Fisherman’s Picnic, Art Exhibits & More

Greetings from the North Shore, where the 96th annual Fisherman’s Picnic will be held in Grand Marais over the weekend. The event has changed a lot over the years, but it continues to be an important marker for Cook County families, friends, and former high school buddies, as well as a weekend loaded with activities for everyone.

Here’s the Fisherman’s Picnic schedule of events:

As you can see, there is an almost overwhelming number of things to see and do over the weekend, including contests, exhibits, presentations, trail races, and games. Food trucks will line the street, and live music performances are scheduled throughout at Harbor Park. The Fisherman’s Picnic Parade, a final salute to the community and visitors, is set for 1 pm on Sunday in downtown Grand Marais.

Here are just a few highlights:

Art-makers will be welcomed at Joy and Company all weekend in the backyard, where tables will be set up for a variety of art activities.

Hours vary: Thursday, 11:30 am – 4:30 pm, and Friday through Sunday, 11:30 am -2 pm. Open to all. Free.

The Grand Marais Farmer’s Market will be held in the parking lot of the Cook County Community Center from 4:30-6 pm Thursday.

Look for locally grown produce, artisan breads, baked goods, fresh flowers and more. SNAP is accepted.

The Johnson Heritage Post will host the 3rd annual “Stories that Matter: Women of Cook County” starting at 5:30 pm on Thursday.

This year’s event will feature stories about three influential Cook County women — Eleanor Woods, Eleanor Waha, and Hazel Belvo.

Eleanor Woods lived in the lighthouse keeper’s house (now the current History Museum) along with her husband, John Wood (who was the Grand Marais lighthouse keeper between 1902 and 1921), and was active in the local community, specifically with the public library.

Eleanor Waha was born and raised in Cook County and was an incredibly instrumental and active volunteer for a variety of organizations, including the cancer screening clinic, the North Shore Nursing Home, the Maple Hill Fire Department, 4-H, the Cook County Historical Society, and more. She won Citizen of the Year in 1979 from the Grand Marais Lions Club. After graduating from high school in 1941, she attended weather bureau school and worked in places such as the US Weather Bureau in Alaska.

Hazel Belvo is a well-known artist and educator who has been influential in the feminist art movement, including as the co-founder of the Women’s Art Registry of Minnesota, which helped bring women artists to the forefront of the art community during the feminist movement in the 1970s. Hazel spent time in Grand Portage during her marriage to George Morrison, where she painted a stunning series of paintings of the Spirit Tree, for which she is well known. She became Chair of Fine Arts at the Minneapolis College of Art and Design in 1989. She retired as Professor Emeritus at Minneapolis College of Art and Design after teaching there for 34 years. She was also an artist in residence and eventually a mentor and teacher at the Grand Marais Art Colony for many years.

The presentations start at 5:30 pm and are free and open to all.

To see past “Women of Cook County” presentation recordings, click here.

The Grand Marais Playhouse Summer Repertory Theatre continues over the weekend with performances of the musical, The Spitfire Grill, and the comedy The Foolish Fishgirls and the Pearl.

To see the complete schedule of performances and purchase tickets, click here..

On Saturday, the Cook County Market will open at 10 am on Wisconsin Street across from the World’s Best Donuts, its regular location during Fisherman’s Picnic.

All work in this market is created by local artists. Look for paintings, pottery, glass, fiber art, and more. It will be open on Friday and Saturday from 10 am to 3 pm.

On Saturday, the Grand Marais Art Colony will hold a reception for its August Arrowhead Artist, Nancy Carlson, from 4-5 pm in Studio 21.

Carlson is an accomplished children’s book author and illustrator living in Hovland.  She will be exhibiting a series of artworks depicting women alone in nature and at home. This series began after experiencing loss, hardship, and loneliness, and continued forward as a way of processing and healing – mirroring a similar series that she created as a newly married wife and mother. With all of life’s changes, Carlson continues to create art. The public is invited to the reception and to see her work.

Also on Saturday, Drury Lane Books will hold an Author Talk at 6:30 pm with Benjamin Percy. He will talk about the first of his Comet Cycle Series, The Ninth Metal.

Percy will be reading segments and discussing the series for the main duration of the event and the last portion will be open for questions and comments, followed by a book signing. The public is invited.

On Sunday, a gathering to remember David Grinstead will be held.

Grinstead played for decades along the North Shore, from Finland to Grand Marais.   In his early years, he played with the Abandoned Neighbors country rock band in Finland and in Grand Marais, at the Community Music Circle and Drumming workshops.  He also played with GAMEPALAJ (Gospel And Mother Earth And Peace And Love AND Justice),  the Solstice puppet show band. David was endlessly fluid and creative with his music and his life. He was also a gifted photographer. To find out more about the gathering, email Betsy here..

Also on Sunday, Lauren Burton, who is the current artist-in-residence at the Chik-Wauk Museum and Nature Center, will give a presentation at the Seagull Lake Community Center at 2 pm.

