On the Croftville beach, Monday by Barb LaVigne.
Greetings from the North Shore, where a recent winter storm dumped lots of snow on us, making snow lovers very happy. It’s been cold, too, so ice formation is inspiring photographers up and down the shore. Beauty all around.
A perfect Lake Superior ice crystal by Joe Friedrichs.
Hollow Rock by Paul Sundberg.
Great Expectations School will hold a Chili Cook-Off on Thursday from 6-8 pm as a fundraiser for a service learning trip to Panama in 2027.
A Chili Cook-Off will be held at Great Expectations School on Thursday from 6-8 pm.
The public is invited to sample chili, vote for their top choice, enjoy activities, and support students at the same time.
There will also be a cake/bake walk and a 50/50 raffle, too. Tickets are $10 for individuals and $30 for families. Open to all.
On Friday, the Johnson Heritage Post will hold an opening reception for the exhibit Winter Plein Air, an annual show featuring newly created winter landscape paintings.
Winter Plein Air exhibition opens at the Heritage Post on Friday.
The collection includes works produced by artists participating in the 2026 Winter Plein Air Retreat, a five-day outdoor painting expedition at YMCA Camp Menogyn, hosted by the Outdoor Painters of Minnesota.
During the week leading up to the JHP exhibit, participating artists reside at a wilderness lodge and travel by ski or snowshoe to document the winter environment of the Gunflint Trail and the BWCA. The resulting artwork is brought directly from the field to the gallery for this exhibit.
The opening reception is from 5-7 pm. Refreshments will be served.
Also on Friday, a night of Bingo will be featured at Up Yonder from 6-8 pm.
It’s Bingo Night at Up Yonder on Friday.
The monthly event is hosted by American Legion Auxiliary Unit 413. The public is invited.
Sugar Loaf Cove will hold a Winter Rendezvous at the nature center on Saturday from 6-9 pm.
A Winter Rendezvous will be held at Sugarloaf Cove on Saturday.
The annual Winter Rendezvous will feature trails lit up by luminaries, and Astronomer Astro Bob King will have a telescope set up (weather permitting) and give a night sky talk. There will be a bonfire and marshmallows for roasting. Open to all. Dress for the weather!
This is the last weekend to enjoy the Winter Fireplace Tour.
The Winter Fireplace Tour continues through Feb. 28. Pictured is the fireplace at White Pine Lodge. For more info about the event, click here.
On Tuesday, Wood Week begins at North House Folk School.
Wood Week will be held at North House Folk School from March 3-9.
Wood Week is a thematic week that celebrates all things woodworking—from turning to carving, painting to sharpening, there’s a wide variety of skills and projects on offer, centered on hand tools and local woods. The Carver’s Conference on March 6 is a day full of free demonstrations, lectures, and gatherings open to the public. This year’s offerings draw from North House’s deep bench of talented regional artisans and include six brand-new courses. The week will include evening gatherings and presentations, including:
- A dozen classes in various kinds of woodcarving.
- The Carver’s Conference: a free, day-long conference on Friday, March 6, with speakers, demonstrations, and community gatherings.
The Grand Marais Public Library will present Dance for All, a contemporary dance class with dance artist Sophia McLaughlin on March 4.
The Grand Marais Library will hold a dance workshop on Wednesday, March 4, at 6 pm.
Using improvisation and set dance sequences, the class will move together to create joyful community. Dancers will copy and create movements that represent shapes, qualities, and patterns. Together, the group will learn how observations and imagination can create new and innovative movement possibilities. This program is one hour long and is suited for participants of all ages and abilities. Wear clothes you feel comfortable moving in when attending this free workshop. No registration required.
Exhibits:
We Hold These Truths, the theme of this year’s exhibits at the Duluth Art Institute, has opened with two shows: Carl Gawboy’s Fur Trade Nation and Wendy Savage’s Ojibwe Adornment.
“We Hold These Truths” is the theme for the exhibits at the Duluth Art Institute this year. Click here to learn more.
