Enjoying the Heart of Summer

by Joan Farnam on July 25, 2019

It was a beautiful morning and a beautiful day by Roxanne Distad.

Lots going on this weekend and next — summer is truly here, with all kinds of celebrations. This weekend, look for a music festival, new outdoor art to enjoy, workshops and artist talks. And next week, the 90th annual Fisherman’s Picnic begins …

Here’s what you can look forward to this weekend:

North House Folk School continues its artisan/demo series, with Julie Kean, who will be demonstrating weaving with birchbark from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Thursday through Sunday.

On Saturday, Kean will hold a mini-class at North House on how to weave a birchbark star ornament.

Julie Kean will be demonstrating how to weave birchbark at North House Folk School from Thursday through Sunday. She will teach a mini-class on weaving a birchbark star ornament on Saturday morning at 10 a.m.

The class will start at 10 a.m. Call North House at 387-9762 to register and for more information.

Also at North House, a wood-fired baking mini-class will be held on Thursday with two sessions: 1-3 p.m. and 4:30-6 p.m. Call 387-9762 to register.

Also on Thursday, the Local Food Market will be held at the Cook County Community Center’s parking lot from 4:30-6 p.m. featuring lots of locally grown vegetables and flowers, baked goods, handcrafted mustards and more.

The Local Food Market will be held at the Cook County Community Center from 4:30-6 p.m. Thursday.

This week, there will be a demonstration on how to make waxed pouches to store vegetables instead of using plastic. All invited.

Theater:

The Summer Theater Festival continues at the Arrowhead Center for the Arts with performances Thursday through Saturday at 7 p.m. and 2 p.m. Sunday. This year, the Grand Marais Playhouse is presenting two musicals; “A Closer Walk with Patsy Cline” and “The Marvelous Wonderettes: Dream On.”

A Closer Walk with Patsy Cline will be performed at 7 p.m. Friday night and 2 p.m. Sunday.

"The Marvelous Wonderettes: Dream On" by Roger Dean opens at the Arrowhead Center for the Arts on Friday, July 19.

“The Marvelous Wonderettes: Dream On” by Roger Dean will be performed on Thursday and Saturday at 7 p.m. at the Arrowhead Center for the Arts.

The musicals are presented in repertory with “The Marvelous Wonderettes” performing at 7 p.m. Thursday and Saturday, “A Closer Walk with Patsy Kline” at 7 p.m. Friday and 2 p.m. Sunday. Tickets are available at the door. The Theater festival continues through Aug. 11.

On Friday through Sunday, the Stars of the North Music Festival will be held at the Wunderbar on Friday night (because of the possibility of rain) and Harbor Park in downtown Grand Marais on Saturday and Sunday. The festival will feature a variety of musicians who are members of the Grand Marais Music Collaborative. The outdoor music festival features local and regional musicians playing in support of the Grand Marais Music Collaborative’s youth music lesson program.

The Stars of the North Music Festival will be in Harbor Park Friday through Sunday.

The Stars of the North Music Festival will be held this weekend.

The festival will also feature food trucks and a beverage vendor. See the Music Schedule below for more information.

Also on Friday from 1-2:30 p.m., a Paint-A-Tile class will be held in the ceramics studio of the Grand Marais Art Colony. Participants will explore the colorful world of Majolica glazes and paint two tiles with their own designs.. The tiles will be fired and ready for pick-up on Sunday morning. Call 387-0762 to register.

On Friday evening, musicians Gene LaFond and Amy Grillo will be on WTIP’s The Roadhouse to talk about their music and play a few songs. The program will also feature an interview with photographer Layne Kennedy who will talk about the creative process. The show airs from 5-7 p.m.

Also on Friday night, the Grand Marais Art Colony, in collaboration with Cook County Higher Education, will host an Artist Talk and Author Reading: Art and Cultural Exchange.

An Artist Talk will be held at Cook County Higher Education at 7 p.m. Friday.

The presentation features Shannon Brunette, founder and arts management consultant through the Office of Cultural Work, and author Kathryn Savage, who will read from a manuscript in process. The event will be held at Cook County Higher Education at 7 p.m. Free, but freewill donations are accepted.

In Duluth on Friday, the monthly Downtown Duluth Arts Walk will be held featuring a great selection of art openings, live music, studio tours and more, all held within walking distance in the downtown area.

The Downtown Duluth Arts Walk is on Friday.

Of special interest, a new exhibit at the Prøve Gallery, 21 N. Lake Ave. The exhibit, entitled “You Don’t Know Me,” features work by 12 local artists including Sarah M. Brokke, Shannon Cousino, Emanuel Eisele, Carla Hamilton, Alyssa Johnson, Laura LaValle, Jennifer Marcson, Em Nuckols, Megan Sprenger, Adam Swanson, and Molly VanAlst.

Prøve gallery sarahbrokke you don't know me

“Only visible at night” by Sarah M. Brokke, is one of the works on exhibit at the Prøve Gallery in downtown Duluth.