Burton is a painter, special education teacher, and musician based in Knife River. Largely self-taught, she paints daily, working in acrylic and watercolor to capture the vibrant light, color, and dynamic forms of Lake Superior’s North Shore. Influenced by her background in music and education, Lauren’s alla prima realism blends expressive brushwork with rich, emotive color. Her subjects range from landscapes and architecture to pets and figures in motion, often painted en plein air or from her photographs.

She and her husband own Burton Forge and Gallery, where her artwork is featured alongside his handcrafted metalwork.

Attendance is free and open to all.

Ongoing

The Gunflint Trail’s Biggest Blueberry Contest continues through August. 10.

Click here to learn more.

Exhibits

The exhibit, “Echoes of Wilderness, Water and Wonder,” continues at the Johnson Heritage Post. Featuring works in every medium by 33 members of the North Shore Artists League, this stunning exhibit is worth a visit.

The Heritage Post is open from 10 am to 4 pm Thursday through Saturday and from 1-4 pm Sunday. Free and open to all.

An exhibit of paintings by Sam Zimmerman has opened in the Great Hall at Tettegouche State Park.

Zimmerman is an Ojibwe artist whose vibrant works reflect the natural beauty of Minnesota, Ojibwe culture, and the spirit of Gitchi Gami (Lake Superior).

Sam has spent the past year as Artist-in-Residence at Tettegouche State Park, creating pieces inspired by this rugged and sacred landscape.

Sam’s art will be on display throughout August.  Click here to learn more about Sam and his work.

An exhibit of multi-media work by Heidi Wanzek is currently on view at the Duluth Art Institute.

Minnesota-based artist Heidi Wanzek’s work begins not in the studio, but in the deliberate act of noticing, gathering, and waiting for each material — tree limbs, lake-worn debris, seed pods, and industrial remnants. She sits with these elements, allowing them to reveal their stories, and then intentionally transforms them. The resulting sculptural works explore the fragile and powerful connections between life and death.

At some point, the assembly of fragments becomes a whole—as Wanzek describes it, passing “the threshold into existence and vitality.” The work becomes an entity capable of inspiring empathy through the physical evidence of its history. “They take on a presence of emotional vitality, seeing a reflection of our human experience in their state of being,” Wanzek explains.

Each material is unique—like the human body—and parallels our own life and death cycle. Whether giving them a second chance at life or anointing them for death, Wanzek is intentional with where the objects are found, what state of life they are in, and how they interact in the world.

Within the Threshold highlights the cyclical nature of materials and their journey through the life/death/life cycle. Rather than turning away from decay or loss, Wanzek invites us to hold these transitional states with reverence, holding space for grief, memory, and transformation. Her sculptures examine what might emerge when we choose to look closer—to sit with discomfort, to observe, and to listen. In doing so, we may come to understand more about ourselves in these repeating patterns.

Learn more about the artist at heidiwanzek.com

The exhibit, Big Back Yard (at Night), at the Thunder Bay Art Gallery, is a selection of works from the gallery’s collection that recalls the stirring of nature as night falls in Northern Ontario.

Borrowing its title from a sculpture of a deer standing on the roof of a small wooden house by Thunder Bay artist Roly Martin, this exhibition presents a wide range of artists who depict crepuscular (active at dawn and dusk) and nocturnal beings commonly found in our own backyard. From the shadowy landscape of People of the Forest (1981) by Daphne Odjig (b. 1919 – d. 2016) to the watchful eye of a bird or owl in Missay-Oog (circa 1983) by Ronald Peters, these works remind us that we are part of hidden ecosystems. The exhibit continues through Sept. 24.

“The Weirdening of the Renaissance” is currently on view at the Minneapolis Institute of Art.

In the early days of the Renaissance, artists emphasized order. Inspired by ancient Roman architecture and sculpture, they created structured compositions and statuesque figures that evoked lofty, rational thought.

However, new ideas began to emerge. In 1506, the excavation of the ancient Laocoön sculpture, depicting the Trojan priest and his sons writhing as they’re attacked by sea serpents, released Renaissance figures from static poses. Artists began to manipulate the science of perspective and often dropped the idea of images representing the world as seen through a window. Earthy and outlandish thought flourished. Many images became just plain weird. With their creativity unleashed, artists left to us the joy of strangeness. To learn more, click here.

Upcoming:

The Grand Portage Rendezvous Days and Celebration Pow-Wow is next weekend.

Artists At Work:

Online Findings;

 

Online Music:

Live Music:

Thursday, July 31:

• Fisherman’s Picnic
  • Briand Morrison and Rox Berglund, Harbor Park Stage, 11-12:30 pm
  • Bug Dope, Harbor Park Stage, 1 – 2:30 pm
  • Moonshot, Harbor Park Stage, 3-5 pm
  • Open Stage hosted by Pete K and Friends, Harbor Park Stage, 7-9 pm
• Bump Blomberg, Gunflint Tavern Rooftop, 5-8 pm
• Briand Morrison and Roxann Berglund, Cascade Lodge Restaurant & Pub, 6-8 pm
• Gordon Thorne, North Shore Winery, 6:30-8:30 pm
• Silent Disco Dance Party!, Caribou Highlands Courtyard, 7-10 pm

Friday, August 1:

