Twin Ports Arts Scene: DPAC's Creative Watershed Plus Love Your Local Artist and the DAI Membership Meeting

With the holidays behind us, Twin Ports arts scene is wriggling free and on the run. At the top of the list is this announcement from the Duluth Public Arts Commission. On January 19 there's an event scheduled in the Mayor's Reception Room the DPAC is rolling out the Creative Watershed: Duluth Arts + Culture Plan. The event will run from 5 - 7 p.m. with a short program at 6:00 p.m.

The Mayor’s Reception Room is Room 405 at the City Hall, 411 W 1st St., Duluth. Yes, the public is invited, which means you.

If you join us, there will be textile art by Kirsten Aune, music by The Sound of Strings Trio, and refreshments by Zenith Bread Project. The aim is a celebration of the release of Creative Watershed: Duluth Arts + Culture Plan.

Here's additional info from the memo announcing this event:

The Duluth Public Arts Commission (DPAC) contracted consultants Forecast Public Art and Creative Community Builders of St. Paul and Minneapolis to facilitate the project. which included gathering feedback and direction from approximately 80 regional stakeholders over an 18-month process.

One of the plan’s early recommendations was to relocate DPAC within the corporate City’s organizational structure. DPAC is happy to report that the Commission's new home is with the Business and Economic Development Department. Jason Hale is the staff point person, and Gary Anderson is DPAC’s City Council representative.

Surrounded by local art, music and artisan food, the short program will highlight some of the major features and recommendations of Creative Watershed, a document that has been endorsed by the Duluth City Council and that is intended to guide the future vision and collaborative efforts of DPAC its public and private partners.

The plan identifies 5 major goals, along with detailed recommendations for each:
1. Cultivate Our Talents: Arts Development and a Creative ‘Maker’ Economy
2. Activate and Connect Our Neighborhoods and Downtown: Creative Placemaking and Public Art
3. Amplify Our Message: Audience Development and Tourism
4. Capitalize Our Strengths: Infrastructure for the Creative Sector
5. Make It Happen: The Role of City Government -- Expand scope, partnerships, and resources for the City’s Arts Commission to implement goals in this plan.

Creative Watershed: Duluth Arts + Culture Plan can be accessed at:
www.duluthmn.gov/boards-commissions/duluth-public-arts-commission/

* * * *

Love Your Local Artist

The Superior Public Library is again hosting a Valentine-themed fund raising event. The call to artists has gone out and can be shouted far and wide. Here's the word:

A big Heart by Anne Labovitz

Greetings from Superior Public Library! Superior Public Library's 7TH ANNUAL LOVE YOUR LOCAL ARTIST fundraising event hosted by the Friends of the Library will be held FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 10, 2017 from 5:30 P.M. TO 8 P.M. We are once again inviting local artists to sign up to offer their work for sale at the event. As in previous years, we will be having our silent auction and Adopt-a-Book sale. All proceeds from the registration fees and silent auction will be used for library materials and services. Last year we welcomed more than 400 attendees--our highest attendance to date--and we anticipate even better attendance this year. Here are the details of Love Your Local Artist 2017:

REGISTRATION FEE: This year, the cost for a table will be $25. We will also offer the smaller study centers (the three-sided cubicles) for $20. We have a limited number of tables and sign-up will be first-come, first-serve, so make sure to reserve yours soon. DUE TO LIMITED SPACE, WE ARE UNABLE TO OFFER MORE THAN ONE TABLE PER ARTIST. In order to accommodate as many artists as possible, we use every single table we have in the library for this event. Table sizes vary, but none are shorter than 6 feet in length. If you would prefer a larger table (we have a limited number of 8 foot tables), please let me know when you register and we will do our best to make it happen.

* * * *

DAI Membership Meeting

Last year the DAI combined its business meeting with the Member Show artist reception. There were a few logistical issues I think, so this year the DAI annual membership meeting will take place a week before the annual membership show, 5:30 p.m. Wednesday, January 18, at the DAI Lincoln Center (2229 W 2nd Street). Will it be "business as usual" or something more. If you're a member, come find out.

Here are some additional details from the DAI crew:

Minneapolis-based artist and writer Andy Sturdevant will be the featured speaker. Sturdevant’s artwork has been exhibited at the Minneapolis Institute of Art and the Flaten Art Museum at St. Olaf College, as well as in museums, galleries and spaces in New York, Chicago, Philadelphia, Seattle and elsewhere. Sturdevant has also written about art, history and culture for a variety of publications and websites, including a weekly column on the Twin Cities’ neighborhoods, art, history and architecture for MinnPost. His first book, Potluck Supper with Meeting to Follow, was published by Coffee House Press in 2013. In honor of his book the DAI welcomes attendees to bring their own hot dish to pass. The DAI staff and Board of Directors will also present the FY16 annual report, as well as sketch out the year ahead.

The following week will be the much anticipated opening reception for the membership exhibition. The annual membership show at the Duluth Art Institute celebrates the artists and artwork being made in this region. Widely recognized as the biggest ‘show & tell’ event of the Duluth visual arts calendar, the 2017 Annual Membership Exhibition will open with a reception on Thursday, January 26 from 5 to 7 p.m. in the Great Hall of the Union Depot (506 West Michigan St). The large display typically boasts anywhere between 150 to 200 artworks. During the reception, everyone in attendance is invited to cast a vote on a write-in ballot for a favorite work, with ballots counted that evening. The People’s Choice award is announced at the end of the night, and works remain on view through February 24. (I'd encourage you to vote for my painting of a youth, but there are so many really great artists in this town you may as well do what you typically do; follow your own heart.)

Both of these events are sponsored by US Bank, another strong supporter of the arts locally. Thank you.

Meantime, art goes on all around you. Get into it.