North Shore Arts Scene

Greetings from the North Shore, where we celebrate the end of the summer season with Moose Madness, a family-friendly festival featuring all things moose. Enjoy games, contests, special sales, events, live music and art opportunities. And, of course, a chance to be photographed with Murray the Moose.

The Art-making kicks off on Thursday with David Hahn Art Days at Studio 21.

David Hahn was a beloved community member and artist who passed away in 2022.

He attended Washington University School of Fine Arts and the University of Minnesota. David was Art Director for Miller Publishing. After retiring to Hovland, David focused on watercolor and enjoyed teaching youth classes at the Art Colony as well as working within the public school system, creating portrait cards for the Viking athletic teams. His generous memorial gifts support the funding for this event.

David Hahn Art Days, a free event for youth 8 and up, will be held at Studio 21 Oct. 15-16 from 10 am to 2 pm. Free.

The students will make all kinds of cool things, and all are invited.

Then, at 3 pm, the public is invited to stop by Joy and Company for the Art Project Counter, a chance to make art with supplies from the store.

There’s no guarantee that participants will make moose, but they might. The event is held from 3-4:30 pm and is free, with a suggested $5 donation.

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

Look for squash and pumpkins, tomatoes and greens, as well as apples and more. The market also features artisan breads, baked goods, maple syrup, and fresh-cut flowers. Open to all.

Moose Madness kicks off on Friday with the start of the hunt for the Moose Madness Medallion, a scavenger hunt that is pretty competitive. Look for special moose books and activities at the Library and Drury Lane Books, as well as many of the local shops. There will be live music, too. For the complete schedule, click here.

Drury Lane Books will hold a Meet and Greet with author Alex Messenger from 11-1 pm on Friday.

Messenger’s latest book, the novel The Ice on the Lake, is a novel of resilience and determination-both to survive the fury of nature and to reconcile with the ghosts of the past.

Messenger is an author, photographer, and communication professional based in Duluth.  At 17, he was mauled by a grizzly bear while on a canoe trip in the Canadian tundra—an experience that became the foundation of his bestselling memoir, The Twenty-Ninth Day (Blackstone, 2019). His second book and debut novel, The Ice on the Lake, was released in March.

The public is invited. Free.

North House Folk School will host a Family Weekend on Friday and Saturday with lots of activities, games, craft demonstrations, and more.

There is a contra dance on Saturday at 6 pm.

Click here to learn more.

Jill Terrill will teach a workshop on rock wrapping from 1- 3 p.m. on Friday at Joy and Company.

Learn the art of turning ordinary stones into beautiful, wearable, or display-ready pieces using leather‑wrapping techniques in this workshop.

This class covers:

• Material basics — choosing the right rocks, wrap , and tools ( please bring a rock if you have one you especially love, otherwise rocks will be provided)
• Core wrapping techniques
• Design planning — how to choose a wrap style that fits each stone
• Finishing methods — polishing, securing ends, or display stands

Students leave with one or 2 finished wrapped rocks and the skills to continue at home. All materials included. $20.

Limited seating. Reservations will be taken; please call the store at 218-387-1004. The cost is $20.

John Hitchcock will give an Artist Talk at Studio 21 at 4:30 pm on Friday. He will share about his exhibition currently on view at Studio 21: What is America? Land Fragments.

Hitchcock is a contemporary artist and musician. Hitchcock is an enrolled member of the Kiowa Tribe of Oklahoma, with Comanche and Northern European ancestry, based in Madison, Wisconsin. He is originally from Medicine Park, Oklahoma. He earned his MFA in printmaking and photography at Texas Tech University, Lubbock, Texas, and received his BFA from Cameron University, Lawton, Oklahoma. He has been the recipient of the Robert Rauschenberg Foundation Artistic Innovation and Collaboration grant, New York; the Jerome Foundation Grant, Minnesota; the Creative Arts Award and Emily Mead Baldwin Award in the Creative Arts at the University of Wisconsin. He is currently an Artist and the Vilas Distinguished Achievement Professor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, where he teaches screenprinting, relief cut, and installation art.

The exhibit closes on Saturday. Free. Studio 21 also closes for the season Saturday.

The Possibilities Quartet will perform at the Grand Marais Public Library on Friday at 6 pm.

This 90-minute performance includes pieces composed and arranged by local jazz musician Greg Moore, as well as operatic and Latin pieces. The program is designed to be engaging and welcoming to the general public, with an emphasis on performance rather than formal instruction. Audience questions will be welcomed throughout the evening. Appropriate for all ages, community members are invited to arrive at 5:30 PM for access to the best seats.  

