Every morning is a call to simplicity. Photo by Tanner Hermes.
Greetings from the North Shore, where robins are calling from backyards and crusty snow melts and becomes squishy by mid-afternoon. There’s a quickening in our world, no doubt about it.
Here are some harbingers:
A Spring Beauty along the Mississippi by Beth McClain.
Grass Wren in flight with nesting material by John Gregor.
Patiently waiting for new life to happen, North Shore, by Christian Dalbec.
Getting your butt almost chewed by David Johnson.
The Pelicans return by Beth McClain.
Art-making has a new focus now, too. Many of us are looking at our calendars and asking, how did winter go by so fast? Oops.
Others are looking at what’s in their studio with quiet smiles and expectations for the summer. Either way, this changing season feels pretty good. Onward!
This Thursday is “Free Paint” Night at Joy and Company.
It’s Free Paint Night at Joy and Company on Thursday.
Participants are invited to bring their ideas, grab a canvas, and let their imaginations run wild. Thursday activities and art demonstrations are at the shop from 3:30-5 pm. Free, with a suggested $5 donation. Open to all.
Thursday is also Hygge Party Night at Dappled Fern Fibers.
Dappled Fern Fibers will hold two “make’ events this week — the Hygge Party from 6-7 pm Thursday and the Fiber Circle from 10 am to noon on Saturday. Open to all fiber crafters.
The Hygge Party is open to crafters from 6-7 pm Thursday. The Fiber Circle, which is also open to fiber crafters, is open from 10 am to noon on Saturday. Free. Refreshments will be available.
Thursday is also Trivia Night at Up Yonder.
Trivia Night is at Up Yonder from 6-8 pm.
The event is sponsored by the Cook County Historical Society and is free and open to all. Food and refreshments are available as well.
The April Winter Market will be held at The Hub from 10 am to 4 pm on Saturday.
The April Winter Market will be held at the Hub on April 6 from 10 am to 4 pm.
The market features local vendors offering a wide variety of arts and crafts. Look for paintings, pottery, weaving, jewelry and more.
Beaded and buttoned bandanas and wrist cuffs by Vicki Biggs-Anderson, are a few of her works in the show.
Small ceramic plate by Terry Lord-Lewis. She will have ceramic and glass work at the Winter Market.
Photograph by Meadow Adams. She will be at the Winter Market.
The public is invited.
This is the last weekend that Lutsen Mountains will be open for downhill skiing. The Mountain Meltdown weekend features live music at the Summit Chalet and Caribou Highlands, we well as other activities and food.
End of the ski season activities will be held at Lutsen Mountains next weekend at the Summit Chalet and Caribou Highlands.
Check out the events here: Summit Chalet, Caribou Highlands.
In Duluth, the Lake Superior Railroad Museum in the Depot has organized a series of jazz sessions on Saturdays in April from 3-6 pm.
Listen to jazz at the Lake Superior Railroad Museum every Saturday through April from 3-6 pm. A full bar is also featured as well as food.
Special admission pricing starts at 2:30 pm, and it’s just $6 to come in and enjoy a great jazz show. The event also features a full bar and concessions.
Exhibits:
The Johnson Heritage Post has opened a new exhibit entitled The Birney Quick Legacy Exhibit.
Aliya Marxen, director of the Johnson Heritage Post Gallery, stands in front of the center portion of a triptych by Birney Quick entitled “The Allegory of the Judgement of Time.” The current exhibit at the gallery features a great collection of his work.
Quick was the co-founder of the Grand Marais Art Colony who loved painting the North Shore. He was a teacher and expert fisherman and brought his students to Cook County for many years to paint the beauty here. This exhibit will highlight the many techniques and mediums Quick mastered, from watercolors to charcoals to wood carving. The exhibit continues through April 21.
The Heritage Post is open from 10 am to 4 pm Wednesday through Saturday and from 1-4 pm Sunday. It is closed on Mondays and Tuesdays. Free.
The Duluth Art Institute will be moving from the Depot to a new gallery/office space in the US Bank Building in downtown Duluth on April 30.
Two exhibits are currently on view in the Depot space; Annelisa Roseen|Today I Am, a series of self-portraits, and Ta-coumba T. Aiken|The Way I See, a painting exhibition.
Annelisa Roseen’s exhibit contiues at the Art Institute through April 15.
Ta-Coumba Aiken’s exhibit at the Art Institute continues through April 23.
The Depot plans to open in its new space in June. For more information, click here.
John Hitchcock’s installation, Blanket Song, continues at the Tweed Museum of Art.
John Hitchcock, Shields, Two-sided, suspended from ceiling. Ribbons flow to the ground.
The exhibit continues through Aug. 10. To read about it and the artist, click here.
In Thunder Bay, the Thunder Bay Art Gallery is exhibiting new works in its Permanent Collection.
The Thunder Bay Art Gallery is exhibiting new acuisitions to its permanent collection.
