The Grand Portage Celebration Pow Wow is this weekend. File photo by Stephan Hoglund.
Greetings from the North Shore, where eyes are on Grand Portage this weekend for Rendezvous Days and Celebration Pow Wow. The event is held at the Grand Portage National Monument and the Pow Wow grounds of the Grand Portage Band of Lake Superior Chippewa.
It’s a celebration of community, history, and cultural traditions, and all are invited. BTW: Did we mention there is food and dancing, too?
The Grand Entries during the Pow Wow are at 1 pm and 7 pm on Saturday and 1 pm on Sunday. For more information about the event, click here. Free.
For more information about all the events, demonstrations, and games at the Rendezvous, click here.
And art-making continues.
Joy and Company will hold Art Night from 3:30 – 5 pm on Thursday at the shop, featuring a special art project and some instruction.
Art Night is from 3:30-5 pm on Thursdays at Joy and Company.
Art Night is free, with a suggested $5 donation. The shop also holds kids’ art-making activities on Fridays and Saturdays from noon to 2 pm in the back lot behind the shop during the summer. It is open to the public with a suggested $5 donation.
Also on Thursday, the Grand Marais Farmer’s Market will be held in the parking lot of the Cook County Community Center from 4:30-6 pm.
Nick Wharton arranges his vegetables on his table at the Grand Marais Farmer’s Market. File photo.
The market features locally-grown produce, artisan breads, baked goods, fresh flowers, and more.
This is the last weekend to see the Summer Repertory Theater productions of the Grand Marais Playhouse. The plays include “Spitfire Grill,” a musical, and “The Foolish Fishgirls and the Pearl,” a comedy.
The Spitfire Grill, a musical, is one of the plays that will be performed at the Arrowhead Center for the Arts over the weekend.
Performances are at the Arrowhead Center for the Arts at 7 pm Thursday through Saturday and at 2 pm Sunday. Tickets can be purchased at the door or by clicking here.
For blues lovers, the Bayfront Blues Festival in Duluth is this weekend at Bayfront Park.
The Bayfront Blues Festival is Aug. 8-11 in Duluth. Photo by Jane Soukup.
Blues singer Ana Popovic is the opening act. To see the schedule and purchase tickets, click here.
On Saturday, the Cook County Market opens in the parking lot of The Hub at 10 am.
Pat Eliason played at the Cook County Market recently. Local musicians are featured every week. Zahir Orest will play this week.
The market, which is held from 10 am to 2 pm, features a great selection of work from local artists and artisans. Look for paintings and pottery, stone lamps, hand-dyed fabrics, jewelry, fused glass work, and more.
Also on Saturday morning, Makerspace, an art-making opportunity hosted by Great Expectations School, will be held from 10 am to noon.
Great Expectations School to host Makerspace this summer.
The event is free and open to the public. Supplies provided.
On Saturday night, there will be a Full Moon Poetry Reading at Drury Lane Books starting at 6 pm.
A Full Moon Poetry Reading will be held at Drury Lane Books on Saturday.
Everyone is invited to participate in this open mic-style reading. Free. It will be held indoors if it rains.
Wildlife biologist, Seth Moore, will present “Indigenous Co-Stewardship of Moose” at Chik-Wauk Museum and Nature Center at 2 pm on Sunday.
Seth Moore will give a presentation at Chik-Wauk on Sunday at 2.
Moore has been recognized as the 2018 Conservation Award winner by the North American Fur Association, the 2013 Tribal Biologist of the Year from the Native American Fish and Wildlife Society, and was co-recipient of Time magazine’s 2006 Person of the Year. He is appointed as a citizen member for a four-year term that ends Dec. 31, 2025.
The presentation is free and open to all.
Next week, the Dark Sky Caravan and Star Parties will host several events along the North Shore.