• Fisherman’s Picnic
  • The Portage Band, Harbor Park Stage, 11-12:30 pm
  • Drew Heinonen and Tina Hegg-Raway, Harbor Park Stage, 1 – 2:30 pm
  • Brothers In Arms, Harbor Park Stage, 3-5 pm
  • Dance Party – DJ Mouwthe, Harbor Park Stage, 7-9:30 pm
• Frequency Rising, Gunflint Tavern Rooftop, 3-6 pm
• Medicine River, Birch Terrace Supper Club & Lounge, 4-8 pm
• Barbara Jean and Mike Lewis, North Shore Winery, 4:30-6:30 pm
• Pat Eliasen, Moguls Grille and Tap Room, 7-9 pm
• Slow Gin, Gunflint Tavern Rooftop, 9-11:55 pm
• Barefoot Bluegrass, Up Yonder, 8-11 pm

Saturday, August 2:

• Frozen Britches (Tom VanCleve & Erik Hahn), Cook County Market at the Hub, 10-2 pm
• Fisherman’s Picnic
  • Billy Manzik, Harbor Park Stage, 11-12:30 pm
  • Michael Monroe, Harbor Park Stage, 1 – 2:30 pm
  • The Splints, Harbor Park Stage, 3-5 pm
  • The Evening Stars, Harbor Park Stage, 7-9:30 pm
• Pat Eliasen, Gunflint Tavern Rooftop, 2-5 pm
• Southpaws, Birch Terrace Supper Club & Lounge, 4-8 pm
• Yard Party, DJ UNITY, Up Yonder, 5-9 pm
• Adam Moe, Bluefin Grille overlooking Lake Superior, 6-9 pm
• Bump Blomberg, Moguls Grille and Tap Room, 7-9 pm
• Slow Gin, Gunflint Tavern Rooftop, 9-11:55 pm
• Barefoot Bluegrass, Up Yonder, 9-11:59 pm

Sunday, August 3:

• Fisherman’s Picnic
  • Watershed Group with opening set by Adam Kirsch, Harbor Park Stage, 11-1 pm
  • Kari Golden and Pure Honey, Harbor Park Stage, 3-5 pm
• The Brothers Burn Mountain, North Shore Winery, 3:30-5:30 pm
• John Gruber, Moguls Grille and Tap Room, 5-7 pm
• Scott Schuler (Campfire Guitar Pull), Caribou Highlands Lodge Courtyard, 7:30 pm

Monday, August 4:

• Pete Kavanaugh, Gunflint Tavern Rooftop, 7-10 pm

Tuesday, August 5:

• Eric Frost, North Shore Winery, 5-7 pm
• Briand Morrison, Gunflint Tavern Rooftop, 5-8 pm
• Open Stage hosted by Pete K, Up Yonder, 6-8 pm
• Joe Paulik, Bluefin Grille overlooking Lake Superior, 6-9 pm
• Community Singing, Lighthouse on the Harbor, 7-8:30 pm

• Emma Tweten, Gunflint Tavern Rooftop, 5-8 pm

Thursday, August 7:

• Bump Blomberg, Gunflint Tavern Rooftop, 5-8 pm
• Cherry Dirt, Cascade Lodge Restaurant & Pub, 6-8 pm
• Gordon Thorne, North Shore Winery, 6:30-8:30 pm
• The Brothers Burn Mountain, Gunflint Tavern Rooftop, 7-9 pm
• Silent Disco Dance Party, Caribou Highlands Courtyard, 7-10 pm

• Barbara Jean and Mike Lewis, North Shore Winery, 4:30-6:30 pm
• Pete Kavanaugh, Moguls Grille and Tap Room, 7-9 pm
• Shotgun Ragtime Band, Gunflint Tavern Rooftop, 8-11 pm
• JoJo Green, Up Yonder, 9-11:59 pm

Saturday, August 9:

• Zahir Orest, Cook County Market at the Hub, 10-2 pm
• Mike & Babs, Cascade Lodge Restaurant & Pub, 6-8 pm
• Adam Moe, Bluefin Grille overlooking Lake Superior, 6-9 pm
• Jim Miller, Moguls Grille and Tap Room, 7-9 pm
• Shotgun Ragtime Band, Gunflint Tavern Rooftop, 8-11 pm
• JoJo Green, Up Yonder, 9-11:59 pm

Sunday, August 10:

• Mary Bue, North Shore Winery, 3:30-6 pm
• Timmy Haus, Moguls Grille and Tap Room, 5-7 pm
• Scott Schuler (Campfire Guitar Pull), Caribou Highlands Lodge Courtyard, 7:30 pm

Photographs:

Here is a selection of photographs we found this week:

Wildlife:

Potpourri:

Peoplescapes:

Landscapes, Skyscapes & Waterscapes:

Have a great weekend, everyone!

We hope you enjoyed NorthShore ArtScene this week!

Please donate to ArtScene to keep it coming. Thank you!

 

 

Thank you, Jeremy Lopez (Live Music schedule, technical advice), Yvonne Mills (proofreading), and Kari Carter (caption corrections). Thank you, Visit Cook County, for a great Events Calendar.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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