A Handful of Cool Art Events Worth Attending This Week

One of the many great activities of the DAI

Thursday is the Duluth Art Institute Membership Show in the Depot's Great Hall. Historically this has been one of the best attended events of the year and as always you can expect to see some really interesting work. One of the requirements is that members only submit work that is newly created over the past year. Hence, the show offers art-watchers a fairly clean snapshot of the kinds of activity taking place in our region behind closed doors. The reception runs from 5 - 7 p.m. with music by local favorite Mary Bue.

Upstairs the Emerging Photographers exhibit will also be opening, featuring work from the UMD Photography Department, sponsored by Jen Dietrich and Lew Connor. And last that I looked, (as in yesterday) the Scott Murphy exhibit was still installed, in case you missed it. A rich, visual experience.

Beer for Bowls
Saturday the 25th the North Pole Bar on Raleigh Street will be hosting a fundraising event called Beer for Bowls. Owner Barb Stevens, in conjunction with Tonya Borgeson of Snoodle Ceramic Studio, are devoting the day to making clay bowls that will be donated to the 21st Annual Empty Bowl Event in April as a fund raiser for Second Harvest northern Lakes Food Bank.

The Polar Bar is one more place to be next Saturday.

Stevens and Borgeson conceived the idea "to create a community activity for the neighborhood in the close proximity of each other’s businesses, including the fun, light-hearted atmosphere of the bar.'

"Why not use our resources,” said Borgeson. “Look for bowls at Empty Bowl with a polar bar image impressed into the clay, the stamps are in process in the studio right now.

The first bowl you make, the North Pole will give you a free beer. Any clay bowl after that entitles you to purchase a beer for 75 cents.

Taking measurements, DAI setup

Borgeson's Snoodle will be bringing the pottery wheels, tools and clay since most bars are not thus equipped. Stevens is excited to host this first-time event and feels it will invigorate the latent passion for art, community and neighborhood here. Bowl making will be accompanied by live music. And Borgeson insists that it is not necessary to have any experience in pottery making. She is an able instructor with 15 years of teaching under her belt.

Even if you don't want to make a bowl, consider yourself invited to stop by and see the pottery wheels in action. For more information contact Tonya Borgeson, (218) 310-8903.

UWS Student/Alumni Show
Also Saturday, there will be an opening reception fot the UWS Student/Alumni Show at the North End Arts Gallery (in the Historic Board of Trade Building on the corner of Hammond and Broadway.) A lot of familiar names on the list of those who will be showing their work. Time; 1-3 p.m.

Instinct Art Gallery
If you're out of town, as in Minneapolis, next weekend, you can catch an art opening titled Still the Sky. And number of local artists will be going to this progressive gallery on Nicollet Mall downtown. Detail here.

There's plenty more to see and hear and do, naturally. I'm just wanting to make sure you're aware of a few tings in the outside chance they're not yet on your calendar.

Be well. Do good work. And keep on keepin' on.

This painting of Adeline by Alison Aune caught my eye.