The Dark Sky Caravan will host Star Parties on the North Shore next week. Click here to learn more,
Minnesota is home to the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness, which is the second-largest International Dark Sky Sanctuary in the world. To celebrate our dark skies, the Marshall W. Alworth Planetarium staff will be traveling along the North Shore, stopping at different locations each night for a star party. Photographer John Gregor will give a presentation at Split Rock Lighthouse on Aug. 12, for example. Other locations include Tettegouche State Park, North House Folk School, the Schapp Community Center, and the Seagull Lake Community Center. For more info, click here.
And on Wednesday, Aug. 13, poet Amy Schmidt will facilitate a poetry workshop at the Grand Marais Public Library.
Poetry Workshop with Amy Woschek Schmidt is set for the Library on Wednesday.
Schmidt is a writer and an essayist who has been living in rural Panamá. Before moving with her family to Panamá, she homesteaded on a small acreage tucked among the tall pines and aspens of Lake Superior’s northern shore. Much of her work is informed by the years she spent working the land and walking the woods.
In the spring of 2024, Schmidt published a book of poetry entitled “Given Days,” the culmination of an ambitious, year-long project to write a poem every day.
The event is sponsored by the Cook County SCRAP Society. Its poetry workshops typically involve direct teaching, poetic exercises—including forced inspiration prompts—and time to share the poetry that participants have been working on, either at home or at the workshop.
The workshop will be held from 6-8 pm Aug. 13 and is free with no sign-up required. It’s geared to ages 14 and up.
Exhibits:
The North Shore Artists League’s exhibit, “Echoes of Wilderness, Water and Wonder,” continues at the Johnson Heritage Post through Aug. 10.
The North Shore Artists League Member Show continues at the Johnson Heritage Post through Sunday.
The exhibit features work by 33 member artists in every medium and is a fascinating testimony to the talent and dedication of North Shore artists.
The Heirtage Post is free and is open from 10 am to 4 pm Wednesday through Saturday and from 1-4 pm Sunday.
Work by Nancy Carlson, the Arrowhead Artist of the Month in Studio 21 at the Grand Marais Art Colony, continues.
Nancy Carlson is the Arrowhead Artist for August at Studio 21.
Carlson is an accomplished children’s book author and illustrator living in Hovland. She is 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.
Studio 21 is free and is open from 10 am to 4 pm Thursday through Saturday.
Eric Klepinger is exhibiting paintings in the gallery at Split Rock Lighthouse.
Eric Klepinger is exhibiting at Split Rock Lighthouse.
Now living along Lake Superior’s North Shore, Klepinger works in a range of media—pencil, pastel, scratchboard, pen and ink, and acrylic—to create expressive, detail-rich pieces that reflect the spirit of the landscape and wildlife he loves. His exhibit continues through Aug. 31.
Sam Zimmerman is exhibiting work in the Great Hall at Tettegouche State Park.
Sabe, Tettegouche sticker, acrylic, by Sam Zimmerman.
Zimmerman spent the past year as Artist-in-Residence at Tettegouche State Park, creating pieces inspired by the rugged and sacred landscape. The exhibit continues through the end of August, with a reception scheduled for Aug. 22. Stay tuned.
The exhibit, “No Place Like This,” at the Tweed Museum of Art, has been extended.
The exhibit, “No Place Like This,” is extended through Oct. 11 at the Tweed Museum of Art.
“No Place Like This” is an exhibition of works by Minnesota artist Chris Rackley. He is a multidisciplinary artist based in Prior Lake, who integrates analog and digital media to explore the convergence of collective memory and personal narrative. Rackley’s current work draws upon his boyhood experience and addresses themes of displacement, isolation, and surveillance in the context of crumbling suburban utopias embodied by the structures of shopping malls.
Sue Rauschenfels has opened a new exhibit at Northwoods Arts in Cook, Minn.
Sue Rauscehnfels’ exhibit is entitled “Sisterhood.”
The exhibit continues through the end of August.
Upcoming:
The 18th Annual Radio Waves Music Festival is Sept 5- 7 and features 19 acts, including six new to the Radio Waves stage, at Sweetheart’s Bluff in the Grand Marais Rec Park.
