Breaking News: Fun Has Not Been Canceled at Art on the Planet

Watercolors with Anthony Sclavi

Though Cancel Culture has done a lot of steamrolling this year, and Covid-19 has cancelled a multitude of events and activities, there are pockets of our community where Art and Creativity remain a central part of our lives and have not been cancelled. One of these pockets is Art on the Planet in Superior.

Yesterday I received an email from AotP that began in this vein:

The last time we talked we promised that we would find a way for us all to get back to the "FUN" Art to be found in our classroom.... and we are thrilled to announce that art classes are absolutely available for private groups of 6 or less!!!

It appears that they have all the sanitization and social distancing figured out, so all you have to do is call to get set up. Contact Wine Beginnings* (715-392-8466) or message Art On The Planet (artontheplanet@yahoo.com) to schedule any of these private classes:
Paint Pour Peel Jewelry ClassPaint a masterpiece with Checkalski Fine Art
Watercolors with Anthony Sclavi
Liquid Acrylic Paint Pouring
Rachel's Rustic Decor Sign-Making
Customize a Wine Glass Set with Checkalski Fine Art & Wine Beginnings
Color-Wash Cork Trivet Projects with Framing by Stengl
(*Art on the Planet shares building space with Wine Beginnings.)

Artists and artisans whose work is available 
at Art on the Planet:

Julie Abraham, Dennis Aho, Rebecca Aitken, Shelley Alvin, Jill Anderson, Lynn Anderson, Richard Anscomb, John Autrey, Kimberlene Ball, Pete Barnett, Kelly Beaster, Debra Berg, Chelsea Branley, Bridgette's Cadillac, Dave Brochu, Sue Brown-Chapin, Craig Bruce, John Buczynski, Reba Buczynski, Sabrina Bunnell, Valarie Burke, Joseph Carlson, Kyle Carlson, Deb Carroll, Scott Checkalski, Richard Chilton, Jan Chronister, Joleen Clendenning, Rebecca Couch-Iatonna, Denise Denu, Frank Doran Associates, Rachel Eisenmann, Barb Engelking, Ann Esala, Susan Fabini, Elizabeth Fedorowicz, Becky Foster, Mike Fudally, Jeff Fujan, Charlene Galazen, Jack Gergen, Cindy Gilbert, Shawna Gilmore, Jamie Goodiel, Anne Marie Gorham, Jack Green, Mary Gregg, Mary Lou Harris, Paula Hegg, Margie Helstrom, Joan Hendershot, Stanley Hendrickson, Laurie Hernandez, Cameo Hilliard, Celia Hintsala, David Hoad, Susan Holley, Thomas Holmstrand, Joan Holmstrand, Theresa Hornstein, Jan Jenson, Ronalee Johannsen, Dawn Karlon, Marge Kehoe, Lindsey Kilgore, Rachelle Kirk, Denise Kitchak,

Aaron Kloss, Jayson Knutson, Lashana Koivisto, Jessica Krueger, Cari Larson, Patricia Lenz, David Lesczynski, Ki Lindgren, Gretchen Lisdahl, Susan Litehiser, Don Little, Devin Lowney, Bill Lyth, Lee Makinen, Lauren Marmorine, Michelle Marquart, Steve Matheson, Donald Mattson, Sue Matuszak, Sarah Mayne, Martha Miller-Powell, Mary McMahan, Ryan Murphy, Kris Nelson , Janet Nelson, Rachel Nelson, Ed Newman, Susie Newman, Amanda Nindorf, Lydia Noble, Sheila Oak, Rebecca Olson, Kathie Otterino, Kathleen Patchen, Bruce Pauc, Sue Pavlatos, Emily Peterson, Holly Phillips, Laurie Pinther, Esther Piszczek, John Poldoski, Joe Polecheck Tom Postudensek, Michelle Purvis, William Ralph, Sue Rauschenfels, Cari Reder, Kathleen Rehm, Jamey Ritter, Pat Roberts, Gloria Roy, Madison Rupp, Dan Savoye, Patty Schafter, Dani Schmidt, Nancy Senn, Kat Senn, Margee Senn, Rachel Senn, Pat Shehan, Similar Dogs, Betty Steeg, Kristen Stetzer, Richard Stirling, Cassandra Stovern, Caroline Strezishar, Edna Stromquist, Kenneth Swensen, Michelle Swanson, Phaedra Torres, Judy Webb, Jamie Welch, Mary Jo Wiseman, Sandra Wojtoff, Dellwin Wright, Joseph Zastrow, Karen Zeisler

Zentangle design by Esther Piszczek

Paint Pour Peel Jewelry Class. You can do this.

