And we thought spring had arrived
Scarlett is a Norwegian Elkhound owned by Jim Boyd. He titled this photo “Norwegian,” which was taken after the latest April snowstorm. More to come? It would probably make Scarlett pretty happy.
Greetings from the North Shore, where we again welcome spring. It’s been a fickle guest who seems to change its mind on whether it’s going to stay or not. Every time we have warm sunny days and our hopes go up, there’s a winter storm a few days later. This time, spring could be here to stay, but we’ve been crying wolf for a few weeks now, so all bets are off.
Meanwhile, on the shore, daffodils have breached the topsoil, with some people reporting tiny yellow blooms bobbing in the breeze. So, Yay!
We also had a feast of Northern Lights, with spectacular displays up here and as far south as San Diego.
Northern Lights light up the night sky on Sunday above Mammoth Lakes in California. Photo image courtesy of Carter Murphy.
The Northern Lights just happened to occur during Dark Skies Week, so, again, Yay!
Speaking of Northern Lights, Rachel Rae Klesser will be demonstrating how to paint Northern Lights at Joy and Company on Thursday, April 27.
Rachel Rae Klesser will give a painting demonstration on how to paint the Northern Lights at Joy and Company on April 27, 4-6 pm.
The event is part of the shop’s regular Thursday Art Night, which is held from 4-6 pm. Free. All welcome. Donations are appreciated.
On Saturday, Drury Lane Books will be celebrating National Independent Bookstore Day with a special meet-and-greet with author Lorna Landvik and other events.
Author Lorna Landvik will be at Drury Lane Books on April 29 at 1 pm as part of National Independent Bookstore Day.
Here is the schedule of events:
- 11 am-12:30 pm, Live music on our front deck
- 1-2:30 pm, Author Lorna Landvik will be at the bookstore at 1-2:30 pm on Saturday, April 29. She will present and sign books in a “Meet and Greet” format. Lorna will have plenty of time to chat with customers and share insights into her writing process and new book, Last Circle of Love. Come anytime between 1-2:30 pm to meet her, purchase her recent titles, and get your book(s) signed.
- All Day Long: Cookies made by Crosby Bakery and gift giveaways, puzzles, maps & more.
Everyone invited.
On Saturday night, singer/songwriter Ann Reed returns to Grand Marais for a concert produced by the North Shore Music Association at the Arrowhead Center for the Arts.
Ann Reed will perform at the Arrowhead Center for the Arts on April 29.
For more than 40 years, Reed has used her rich, resonant voice and songwriting skills to tell stories of the human experience with humor, irreverence, and heart. A lifelong performer, she has toured from coast to coast.
The concert at the ACA starts at 7 pm. Tickets are $20 and are on sale now at northshoremusicassociation.com and will also be available at the door starting at 6 pm. All ages are welcome. Masks are encouraged at this event.
Next week, Historic Cook County Trivia Night will be held at a new location: Up Yonder on 61, in the the former Wunderbar building.
Historic Cook County Trivia Night will be held at Up Yonder on 61 from 6-8 pm Thursday, May 4.
The event is an opportunity to show off your knowledge of Cook County history and have fun at the same time. Prizes are awarded. It will be held from 6-8 pm. All invited.
On Friday, May 5, Drury Lane Books will hold a Full Moon Reading featuring a literary slam and live music by the bonfire from 7-9 pm.
Drury Lane Books will hold a Full Moon Reading by the bonfire from 7-9 pm May 5.
It’s an open mic night without a mic.
People are invited to bring a favorite book passage, literary monologue, or poem to read by the fire. You are also welcome to read a passage from an original song, poem or story. Kids are encouraged to read a passage from their favorite book or an original poem, too. Bring a thermos of hot chocolate, homemade mead or cider and cookies to share, or just one good story to tell. Satire, theatre and puppets are welcome. Ukeleles, guitars, fiddles, and hand percussion are encouraged when it’s not too cold for instruments.
Exhibits:
Members of the North Shore Artists League are exhibiting at the Johnson Heritage Post this month. The multi-media exhibit features a variety of works by North Shore artists including paintings, fiber, glass, ceramics, wood, and more.
Glass artist Mary Bebie is exhibiting her work in the Spirit of the Arts show at the Johnson Heritage Post this month.
Patricia Hagen is one of the artists exhibiting at the Johnson Heritage Post this month.
Cascade Ice Out, raku, by Maggie Anderson is also in the exhibit.
The exhibit continues through April 30. The Heritage Post is open from 10 am to 4 pm Wednesday through Saturday and from 1-4 pm Sunday. Open to all. Free.