WTIP’s Radio Waves Music festival is Sept 5-7 at Sweetheart’s Bluff. Click here to find out more.
Weekend passes can be purchased online. Click here to find out more.
Opportunities:
Artists are invited to submit works for the 2025 Muse exhibit.
Grand Marais Art Colony members, students, and instructors are invited to submit two 12 x 12-inch pieces of 2D or 3D artwork to be exhibited this fall at Studio 21 in the “Muse” member show. Submission forms are now available.
This event runs concurrently with and is part of Art Along the Lake, a county-wide studio tour, Sept. 26 – Oct. 5. Click here for the submission form.
Artists at Work:
The Tombolo, plein air, oil on panel, by Tim Vahle.
Eric Klepinger is exhibiting paintings and photographs at Split Rock.
Contemporary Porcupine-Curl basket by Katie Sickles.
One of Karin Kraemer’s famous “friendly” fish, Majolica glazes.
‘The Wood Between’, 2008, mineral pigment on paper, by Hiramatsu Reiji.
Firey-billed Aracari, ink on watercolor paper by Ralph Keating.
Untitled as of now, oil, by Scott Murphy.
Yellow Bay, watercolor, by Laura Gilkey, is on view at the Washburn, Wis., Cultural Center.
Untitled, by digital painter, Juan Brufal.
Online Findings:
MPR’s Cathy Wurzer talks to Grand Marais Mayor Tracy Benson on WTIP Community Radio in a short but informative interview.
MPR News host Cathy Wurzer and Tracy Benson, mayor of Grand Marais, met at WTIP on Tuesday. Listen to the conversation here. Photo by Gracie Stockton.
The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) has confirmed that a 515-mile-long “megaflash” of lightning in 2017 is a new world record.
World’s longest lightning strike, courtesy of AccuWeather.
The flash, a term for lightning inside a cloud that does not hit the ground, moved from northern Texas into Missouri and was part of a Mesoscale Convective System, a large complex of thunderstorms, on Oct. 22, 2017. This new lightning flash beats the previous record of 477 miles set by a flash on April 29, 2020. In case you are skeptical, here’s the link.
Here is a link to a fantastic a cappella version of Beethoven’s 5th Concerto.
Sorry, I could only find it on Instagram, but I think you can still listen even if you don’t have an Instagram account. So great. Brilliant. Joyful. Click here to listen. And then click again on the link under the photo to bask again in this wonderfulness.
Beethoven’s 5th. Click here and enjoy! Click sound icon at bottom to hear.
Online Music:
Live Music:
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
Friday, August 8:
- 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
- Zulu Link with Steve Klick, 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
- Zulu Link with Steve Klick, 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
Monday, August 11:
- Pete Kavanaugh, Gunflint Tavern Rooftop, 7-10 pm
- Barbara Jean and Mike Lewis, Bluefin Grille, 8-10 pm
Tuesday, August 12:
- 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
- Anja & Robin, Bluefin Grille, 8-10 pm
Thursday, August 14:
- Bump Blomberg, Gunflint Tavern Rooftop, 3-5 pm
- Pure Honey, Gunflint Tavern Rooftop, 5-8 pm
- Al Oikari & Caitlin Nicol-Thomas, 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 15:
- Bump Blomberg, Birch Terrace Supper Club & Lounge, 5-8 pm
- Barbara Jean and Mike Lewis, North Shore Winery, 4:30-6:30 pm
- Pickup Truck Opera, Hovland Town Hall, 6:30 pm
- Timmy Haus, Moguls Grille and Tap Room, 7-9 pm
- Joe Paulik, Bluefin Grille, 8-10 pm
- The Thirsty River, Gunflint Tavern Rooftop, 8-11 pm
Saturday, August 16:
- Briand Morrison, Cook County Market at the Hub, 10-2 pm
- Pickup Truck Opera, Sweetheart’s Bluff – Grand Marais Recreation Area, 3 pm
- Bump Blomberg, Cascade Lodge Restaurant & Pub, 6-8 pm
- Adam Moe, Bluefin Grille overlooking Lake Superior, 6-9 pm
- The North Shore Swing Band, Arrowhead Center for the Arts, 7 pm
- Pat Eliasen, Moguls Grille and Tap Room, 7-9 pm
- Billy Johnson, Gunflint Tavern Rooftop, 7-10 pm
- The Thirsty River, Up Yonder, 9-11:59 pm
Sunday, August 17:
- Ethan Todd, Gunflint Tavern Rooftop, 2-5 pm
- Billy Johnson, North Shore Winery, 3:30-5:30 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’s a selection of photos we found this week:
Wildlife:
A Hummingbird lunch by David Johnson.
