artists’ work are beginning to be emerge.

On Wednesday night, Yellow Bird Fine Art held an opening exhibit for the painters in the Open Class at the gallery’s annex.  Plein air painter Marge Brackin won first place with her painting, “Red Cliff.” The award includes an invitation to participate in the juried competition next year.

All the paintings submitted for the Open Class show will be on exhibit at Yellow Bird Fine Art Gallery through Sunday.

Meanwhile, Plein Air Grand Marais continues. First up is a panel discussion with three of Minnesota’s internationally-acclaimed painters – Jeffrey T. Larson, Mary Petti  and Andy Evansen at the Johnson Heritage Post at noon on Thursday. They will discuss the history and importance of plain air painting. The public is invited.

Then, at 3 p.m. on Thursday, the painters will gather on Artist’s Point for one of the most popular events of the week: The Quick Paint. Painters are given an hour to complete a painting and then display them along the shore. The public is invited to watch as empty canvases are transformed into beauteous renditions of the North Shore and Lake Superior. The event is held from 3-5 p.m.

Afterwards, the painters will gather at the Harbor Picnic Shelter at the Grand Marais Municipal Campground to sing, play music along with OPM’s ad-hoc band “The Plein Errors,” and celebrate the week’s painting achievements.

On Friday, look for the gala opening reception at the Johnson Heritage Post from 6-8 p.m., where more than 300 paintings by 75 plein air painters will be on exhibit through Oct. 7. It will be a fun time as the paintings themselves are extraordinary, and there’s lots of excitement as the awards are announced. Overall awards will be given for 1st-3rd place, as well as Best Historic Place and the Sense of Place Award. There will also be Night Paint awards and Quick Paint Awards as well an award for the winner of the Berney Quick Artist’s Choice competition.

It’s a little early to show what the painters have done, but we did find two great Night Paints. Look for more photos of the paintings next week.

 

Meanwhile, North House Folk School’s Unplugged xvii, is on-going as well. This very popular event  runs from Sept. 14-16, and features lots of music, craft, and storytelling as well as classes, a Folk Artisan Marketplace and an on-line auction.

The Folk Artisan Marketplace opens on Friday from noon to 7 p.m. and will also be held from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Saturday. Look for baskets, felted goods, carved bowls and spoons, jewelry, leather goods, and more.

Artisans this year will include Beth Dow, Carol Dunn, Marybeth Garmoe, Todd Hawkinson, Mike Loeffler, Cathryn Peters, Alex Yerks, Kim Garrett and Rebecca Utecht.

Also on Friday night, North House will host the Birchbark Bash from 5-9 p.m. featuring a live craft performance by Jögge Sundqvist, a multi-course dinner by Scott Graden of the New Scenic Cafe and a live auction. All proceeds go to support the educational mission of North House. Tickets are still available! Call 387-9762 for more info.

There are a wide variety of classes and min-classes offered on Saturday, too, including a chance to join the choir for a performance on Saturday night, learn about the Ukulele with Prudence Johnson as well as a Viking cooking demonstration.

On Saturday night is the Unplugged performance, which begins at 7 p.m. This year’s line-up includes storyteller Kevin Kling and singer/songwriters Marc Anderson, Dan Chouinard,  Bradley Greenwald, Prudence Johnson, Simone Perrin, Claudia Schmidt and Dane Stauffer will perform. This is always a great concert and fills the big tent at North House.

Tickets are still available. Click here for more info and tickets.

There are other activities and events this weekend, too.

On Friday, the Minnesota Zoomobile will be at the Grand Marais Public Library from 4-5 p.m. The Zoomobile includes live animals, storytelling, research techniques and audience participation to create a fun program for all ages. All invited. Free.

On Saturday, the Cook County Market, featuring work by a variety of local artists and artisans, opens in the Senior Center parking lot at 9 a.m. and runs to 1 p.m.

Up the Gunflint Trail, Gunflint Lodge will host a Fall Color Ride from 9:30 p.m. to 3 p.m. on trails in the Superior National Forest. Call 388-2294 for reservations.

Also on Saturday, Amy Lucas-Peroceski, who wrote “Arthur Zac’s Amazing Zebras,” will talk about her book at the Grand Marais Public Library at 10:30 a.m.

The second part of the program will feature how to draw a zebra on 8 1/2 x 11 cardstock. Preschoolers will paint with water soluble oil pastels. Adults will further enhance their zebra by adding background to the picture. The event is free and open to the public.

And at 2 p.m.on Saturday, Staci Drouillard will give a presentation at Chik-Wauk Museum and Nature Center on the Gunflint Trail.