Gawboy’s exhibit features paintings from his book, Fur Trade Nation. Savage curated the exhibit on Ojibwe adornments and includes a selection of clothing, regalia, and more. Both exhibits continue through April 3.
The Minnesota Museum of American Art is exhibiting works from its Permanent Collection, including this photograph by Mike Hazard.
Shoua Cuts Dahlias, by Mike Hazard, is one of the pieces on view at the Minnesota Museum of American Art.
The title of the exhibit is “Here, Now,” and presents a wide variety of work. It continues through May 2027.
Night Ship, Navire de Nuit: An Exhibition of Works by Jannick Deslauriers and Angus Trudeau continues at the Thunder Bay Art Gallery.
Night Ship, Navire de Nuit, a multi-media work, is on view at the Thunder Bay Art Gallery.
Night Ship, Navire de Nuit is a beguiling pairing of sculpture and painting by artists Jannick Deslauriers and Angus Trudeau (b. 1907 – d. 1984).
As two artists separated by generations and backgrounds – Deslauriers, a millennial artist with an arts degree from Yale from Montreal and Trudeau, a self-taught Indigenous artist from Georgian Bay who lived through both World Wars, and who died before Deslauriers was born – their work finds common ground and fascinating contrast through realism, materials, a curiosity for the fleeting and monumental nature of everyday life in port cities along the St. Lawrence River and the Great Lakes. Each artist is drawn toward the aura of ships, the precision of model-making, and the scale of industry.
The exhibit continues through March 29. For more information, click here.
Kudos:
Jamie Rex is featured in an article in Minnesota Monthly.
Artists at Work:
Plein Air views by Matt Kania. He is exhibiting at Duluth Pottery.
Racing in Anguilla, acrylic, by Layne Kennedy.
Robert Desjarlait is working on a new children’s book. The working title is “Oshkebug and the Land Beyond the Moon.”
October, oil, A. J. Casson, Group of Seven, 1928.
Polar Bear Profile, 1976, Robert Bateman.
Hummingbird crafted from repurposed eating utensils by Matt Wilson.
Some lovelies from Ash Pottery, Heather Geise.
Crashing, acrylic, by Reilly Fitzgerald.
Birdy, ceramic sculpture, by Arek Szwed.
Woven light, blown, murrine, and cut glass, 2008, by Robert Wynne.
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90 percent done, pastel, by Ron Benson.
Work by ceramicist Marianne Hallberg.
Onsen art in Noboribetsu, a city in Hokkaido, Japan. Photo courtesy of Siffy Torkildson.
Wintering Over on Lake Superior, oil, by Howard Sivertson.
A street in West Toronto, oil, by Brian Killin.
What’s for dinner? charcoal with colored pencils by Elizabeth Hlookoff.
Online Findings:
Online Music:
Live Music:
Thursday, February 26:
- Timmy Haus, Moguls Grille & Taproom, 4-6 pm
- Gordon Thorne, North Shore Winery, 6-8 pm
- Jim Miller, Charlie’s Alpine Bistro, 6:30-9 pm
Friday, February 27:
- John Kerns, Lofty Gondola at Lutsen Mountains, 3:30-6 pm
- Joe Paulik and Pat Flack, Birch Terrace Supper Club & Lounge, 5-7 pm
- SonofMel, Cascade Lodge Restaurant & Pub, 6-8 pm
- Briand Morrison, Charlie’s Alpine Bistro, 6:30-9 pm
- Pete Kavanaugh, Bluefin Grille, 7-9 pm
- Timmy Haus, Lofty Gondola at Lutsen Mountains, 8:30-11 pm
Saturday, February 28:
- Bump Blomberg, North Shore Winery, 3:30-5:30 pm
- John Kerns, Lofty Gondola at Lutsen Mountains, 3:30-6 pm