Ziigwan means “spring” or “early spring” in Anishinaabemowin. In the north, the first signs of spring include ice breaking, snow melting, birdsong, and a lingering chill in the air. In this selection of works, currents of ice blue, wane yellow, and mud-puddle brown flow through images of animals, birds, landscapes, human figures, beings, and stories, and teachings. What can these works reveal about change as a state of vulnerability, uncertainty, and raw survival?
This salon-style exhibition presents a chorus of voices, some new to our Permanent Collection, of second and third generation of Woodland Style artists including Oliver Davey, Roy Kakegamic, Roger Kakepetum, Carl Ray, Russell Noganosh, Isadore Wadow, and Goyce Kakegamic.
In Minneapolis, time is running out to visit “Chaos: Ken Matsubara’s Buddhist Masterwork” at the Minneapolis Institute of Art. The exhibit features two paintings, 600 years apart: the 14th-century Taima Mandala and the 20th-century Chaos by Ken Matsubara.
Taima Mandala, immaculate Pure Land.
Chaos, installation, ink and colors on paper, by Ken Matsubara is on view at the Minneapolis Institute of Art.
Despite the chronological distance between them, these two pieces are connected by Buddhist Threads. In this installation, accompanied by the echoes of singing bowls, the visitor acts as the bridge between Matsubara’s depiction of human struggle and the Taima Mandala’s immaculate Pure Land. Take a moment to sit, be still, and focus on being with art. The exhibit is on view through April 14. Free.
Upcoming:
The Grand Marais Public Library will be screening the film, Mayor Humphrey of Minneapolis at 6 pm on Wednesday, April 17, with a discussion led by producer Mick Caouette.
Then, on April 19, the library is partnering with the Violence Prevention Center to screen the film Women Talking from 6-8:30 pm.
In observance of Sexual Assault Awareness Month, the Violence Prevention Center and the Library are resolved to raise awareness for victims and survivors of sexual assault. Based on a true story, Women Talking (2022: PG-13) is about a group of Mennonite women who have endured repeated sexual assault and must decide how to respond: do nothing, stay and fight, or flee. It tells a timeless tale of courage, hope, and healing that will leave you speechless and make you think long after the end credits.
Violence Prevention Center staff advocates Lindsey and Jessica will be on hand to lead a discussion after the film. This movie is free and open to the public. Doors will open at 5:30. Non-alcoholic drinks with lids are welcome. Light snacks will be provided.
The 3rd Annual Cook County Earth Day Fair will held on Saturday, April 20, from 11 am – 3:30 p.m. at ISD 166.
The 3rd annual Earth Day Fair will be held in the gym at ISD 166 April 20.
This Earth Day Fair will facilitate an inclusive environment for the community to learn, collaborate, and grow together. The focus is to nurture individual and community action toward sustainable solutions in a supportive atmosphere to cultivate change, equity, and resilient living for Cook County. This is an excellent opportunity to unify and develop community action toward climate justice as stewards of our Earth together. The public is invited.
Opportunities:
The Arrowhead Regional Arts Council has opened a number of grants for individual artists and arts organizations.
The Arrowhead Regional Arts Council has opened a new series of grants.
The grants include:
- Individual Artist Equity Grant
- Arts Learning Grant
- Art Project Grant (Organizations)
For more information, click on the links above or visit ARAC here.
The McKnight Distinguished Artist Award is now accepting nominations.
Nominations are now accepted for the McKnight Distinguished Artist Award.
The annual $100,000 McKnight Distinguished Artist Award recognizes artists and culture bearers who have made a lifelong commitment to creating art that is locally, regionally, and/or nationally significant.
These artists and culture bearers have chosen to make their lives and careers in Minnesota, thereby making our state a more culturally rich place. First and foremost, they have produced creatively incisive art reflecting their particular and extraordinary point of view. McKnight Distinguished Artists have also inspired other artists, earned acclaim from audiences, patrons, critics, and other arts professionals, and some have founded and strengthened arts organizations.
Nominations are accepted through April 16. For more information, click here.
Registration is now open for Plein Air Grand Marais 2024.
Grand Marais Plein Air applications are now open. Click here for more info. Photo courtesy of the Outdoor Painters of Minnesota.
Plein Air Grand Marais has been an annual tradition since 2008, bringing outdoor painters to the North Shore of Lake Superior for a week of painting, learning, competition, and camaraderie. The event this year is Sept. 6-14. The deadline to apply is May 1. Click here to apply.
Artists at Work:
A favorite. “Penelope’s Ride,” oil, 2015, by Neil Sherman.
Longing, Hoping, oil pastel by Marti Mullen.
Owl, acrylic, by Adam Swanson. He will be teaching a painting class at the Art Colony this summer.
Dunes, watercolor by Kim Dayton.
Olympic National Park, WA, ink, by Marty Harris.
Fudgehenge, or how much longer can I procrastinate doing my taxes? by Mary Beams.
Online Findings:
A digital library in the Moscow metro? Click here to learn more.