Drouillard’s grandfather, Fred Drouillard and grandmother, Lola, had worked at Chik-Wauk Resort in the 1930s and 1940s. Fred was a fishing guide on Saganaga Lake and Lola cooked three meals a day at the resort. Fred and Lola would spend every summer at Chik-Wauk living in the Raven’s Nest cabin. Staci’s father, Francis, started work as a bait and dock helper at Chik-Wauk and by the age of 16, was working as a fishing guide alongside his dad. The presentation is free.

Exhibits:

 Landscape painter Greg Prelicka  is exhibiting his work in the Great Hall at Tettegouche State Park through October.

In Duluth, the Duluth Art Institute will host an opening reception for two new exhibits from 6-9 p.m. on Thursday. “Land/People” by Amanda Breitbach explores the decline of family farming and the emotional and spiritual issues that underlie the human relationship to land, making larger, universal relationships visible through Breitbach’s, and her family’s own experiences in Montana.

The DAI is also opening an exhibit by Aaron Squadroni entitled “Mesabi Land Portraits.” His work is centered on mining imagery and metalpoint drawing techniques. This particular exhibit focuses on the Hull Rust mine in Hibbing, one of the largest open-pit mines in the world.  Both artists will be at the opening reception. All invited.

In Thunder Bay, Christi Belcourt‘s exhibit: “Uprising: The Power of Mother Earth, A Retrospective with Isaac Murdoch” continues at the Thunder Bay Art Gallery with a great selection of her work.

Also in Thunder Bay, check out the new art murals by the diE Active Art Collective on Cooke Steet in Waterfront District downtown.

 Also in Thunder Bay, the Baggage Building Arts Center is exhibiting costumes created for the plays they have produced there.

 Upcoming:

 The North Shore Music Association is bringing Pura Fé to the Arrowhead Center for the Arts on Sept. 22. Co-founder of the Indigenous women’s a capella trio Ulali and member of the Tuscarora Indian Nation, Pura Fé is recognized for bringing Native contemporary music to the forefront of the mainstream music industry. Her group, Ulali, played the music for Sherman Alexie’s movie, “Smoke Signals.” She will perform at solo concert starting 7:30 p.m. Here’s an example of her music:

And, starting on Sept. 28 and running through Oct. 7, the Fall Studio Tour will be held in Cook County. Featuring work by more than 50 local artists in studios and galleries throughout the county, the tour offers visitors the chance to see new work and talk to the artists who made it.

For many featured artists, these 10 days are the only time they open their studios to the public all year. Access to some of the artists featured on the fall art tour is limited, since they do only a few art shows per year and limited online sales.  “We have had customers fly in from around the country to come to the Studio Tour,” said Dan and Lee Ross, who are sculpture and print artists. This year, Lee Ross will debut her new glass work.

Last year, there were more than 1,350 fall art tour visitors. The art tour also features a variety of demonstrations and talks by the artists. Stay tuned for details. For more info, click here.

Music:

Here’s the music schedule for this week:

Thursday, Sept. 13:

• Gordon Thorne & the Wildcats, North Shore Winery, 6 p.m.
• Frozen Britches, Cascade Lodge Pub, 6 p.m.
• Plucked Up String Band, Gun Flint Tavern, 7 p.m.

Friday, Sept. 14:

• Kyle Ollah, Voyageur Brewing, 4 p.m.
• Jim & Michele Miller, Bluefin Grille, 9 p.m.
• Don Juan Trio, Wunderbar, 8 p.m.
• TBA, Gun Flint Tavern, 8 p.m.
• The Millers, Bluefin,  8 p.m.

Saturday, Sept. 15:

• Jim & Michele, Cascade Lodge Restaurant, 6 p.m.
• Cook County’s Most Wanted, Grandma Ray’s, 7 p.m.
• Ghost Wagon, Wunderbar, 8 p.m.
• Dance Party with DJ Beavstar, Papa Charlie’s, 9:30 p.m.

Sunday, Sept. 16:

• Briand Morrison, Mogul’s Grille, 10 a.m.
• Ghost Wagon, Wunderbar Brunch, 11 a.m.
• Eric Frost, North Shore Winery, 2 p.m.
• Open Stage with Joe Paulik, Wunderbar, 6 p.m.
• Jim & Michele Miller, Gun Flint Tavern, 7 p.m.

Monday, Sept. 17:

• Trevor James Americana Rebel, Monday Night Songwriter Series, Papa Charlie’s, 8:30 p.m.
• Joe Paulik, Bluefin Bay, 9 p.m.

Wednesday, Sept, 19:

• Gordon Thorne, Bluefin Bay, 9 p.m.

We found lots of photos this week:

First, a flower:

And a mushroom:

And a sunrise spider web:

We found a few wildlife shots:

 

Here are some sunrises and sunsets.

 

 

 

And a great northern lights shot:

And here is water:

 

And finally, this beauty:

Enjoy your weekend, everyone!

 

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