Formed in early 2024, the Possibilities Quartet is a regional chamber ensemble committed to bringing high-quality live music to both public audiences and schools across northern Minnesota and northwestern Wisconsin.

 The Cook County Market opens the day on Saturday in the parking lot of The Hub at 10 am. This is the last weekend of the market for the season, so be sure to stop by.

The market features arts and crafts by local artists, including paintings, pottery, fused glass, rock lamps, jewelry, and more. Lynden Blomberg will play. Open to all.

Drury Lane Books will host author and illustrator Nancy Carlson for a Meet and Greet from 11 am.- 1 pm on Saturday.

Nancy will be kicking off our special MEA weekend Story Hour at 11:00 sharp! Afterwards, there will be a short art demo, and then she will move indoors for the remaining time to chat and sign books.

She is an author and illustrator of 60-plus picture books, including bestsellers I Like Me and Look Out Kindergarten, Here I Come. Nancy graduated from the Minneapolis College of Art and Design with a degree in printmaking. When she is not drawing or writing, you can find her in northern Minnesota hiking or hanging out with her four grandchildren.

The event is free and open to all.

Chik-Wauk Museum and Nature Center closes for the season on Sunday.

It’s been a busy year.

The highlight of the 2026 season was the opening of the new permanent exhibit, Zagaandagaa-Anishinaabeg, People of the Thick Coniferous Forest. Years of planning, research, conversations, and countless hours of work came together to create an exhibit that shares the history, culture and stories of the Anishinaabe people of the Border Lakes region. Thank you to all those who contributed their knowledge, artwork, stories, time, and expertise to make this exhibit possible.

The Arts-in-Residence Program continued to bring artists and their creative work to Chik-Wauk. The artists who shared their talents, stories, and creative processes with visitors added another dimension to the Chik-Wauk experience.

It will reopen May 29.

Exhibits: 

The Grand Marais Plein Air Competition exhibit continues at the Johnson Heritage Post through Nov. 1.

This is an extraordinary show, featuring 250 paintings created during one week in Grand Marais. The exhibit continues through Nov. 1. Free.

The Heritage Post winter hours start next week: 10 am to 4 pm Thursday through Saturday and 1- 4 pm. Sundays.

Free and open to all.

Studio 21 closes on Saturday for the season, but there is still time to see works on exhibit, including John Hitchcock’s “What is America? Land Fragments.” (See above.)

Also on view are works by painter Sue Rauschenfels and tapestry weaver Emily Wick, exhibiting in the Rising Arrowhead Artists series.

 

Also on view is the exhibit, Muse, featuring 12 inch by 12 inch pieces by Art Colony members.

Betsy Bowen’s Studio Gallery is now open 11 am to 4 pm Thursday through Saturday.

In Duluth, the Duluth Art Institute will open the fall exhibits on Oct. 19, including Robb Quisling’s Applied Pressure.

The Art Institute commented:

“Quisling turns inward, investigating ways objects become conduits for interpersonal connection—vessels that carry the weight of memory, at times offering release or further desire. Applied Pressure presents paintings, prints, and sculptural work, each offering a moment in time that reveals a story. As you move through the exhibition, each stop will invite you to consider and respond to a question. Quisling asks us to consider the pressures we place on ourselves and the ways we are shaped by the expectations and influences that surround us. Who really holds control… yourself, or another?”

The Tweed Museum of Art has several exhibits on view, including one by printmaker Julie Buffalohead.

Julie Buffalohead is a visual artist living and working in St. Paul, Minnesota. Buffalohead creates visual narratives told by animal characters that have personhood, agency, and individuality. She connects the mythical with the ordinary and the imaginary with the real, offering a space to which viewers can bring their own experiences. On view are seven prints by Buffalohead made in Minneapolis, MN. Four were created in 2025 and 2026 at C&C Editions and are new to the Tweed’s collection.

Opportunities:

The Ceramics Studio at the Grand Marais Art Colony will hold a wood-kiln firing on Nov. 20.

Community members are invited to participate. Pots can be fired, and helping to fire the kiln is also an option. To find out more, contact Brett Manahan, studio manager, at ceramics@grandmaraisartcolony.org

Artists at Work:

Online Music:

Suggestions from Annie Possis:

A few things we found:

  Live Music:

Photographs:

Here is a selection of what we found this week:

Wildlife:

Potpourri:

Landscapes, Skyscapes and Cloudscapes:

Have a great weekend, everyone.

Note: Short and sweet this week. Sorry. Got a flu bug. See you next week, healthy and happy.

 Here’s a big thank you to Jeremy Lopez for the Live Music Schedule and tech support, and to Yvonne Mills for proofreading this week. And a special thank you to Visit Cook County for its great Events Calendar.