The exhibit “Now That Summer Has Ended: Winter Activities at Grand Portage During the Fur Trade Era” continues at the Grand Portage National Monument Heritage Center.
Stable Yard after Snowstorm Mary Millicent Chaplin, 1842.
Learn about the ways people spent their winter at the time of the fur trade – work, survival, and even some leisure activities, during the harsh, dark, northern season. Besides the artifacts used by people in those days, there are a number of paintings that were created during that period.
The Heritage Center is open Monday through Saturday from 8:30 am to 4:30 pm but is closed on Sundays.
At the Duluth Art Institute, Alexa Carson is exhibiting a collection of paintings that empower and celebrate the female body. The exhibit is entitled “Reclaiming.”
Alexa Carson is exhibiting work at the Duluth Art Institute.
The Thunder Bay Art Gallery is exhibiting 17 works from its Permanent Collection by artist Blake Debassige (1956 – 2022). Debassige was an influential second-generation Woodland artist from M’Chigeeng First Nation on Manitoulin Island.
Works by Blake Debassige are on view at the Thunder Bay Art Gallery through May. Pictured is Cross Hill, acrylic.
Debassige said that “art was part of what I was … and I set about to learn and use it as another form of speech and communication.” He is known for his muted tones, sinuous lines, and arresting figures that transmit a sense of cosmic order, interdependence, and purpose. The exhibit continues through May.
The Apostle Islands National Park presents Zaaga’igan Ma’iinganag: Lakewolves Underwater Photography exhibition at Northern Great Lakes Visitor Center. The exhibit will run through May 22.
An exhibit of underwater Lake Superior photography by Zaaga’igan Ma’iinganag (Lakewolves). Underwater Photography is at the Northern Great Lakes Visitor Center. Photo by A, Hernandez.
Zaaga’igan Ma’iinganag (Lakewolves) is an immersive program that delves into Lake Superior and its surrounding watershed via underwater photography. Their goal is to create a platform of expression for the youth of our coastal community on the Bayfield Peninsula by exploring the Lake and its watershed, cameras in hand, and fins on foot.
Check out their past exhibits and check back for future events at http://www.lakewolves.org/
Upcoming:
Minnesota artist Dodie Logue will exhibit a series of charcoal drawings focused on trees in the Great Hall at Tettegouche State Park in May.
Morning Pines, charcoal on paper, by Dodie Logue is one of the pieces that will be on display at Tettegouche State Park in May.
The opening reception will be held on May 5 from 7-8:30 pm. The public is invited.
Living on the Edge, an exhibit by 287 members of the North Shore Artists League opens at the Phipp’s Center for the Arts in Hudson, Wis. May 12.
Members of the North Shore Artists League will open an exhibit at the Phipps Art Gallery in Hudson, Wis. May 12.
The opening reception is from 6-8:30 pm at the gallery. The exhibit continues through July 9.
The St.Croix Valley Pottery Tour is May 12-14 this year featuring more than 40 potters exhibiting work in seven different studios.
Yunomi by Guillermo Cuellar. He is one of the host potters in the St. Croix Valley Pottery Tour.
To find out more, including photos of the artists’ work, where to stay, etc., click here.
Northern Lake County Arts Board will hold its final community concert, “The Every Person’s Guide to Opera,” Friday, May 19 at 6:30 pm in the William Kelley High School Auditorium in Silver Bay.
The Every Person’s Guide to Opera, a presentation of the Northern Lake County Arts Board, will be held at the high school auditorium in Silver Bay at 6:30 pm, on May 19.
This concert will feature Heather Hjelle, soprano; Thomas McNichols, tenor; Janese Pentico, soprano and Hong Liang Andre Ng, piano. The concert format will provide background information on pieces performed as well as the history and social significance of opera as a form of storytelling. Audience members will be encouraged to ask questions about opera. Tickets are $15 for adults at the door. Students and children are free and encouraged to attend.
This concert will include a 23-year history of bringing arts enrichment to William Kelley School and northern Lake County communities.
Everyone invited.
Artists At Work:
Nanaboozhoo creates the Apostle Islands by Sam Zimmerman.
Sam Zimmerman writes:
I was tasked with a commission to paint the Apostle Islands creation story, where Nanaboozhoo fights the Chi Amik / Giant Beaver destroying his damn, and throws huge fists of the earth at the Chi Amik creating the Apostle Islands. In this piece, the fight is over and Chi Amik is fleeing from Nanaboozhoo who is perched high above on one of the new islands.
Revel III, pastel and mixed media, Linda Ricklefs Baudry.
