March Arts Events for the Twin Ports. Spring is in the Air!

It's March! Even though there is snow in the forecast, the soul gets buoyant as we see winter's days are numbered. The first day of SPRING is in sight… now less than three weeks away. We also have Two Full Moons this month. Woo hoo!

Before sharing the month's calendar of Arts Events I'd like to make note that the Duluth Dylan Fest has announced a CALL FOR ART for this year's DDF, May 19-28. The theme for Dylan Fest this year is Twins (Duluth-born Robert Zimmerman is a Gemini and he will be 77 in May.) The Dylan Fest Art Show theme is VISIONS OF DULUTH. Even though Bob Dylan left the Northland as a youth, the Northland never left Bob Dylan. Echoes of our North Country have appeared in his songs for more than five decades. For more details visit my January call for art blog post. If you are planning to contribute we'd like to hear from you. Please send a note to Susan Laing [ isusan AT iinet DOT net DOT au ] or Ed Newman [ ennyman3 AT gmail DOT com ], co-directors of the art event.

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IN FACT, let's mention a few additional ongoing activities before diving in with the day-to-day list of scheduled events. First, Sunday evening at 9:00 p.m. is the kickoff of a five-week television event that excites a lot of people because it as filmed INSIDE our Historic Duluth Armory. I was talking with someone about this last night who said, "I'll bet the place is filled with the ghosts of everyone who ever performed there." Interesting thought, because that would be quite a playlist. The program is called Night at the Armory and you can read about it here.

Bill Bastian at the Magnolia Salon

Next, I have to plug the ongoing series of events taking place inside Carlton's Oldenburg House, bearing the name of Magnolia Salon. The backstory here is that in 1920s and 30s Paris Alice B. Toklas and Gertrude Stein were not only patrons of the arts, but they also opened their living room as a gathering place for artists and intellectuals to meet, interact, dialogue. (I simply love the re-creation of this special place in time in the film Midnight In Paris.) Did you know that the French word Salon means Living Room in English? Check it out. Most of your life you thought of the Paris salons as night clubs or someplace you go and hang like a cafe? So the Swansons, Glenn and Emily, have been opening their salon on Thursday evenings, sharing discussions and experiences around various aspects of creativity and hygge (a comfort word from the Danish.) Last night top-tier tenor Bill Bastian shared his talents, with voice and Telecaster. Through the rest of the spring, till Memorial Day weekend, the Magnolia Salon will be gathering on Thursdays from 6:00-9:00. You can read more here.

Friday, March 2, 6-7:30 p.m., Youth Art Month Exhibition Reception, Whole Foods Co-op, Denfeld, 4426 Grand Avenue
Throughout March the Duluth Art Institute will recognize the artistic achievements of area K-12 youth in the annual "Youth Art Month" exhibition. Over the course of two months, the Education Director and Curator will visit nearly a dozen regional schools--including those in Duluth, Hermantown, and Cloquet--to select the work to feature in the show. The opening celebration will include free artist demos. The exhibition will be on view through March 2018.

Saturday, March 3, 10 a.m.-5 p.m., Hygge Market: An Artisan Event, Makers Mercantile, 58th Avenue West and Grand Avenue "Hygge (Hoo-ga); Origin: Danish
Definition: The Danish ritual of enjoying life's simple pleasures. Friends. Family. Graciousness. Contentment. Good feelings. A warm glow.
A taste of Hygge living in this outdoor winter market featuring over 20 artisans. Enjoy the unique qualities of the thriving Spirit Valley neighborhood in Duluth." FB Event Page

Mondays, March 5, 12, 19, 26: Duluth Song Circle, Beaner's Central, 324 N. Central Avenue (on Beaner's web site: scroll down to calendar for event listing) "Start your week off on a good note! Everyone welcome. No training needed!"

Tuesday, March 6, 6-8 p.m., Lessons in Bowl Making, DAI Lincoln Building, 2229 W. 2nd Street
Lack experience with clay but still want to contribute to the cause? Schedule a one-night lesson with our instructors. All bowls will be contributed to Empty Bowl. $35 fee includes one ticket to Empty Bowl plus instruction and supplies.

Thursday, March 8, 5-7 p.m., Artist Reception: Terraria Gigantica: the World Under Glass: Dana Fritz, DAI Morrison Gallery, The Depot, 506 W. Michigan Street
"The photographs in the series Terraria Gigantica: the World Under Glass frame the world's largest enclosed landscapes as possible impossibilities: Biosphere 2's ocean in the Arizona desert, the Henry Doorly Zoo's desert in the Great Plains of Nebraska, and Eden Project's tropical rain forest in notoriously gray and cool Cornwall, England. These vivaria are enclosed environments where plants are grown amidst carefully constructed representations of the natural world to entertain visiting tourists. At the same time, however, they support scientific observation and research on the plants and animals housed under these 'natural conditions' that require human control of temperature, humidity, irrigation, insects, and weeds to cultivate otherwise impossible environments and species. Taken together, these architectural and engineering marvels stand as working symbols of our current and complex relationship with the non-human world." On view: March 8-April 29.

Thursday, March 8, 5-7 p.m., Artist Reception: The Cut Worm Forgives the Plow: Russel Prather, DAI Steffl Gallery, The Depot, 506 W. Michigan Street
"Russel Prather earned first place in the 2016 Arrowhead Biennial and creates forms from ordinary objects that change radically depending on the viewers line of sight. Layering paper-thin polyester film painted with dots, lines and markings in acrylic medium, Pather's work is sequential and reads like pages in a book - infusing his study and teaching of literature into his sculptures. Fulbright scholar and English professor at Northern Michigan University, Prather specializes in British literary and visual culture of the eighteenth through early twentieth centuries and is inspired by the poetry and designs of William Blake." On view: March 8-April 29.