- Adam Moe, Cascade Lodge Restaurant & Pub, 6-8 pm
- Joe Paulik, Charlie’s Alpine Bistro, 6:30-9 pm
- Frequency Rising, Up Yonder, 8-11 pm
- Timmy Haus, Lofty Gondola at Lutsen Mountains, 8:30-11 pm
Sunday, March 1:
- Pete Kavanaugh, Charlie’s Alpine Bistro, 6:30-9 pm
Monday, March 2:
- John Kerns, Voyageur Brewing Company, 5-7 pm
- Gordon Thorne, Charlie’s Alpine Bistro, 6:30-9 pm
- Briand Morrison, Bluefin Grille, 7-9 pm
Tuesday, March 3:
- Eric Frost, North Shore Winery, 4:30-6:30 pm
- Open Stage hosted by Pete K, Up Yonder, 6-8 pm
- Pat Eliasen, Charlie’s Alpine Bistro, 6:30-9 pm
- Community Singing, Log Cabin at the Grand Marais Community Center, 7 pm
- Bump Blomberg, Charlie’s Alpine Bistro, 6:30-9 pm
Thursday, March 5:
- Gordon Thorne, North Shore Winery, 6-8 pm
- Jim Miller, Charlie’s Alpine Bistro, 6:30-9 pm
Friday, March 6:
- Jon Ludgen, Lofty Gondola at Lutsen Mountains, 3-6 pm
- Cherry Dirt, Cascade Lodge Restaurant & Pub, 6-8 pm
- Briand Morrison, Charlie’s Alpine Bistro, 6:30-9 pm
- Billy Manzik, Bluefin Grille, 7-9 pm
- Timmy Haus, Lofty Gondola at Lutsen Mountains, 8:30-11 pm
Saturday, March 7:
- Jon Ludgen, Lofty Gondola at Lutsen Mountains, 3-6 pm
- Spruce Roots, North Shore Winery, 3:30-5:30 pm
- Emma Tweten, Cascade Lodge Restaurant & Pub, 6-8 pm
- Joe Paulik, Charlie’s Alpine Bistro, 6:30-9 pm
- Timmy Haus, Lofty Gondola at Lutsen Mountains, 8:30-11 pm
Sunday, March 8:
- Pete Kavanaugh, Charlie’s Alpine Bistro, 6:30-9 pm
Photographs:
Here is a selection of photographs we found this week:
Wildlife:
I know the feeling by Bill Donovan.
After the Storm by Allen Maas.
On a windy day by Chris Artist.
Ready for the Ladies by Alex Johnson.
Potpourri:
Train plowing snow drifts. It Never Gets Old by Bill Miller.
New Dairy Queen Swirl by Jane Johnson.
Hockey on Lake Superior by Layne Kennedy.
Uncommon Flea Market in Austin, Texas by Annie Possis. A favorite of hers.
Lusting after this Sicilian cheese market. Photo courtesy of Tor Torkildson. (Note: He has been in Japan for a while.)
Here’s an idea. Graphic by Don Davison.
Landscapes, Skyscapes, & Icescapes:
Tettegouche by Jeff Sundin.
Sunset in the Grand Marais Harbor by Kim Nelson.
Red on white by Ken Garmon.
At Lake Superior by Adam Malmanger.
Chaos on the Big Lake by Hayes Scriven.
There is a little ice on Lake Superior by Janice Latz.
18 inches, 18 degrees, and it’s snowing again by Don Davison.
Heads up! by Matthew Pastick
I wish I had the right words for how slippery it is by Bob Rorke.
Horseshoe Bay By Gary Arands.
Coated in Schroeder by Thomas Spence.
Happy little trees by Paul Ostrum.
Minnesota’s way of life by Jim Beaulier.
The essence of Lake Superior by Matthew Pastick.
Inside Out by John Heino.
Ice and a Snow Storm by Ken Harmon.
Pretty sky tonight by Sierra Parsons.
Sunrise through a curtain of ice at Holow Rock by Paul Sundberg
The Belt of Venus by Bryan Hansel.
Have a great weekend, everyone!
BTW: Now is a great time to make your contribution to NorthShore ArtScene to keep it coming to your inbox every week! Just click on the icon below to make your donation. And Thank You!
We are grateful for the help and support from Jeremy Lopez for his Live Music schedule and tech support, and Yvonne Mills for her great proofreading. Thank you, both! And to Visit Cook County for its outstanding Events Calendar.