Pollinators are hard at work by David Johnson.
American Goldfinch by John Heino.
Yellow-bellied sapsucker brings breakfast by Paul Sundberg.
Cleaning the nest by Paul Sundberg.
Sapsucker fledgling taking a look at its new world by Paul Sundberg.
Eye on the prize by John Heino.
Seeing Monarch cats on our milkweed makes me very happy, by Gord Ellis.
Black fox kits by Chris Artist.
Loons hanging out by Michelle Lutke.
Tormented by mosquitoes, by Bill Marchel.
Native Plantscapes;
Chokecherries, a native, are abundant this year, by Michael Furtman.
Growing in our cabin by Michael Furtman.
Red Baneberry, native, poisonous by Michael Furtman.
Giant Sunflower, native, by Mivhael Furtman.
Daisy Fleabane, native, by Michael Furtman.
Hips of Prickly Rose, native, by Michael Furtman.
Ghost Plants, native, by Dennis Chick.
Vermillion waxcap, native mushroom, by Dennis Chick.
A lucky shot. Photo courtesy of Malikai Lucian Lothbrook.
Jumping through Hoops by Christian Dlbec.
Rising dough in the kitchen, Grand Portage National Monument, by Layne Kennedy.
Celebrating Split Rock’s 115th anniversary by Hayes Scriven.
A flower in Tokyo by Siffy Torkildson.
Get your morning milkweed by Holly Johnson.
Summer bee by Lori Sparkly Franklin.
Way too early, but so pretty by Holly Johnson.
The Pow Wow features dancers and drums from the US and Canada.
Re-enactors at their campsite at the Rendezvous. File photo.
Transition to daylight from the blue hour, by Ken Harmon.
Landscapes, Skyscapes & Waterscapes:
Fireweed season by Hayes Scriven.
Smoky sunrise by David Johnson.
Rock inspiration along the Canadian shore by Buck Benson.
A nice way to start the day by Jamie Rabold.
Thursday Sunrise Reflections by Roxxanne Distad.
Cascade River by Bryan Hansel.
Orange slice by Deb Mueller.
Above a sea cave, Lake Superior’s South Shore by Maxine Linehan. She is exhibiting it in the North Shore Artists’ League show at the Heritage Post.
Lake Superior sunrise by Ken Harmon.
Hidden falls along the North Shore by Nathan Klok.
Early morning light by Ken Harmon.
Cook County August 2025 by Michele Miller.
Two fires by Chris Artist.
Good morning, by Jamie Rabold.
Hjordis’ great-grandmother is visiting today, by Bill Hansen.
Have a great weekend, everyone!
P.S. You know, one of the hardest parts of putting NorthShore ArtScene together every week is writing the appeal to readers to make a contribution to keep it going. What do I say? It matters, for sure. There’s the electricity bill, computer repair, internet access fees, and, for sure, compensation for all the hours spent collecting info and photos for you.
Please support NorthShore ArtScene today by clicking on the link below. It really makes a difference. And, Thank You!
Also, a big Thank You to Jeremy Lopez (Live Music schedule, technical advice), Yvonne Mills (proofreading), and Kari Carter (caption corrections) for their support. And Thank You, Visit Cook County, for a great Events Calendar.
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