The opening reception at the Prøve is from 7-10 p.m. The exhibit continues through August. For more information about all the events on Friday during the Arts Walk, click here.

On Saturday, look for the Cook County Market in the parking lot of the Cook County Senior Center starting at 9 a.m. The market, which features a wide variety of work by local artists and artisans, continues through 1 p.m.

At noon, the Grand Marais Garden Club will hold its annual Flower Show at the Cook County Community Center. This year’s theme is “Veggies and Flowers.”

The Grand Marais Garden Club’s annual Flower Show will from noon to 5 p.m. at the Cook County Community Center. This year’s theme: Veggies & Flowers. (Stock photo)

The exhibit is open to the community. Anyone interested in submitting an arrangement is invited to bring it to the Community Center at 11:30 a.m. on Saturday. The event also features a plant sale and a garden tool sale as well as lots of fabulous arrangements and home-baked treats. All invited. Free.

And, at 2 p.m. Saturday, artist Tara Austin will give an artist talk at the Johnson Heritage Post, where she is currently exhibiting her work.

Artwork by Sara Austin. She is exhibiting her work at the Johnson Heritage Post through Sunday.

Artwork by Tara Austin. She is exhibiting her work at the Johnson Heritage Post through Sunday.

Austin’s exhibit is entitled: “Boreal Ornament II.” She will walk around her exhibit and talk about her style and technique as well as her inspiration. This is the final weekend to see this phenomenal show. The Heritage Post is closed on Tuesdays. It is open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Wednesday through Saturday and Monday and from 1-4 p.m. Sunday.

And Wednesday, July 31, the 90th annual Fisherman’s Picnic begins in downtown Grand Marais and continues through Sunday.

This will be the 90th year that Fisherman's Picnic has been celebrated in Grand Marais. The competitions have changed a little, (see above) but they still add a special flavor to this summer festival. Photo courtesy of the Cook County Historical Society.

This will be the 90th year that Fisherman’s Picnic has been celebrated in Grand Marais. The competitions have changed a little, (see above) but they all add a special flavor to this summer festival. Photo courtesy of the Cook County Historical Society.

The event features lots of visitors, Crazy Days sales, a craft show, lots of contests and prizes, live music, kids’ activities, fireworks on Saturday night and a parade on Sunday. Stay tuned for details. To see the schedule of all the activities, click here.

Ongoing:

The Biggest Blueberry Contest continues on the Gunflint Trail. For all the details, click here.

Outdoor Art in Grand Marais:

There are three new outdoor art projects that have sprung up in the last week or so. All are worth a look.

First, the Felted Forest, an installation developed by felter Marlys Johnson and friends in collaboration with North House Folk School, ISD 166 and the Grand Marais Art Colony. The project, which features wonderful, whimsical felted creatures, flowers, birds and insects, have been installed in the woods at the Sawtooth Elementary School’s Nature Trail on 5th Street. The paths have been cleared, felters have been creating for a few months, and in the past two weeks, the Felted Forest has been established, thanks to a grant from the Great Place Project.

The Felted Forest can be seen on the Sawtooth Elementary Nature Trail in the woods.

One of the felted animals that can be found in the Felted Forest.

There will be a Grand Opening celebration on Aug. 28 in conjunction with the Open House at ISD166 to meet the artists, create some felt for the forest and enjoy it, although it is open now for people to enjoy. Stay tuned for more.

Another art project was installed this week: “Imagine,” the community paint-by-numbers mural that was developed and installed by Mila Horak, art teacher at ISD 166. The mural, which is installed on the alley wall at Birchbark Books & Gifts, joins a number of other community paint-by-number murals that Horak designed and the community painted.

“Imagine,” the latest community paint-by-number mural has been installed on a wall at Birchbark Books & Gifts.

Check it out. It’s quite beautiful, as are the other murals.

And last, but not least, take a look at the festive garden shed at the new Community Garden at the Cook County Community Center. The shed used to be the warming house for the hockey rink but was moved to the garden when the new warming shed was built. Thanks to a grant from the Great Place Project, it was possible to bring together a great selection of local talent to fix up and paint the building. It is striped with rainbow colors with a mural of garden vegetables on one side, and a fancy sunflower door.

The new garden shed for the Community Center’s Community Garden.

The garden mural was designed and drawn by Jan Attridge. Painters included Attridge, Carolyn Severaid, Emily Ulhorn. Emma Bradley, Elaine Erickson, Joan Farnam, and Sally Berg. Cook County extension agent, Diane Booth, painted the rainbow stripes on the building itself while volunteers at the Community Garden worked on restoring the building before it was painted. It can be seen from the softball field behind the Community Center.

And, for lots of artist opportunities, check out the Arrowhead Regional Arts Council’s web page… ARAC offers a variety of grants and learning opportunities for artists. Click on the image below to find out more.