Downtown Grand Marais has had many changes through the decades. WTIP producer Martha Marnocha explores a bit of downtown history with help from two long-time residents: Butch Schulte and Sherrie Lindskog. They share memories of when Santa visited the Shore Theater, North Shore Fish and Freight, Cherry’s Bakery, Jackson’s Cafe’ and other downtown businesses. Additional credit to Eugene Glader’s Downtown Grand Marais, Volumes 1 and 2, and the Cook County Historical Society archives.
Inside Jackson’s Cafe’ in old-time Grand Marais.
When Santa flew an airplane into the Shore Theater in downtown Grand Marais.
Listen to the stories about Grand Marais here:
Online Music:
Reina Del Cid. Listen to her song here.
Live Music:
Thursday, Apr 4:
- Billy Johnson, Moguls Grille & Taproom, 4-6 pm
- Gordon Thorne, North Shore Winery, 6-8 pm
- Open Old Time Appalachian Music Jam, Community Center, 7-9:30 pm
Friday, Apr 5:
- Billy Johnson, Moguls Grille & Taproom, 4-6 pm
- Rhoda Anderson-Habedank, Cascade Lodge Restaurant & Pub, 6-8 pm
Saturday, Apr 6:
- Black River Revue, Lutsen Mountain’s Summit Chalet Stage, 1:30 pm
- Zuzu Link, Lutsen Mountain’s Summit Chalet Stage, 3:00 pm
- Boyd Blomberg, Lutsen Mountain’s 10th Mountain Bar, 4:30 pm
- Sky Blue Jazz, Cascade Lodge Restaurant & Pub, 6-8 pm
- “Katieoke” AKA Karaoke hosted by Katie Slanga, Up Yonder, 8-11:59 pm
Sunday, Apr 7:
- Briand Morrison, Moguls Grille & Taproom, 10 – noon
- Gordon Thorne, Lutsen Mountain’s Summit Chalet Stage, 1:30 pm
- Floydian Slip, Lutsen Mountain’s Summit Chalet Stage, 3 pm
- Spruce Buds, Lutsen Mountain’s 10th Mountain Bar, 4:30 pm
Tuesday, Apr 9:
- Eric Frost, North Shore Winery, 4:30-6:30 pm
- Open Stage, Up Yonder, 6-9 pm
Thursday, Apr 11:
- Pat Eliasen, Moguls Grille & Taproom, 4-6 pm
- Gordon Thorne, North Shore Winery, 6-8 pm
Friday, Apr 12:
- Bump Blomberg, Moguls Grille & Taproom, 4-6 pm
Saturday, Apr 13:
- Shemekia Copeland, Arrowhead Center for the Arts, 7 pm
- Medicine River, Up Yonder, 7-11 pm
Photographs:
Here’s a selection of photographs we found this week:
Wildlife:
Had a talk with the locals yesterday by Chris Artist.
Too much to bear by Debbie Benedict.
Happy Easter by David Johnson.
Tawny Eagle, Kenya, by Layne Kennedy.
Redpoll by Sierra Parsons.
Blue-spotted Ribbon Tail Manta Ray courtesy of Macrodiving.
Pileated Woodpecker by Christian Dalbec.
Potpourri:
Just off the boat. Lake Superior Menominee. photo courtesy of Fisherman’s Daughter.
There’s something about this scene in Duluth that always draws me in by Bryan Hansel.
Urban Landscapes– Parking Garage, St Paul, by Layne Kennedy.
The Great Lakes Whale, posted April 1 by Nathan Klok.
A healthy 16 inches of ice on Hungry Jack Lake this week. Photo courtesy of Hungry Jack Outfitters.
Treescapes, Waterscapes, Skyscapes & Landscapes:
The Silent Sentinel by Travis Novitsky.
Grand Marais Lighthouse and Coast Guard Station. Photo courtesy of the Lake Superior Trading Post.
Lake Superior sunset Photo by Kathleen Kimball-Baker.
Belt of Venus at the mouth of the Temperance by Chuck Olsen.
Good Morning from Duluth by Jamie Rabold.
Climbing to new heights by Christian Dalbec.
A snowy Temperance River by Chuck Olsen.
Tamarack Lake ice by Sandra Updyke.
Sunrise at surface level by Christian Dalbec.
Icy Sunrise by Ken Harmon.
Morning sun pillar and a rainbow by Siffy Torkildson.
Wiigwaasi-mitig by Staci Lola Drouillard.
Sideways by Bryan Hansel.
April is on fire by Hayes Scriven.
The flow over the High Falls is low this year by Joan Farnam.
Swim Day in Lake Superior by Alisa Bernes.
Collision at Stony Point by Christian Dalbec.
Grand Marais Sunrise courtesy of the Lake Superior Trading Post.
Split Rock Splash by Roxanne Distad.
Have a great weekend, everyone!
This week, I sort of went crazy with music videos. That might happen again next week since April is a pretty quiet month in Cook County, but then again, you never know. That’s the fun part of collecting for ArtScene every week–I never know what I will find. If you enjoy ArtScene in general and/or had fun looking at this week’s issue, please consider donating to help support this effort. Thank You!
And not to forget: Jeremy Lopez, Yvonne Mills, and Kari Carter are the three people who help make this all possible every week. A donation is a Thank You to them, too.
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