Saturday, March 10, 10 a.m.-3 p.m., Nice Girls of the North 2nd Saturday Marketplace, Lakeside Lester Park Community Center (the former Lakeside Library), 106 N. 54th Ave. East "Free coffee, cookies, and a friendly atmosphere await while you browse a collection of handcrafted clothing and bags, pottery, jewelry, stained glass, photography, personal care products, baby items and much more. One central checkout, most major credit cards accepted."

Friday, March 16 and Saturday March 17, Cookin' at the O in the Carlton Room at the Oldenburg House. Pippi is back! Cracklin' good evening of jazz and fine dining. Read more here and and get your tickets here.

Saturday, March 17, 10 a.m.-4 p.m., Glaze it!, DAI Lincoln Building, 2229 W. 2nd Street
Experienced ceramic glazer? Join our Glaze-a-Thon at the Duluth Art Institute's Lincoln Building!

Learn to Zentangle with Esther P.

Wednesday, March 21, 6:30-9:00 p.m., Zentangle (R) & Wine, Master Framing Gallery, 1431 London Road
Come experience the fun and relaxation of drawing simple, repetitive line patterns with pen and ink and pencil shading. No previous drawing experience necessary. Class Cost: $35; Supplies: $10 (or use supplies provided without additional cost). RSVP to episzczek@gmail.com. Seats are limited.

Friday, March 23, 8 p.m., Saltless Sea Cinema Presents: Nordic Drift, The Nordic Center, 23 N. Lake Avenue
"Saltless Sea Cinema is Duluth's new roaming micro-cinema series, screening avant-garde, underground or just plain rad films and videos, selected in secret under moonlight and revealed at the event. SSC Presents: Nordic Drift, will feature films from seven Nordic countries and territories, along with live musical accompaniment by Jacob Swanson. Cost: $10. Proceeds after cost will go to benefit the nonprofit Nordic Center." FB Event Page

Saturday, March 24, 10 a.m.-3 p.m., Treasures of the Earth, Green goods, Craft & Art Fair, Peace Church, 1111 N. 11th Avenue East "A marketplace with ~20 regional artists with handcrafted art, craft, or goods made of natural materials (wood, stone, fiber, etc.) or from recycled or reused materials."

Kay Kurt's candy elephant at Joseph Nease Gallery.

Monday, March 26, RSVP/Payment Deadline: Mondays, April 9-30, 6:30-9 p.m., Zentangle (R) Pattern Drawing, Advanced, Peace Church, 1111 N. 11th Avenue E.
This class is open to anyone who has taken Zentangle (R) Pattern Drawing with Esther in the past. Cost: $75 (includes supplies); Minimum: 5 students; Maximum: 10 students. RSVP and payment due by Monday, March 26: episzczek@gmail.com

Ongoing Art Exhibits
Window to the West Art Display, 2001 West Superior Street
"Photographer Nik Nerburn and painter Brad Tollefson are creating a collaborative art exhibit on the streets of West Duluth's Lincoln Park neighborhood, titled "Window to the West." A selection of Tollefson's paintings and Nerburn's photographs will be on display in the storefront windows of 2001 West Superior Street for six months, through a partnership between the Duluth Art Institute and the Duluth Housing and Redevelopment Agency, which owns the Seaway Hotel building." Exhibit runs through March 31, 2018.

Sweep, Art Exhibition Opening, Joseph Nease Gallery, 23 W. 1st Street "Joseph Nease Gallery is excited to announce its second exhibition, "Sweep", presenting the latest work of a group of experienced painters at a high point in their craft, "Sweep" is a regional and national survey of more than 20 contemporary painters."

"The exhibition features work by these notable artists: Alison Aune, Kirsten Aune, Robert Bingaman, James Brinsfield, Marcus Cain, Peter Granados, Christopher Harrison, Rachel Hayes, Matthew Kluber, Don Kottmann, Kay Kurt, Adam McCauley, Karen Owsley Nease, Heidi Pollard, Warren Rosser, Eric Sall, Rabbett before Horses Strickland, Jonathan Thunder, Mimi Chen Ting and Leah Yellowbird." Exhibit runs through May 31, 2018.

So Many Classes, So Little Time
When you look at this list I'm willing to bet that you had no idea how many new creative skills you could learn. Here is a non-exhaustive list of places where you can learn new talents from making jewelry to forging iron. 

Art on the Planet (painting)
Duluth Community Education (Arts, Crafts, Hobbies section)
Duluth Folk School (Pisanki: Polish Batik Eggs; tatted lace for beginners; sausage)
Duluth Maker Space (wire wrap jewelry, pottery, stone engraving, industrial sewing)
Great Lakes Aquarium (photography, drawing, watercolor, smelt making)
Historic Armory Annex (Forge Community)
Lake Superior Art Glasses (glass blowing: flamework and hotshop classes)
Market Day (lotion making, soap making)
On the Rocks Art Studio and Gallery (painting)
Otlak Felt Studio (Feltmaker Mary Reichert) (Private and small group classes available)
Pineapple Arts (art therapy classes)
Yarn Harbor (knitting, crochet, felting, weaving)

When all is said and done, there's a lot more to do than there is time... but it's nice to know what is out there. Thank you to Esther Piszczek for assembling most of the events and their details here. To learn more about her Zentangled expressions, follow her on Facebook.

FWIW, if you are an artist who wishes to preserve their work, CPL Imaging has the top scanning equipment and even if you do not sell giclee reproductions, your best work can be preserved for the future by having it scanned for posterity. And their photo restoration is nothing short of astonishing. I kid you not.