I’m the orange, by Mary Beams.
My interpretation of Georgia O’Keefe’s Lawrence Tree by Paula Sundet Wolf.
SPIRE: Tribute to Prince Rogers Nelson, mixed media by Martin DeWitt.
Bonsai in Infrared by Bryan Hansel.
Online Findings:
Spring Skiing on lakes in the Boundary Waters by Barb LaVigne
Barb LaVigne says she made the video on Duncan Lake.
“Spring skiing on the lakes is a very ephemeral opportunity,” she writes. “The conditions have to be just right and they only last for a few days.” Nevertheless, it looks like a very fun and beautiful thing to do.
Sun and Moon, oil, by Arthur Dove. To see more images and read about the artist click here.
Cascade by Bryan Hansel. In his latest newsletter, Hansel discusses AI and photography. Read it here.
Online Music:
Live Music:
Thursday, Apr. 27:
- Gordon Thorne, North Shore Winery, 7-9 pm
Saturday, Apr. 29:
- Ann Reed, Arrowhead Center for the Arts, 7 pm.
Sunday, Apr. 30:
- Open Mic Hosted by Pete K, Up Yonder, 5-8 pm.
Friday, May 5:
- Full Moon Literary Slam with Music, Drury Lane Bookstore, 7-9 pm
- South Paws, Up Yonder, 8pm
Saturday, May 6:
- South Paws, Up Yonder, 8pm
Sunday, May 7:
- Open Mic Hosted by Pete K, Up Yonder, 5-8 pm.
Photographs:
Soon, there will be outdoor flowers.
Meanwhile:
The contrast, by Mary Beams.
Outdoor Marvels:
Probably the oldest olive tree in the world is in Crete and is estimated to be 3,000 years old. It still produces olives. The photographer is unknown.
California wildflower report, Jawbone Canyon, Mojave Desert by Nanette Banosan.
I almost brought it home, by Jamie Rabold.
The Ugly Stick by Bryan Hansel.
What does this look like? Photograph courtesy of a Facebook page entitled David Attenborough Fans.
Wildlife:
The bears have woken up by Bernal Benally.
Black-Crowned Night Heron by David Johnson.
A Woody found some open water in the woods this morning by Thomas Spence.
Black Jaguar by Cam Whitnall.
Northern Harrier, adult male by Michael Furtman.
Otter Hugs by Heidi Pinkerton.
Dancing in the snow by Heidi Pinkerton.
Northern Shoveler by David Johnson.
A Flicker at the window by Anne Hegg.
Woodcock by Thomas Spence.
Blizzard Friend by Joe Paulik.
Well, this is going to be interesting, by Ryan Tischer.
Waterfall Season Begins:
Spring at the High Falls by Travis Novitsky.
Root beer floats by Christian Dalbec.
Manitou Falls, Pattison State Park by Nancy J Lindberg.
The High Falls at Grand Portage by Chuck Olsen.
The spring roar by Adam Malmanger.
Landscapes, Skyscapes, Waterscapes, and NorthernLightscapes:
Night Light Bird by Maryl Skinner.
Northern Lights over mailbox with twiggy in the upper right corner by Bryan Hansel.
Northern Lights over Lake Superior by Bryan Hansel.
Northern Lights over Grand Marais by David R Johnson.
The St. Louis River at full flood by Charles Howard Smith.
Ice Leftovers by Thomas Spence.
Happy Sunday by Bryan Hansel.
Lake Michigan on a special day by Jeremy Church.
Gales of April by Bjornberg Photography.
April 21 by Kristofer Bowman.
International Dark Sky Week by Nathan Klok.
A Lake Superior sunset by Glenn Blaszkiewicz.
Even when it is cloudy and grey, Duluth is a cool city by Nolan Maurice.
April 21 by Jo Ann Krause.
Massive waves in Canal Park today by Steve Sola.
A stranger who didn’t know how epic they were posing by Mathias Mullin.
Park Point beach by Siffy Torkildson.
Sometimes the clouds begin to part and optimism sneaks through by Chuck Olsen.
Have a great weekend, everyone!
We’d also like to thank the volunteers who helped this week with captions, proofreading, technical issues, and videos. They include Jeremy Lopez, Yvonne Mills, Kari Carter. Thank you all!
The next issue will be out on May 4. See you then!
Did you enjoy reading NorthShore ArtScene this week? If so, please donate to keep this blog active and healthy. Just click on the icon below to donate, or you can mail a check to Joan Farnam, PO Box 1232, Grand Marais, MN 55604. Thank you!
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