NOT INTERESTED IN MAKING ART BUT YOU'D LIKE TO BUY

SOMETHING FOR A BLANK SPOT ON YOUR WALL OR FOR

SOMEONE YOU LOVE? VISIT THE WEBSITE AND SHOP ONLINE

FOR CURBSIDE PICKUP. Click on the Art2Go tab.

WEBSITE:
https://artontheplanet.weebly.com/

1413 Tower Avenue, Superior, WI 54880 

Gallery Hours - Wednesday - Friday: 11:30 - 6:30 / Saturday: 10:00 - 4:00

Local Artist Margie Helstrom's Uplifting Colors Make Spirits Sing

It's been a joy seeing all the unheralded but dedicated painters in this town. What's interesting is how many "groups" there are who are affiliated through their shared interests. I'd long heard about a Lake Superior Watercolor Group, and more recently learned of the Lake Superior Abstract Artists group. During the lockdown they have been meeting on Zoom.

If I'm not mistaken, Margie Helstrom has been part of both of these creative explorers. Here are examples of some of the work she's been creating. I especially like the Matisse-like feel of  her interior scenes.

Swirly Twirly Tree. Watercolor and watercolor crayon on paper.

Homage to Nolde Lilac. Watercolor and pen.

Jim. Acrylis on canvas.

Pink Henrietta. Oil on canvas.

Lucy. Watercolor acrylic and crayon on paper.

Orange Margaret. Watercolor acrylic and crayon on paper.

Three Umbrellas. Watercolor on paper.

Michelle. Watercolor on paper.

Gert. Acrylic on canvas.

Sumac. Watercolor on paper.

Really love what I see happening here, Margie. Keep it going.

See more of Margie's work at www.margiehelstrom.com/

To you reading this: what are You working on during these strange times?

Local Art Seen: Roosters and Chickens at Lakeside

The call went out for artwork featuring roosters, and 20 local artists answered the call. Who hasn't enjoyed seeing the varieties of chickens and roosters reproduced as art? Even I painted a rooster once, which I had seen tethered to a crate in a marketplace in Mexico, so I submitted it to Aaron's show at Lakeside Gallery. The opening reception Yesterday afternoon was comfortably crowded and the chatter constant as artists and friends mingled, enjoying the featured works and exploring each others' visual delights.

The barnyard theme included works by many familiar names including Adam Swanson, Sue Rauschenfels, Aaron Kloss, Don Delvin, Chris Dillon and others, as well as a notable rooster painted by the late John Peyton. The names were as fun as the images sometimes, like Sue McDonald's watercolor titled The Chicken Whisperer and Linda Naughton's Rise and Shine.

Recommended: If you are heading up to Brighton Beach, or Scenic Cafe, take a brief diversion Superior Street at 45th and drop in to Lakeside Gallery for an aesthetic lift. Then cap it off with your favorite flavor of java next door. Just sayin'.

Here are some of the pieces I saw yesterday.

Linda Naughton's collage, "Rise and Shine" 

Sue Rauschenfels' contribution.

Aaaron Kloss offered up several smaller canvases on the theme.

Reflections often prove to be a challenge for photographers, though
frequently I think they add a degree of interest. 

Here's an interesting pair of "Unusual Chickens" by Kris Trembley

"Cluck" by Chris Dillon

Don Delvin's spoof on the palace guards at Buckingham Coop.

REMINDERS

This afternoon there will be a short film about Milton's Hell at Karpeles Manuscript Museum Library (across the street from the emergency entrance to St. Luke's). Kathryn Lenz's paintings are featured this month, a good excuse to visit if you have never been. The opening reception was Tuesday April 3, but several other events are scheduled. In addition to the video, Sam Black & Friends will be serving up Music of Rebellion and Divine Creation beginning at 3:00.

NOTE TO ARTISTS: Duluth Dylan Fest will again be featuring an art event in the Zeitgeist Atrium the week before Memorial Day. If interested and able, here is a link to the CALL FOR ART. The theme this year is Visions of Duluth, featuring the Northland inspiration that permeates Dylan's art and career.

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

Local Art Seen: Karen Anderson's "Winter Woods" at Lakeside Gallery

Sign outside Lakeside Gallery on Saturday.

"When the weather outside is frightful..."

The warmth of an art gallery is so delightful, 

with refreshments and friends you know

Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow.

Yes, the roads may have been a little slick, but sand trucks and snow plows were out so you really could get around. Karen Anderson's opening at the Lakeside Gallery made for a nice destination, and as is often the case the place was abuzz. Anderson is a watercolorist who does nature scenes. Birch trees seems to be a favorite of many artists that painter/proprietor Aaron Kloss represents, and Anderson is no exception. They abundance of birch is an exhilarating part of living here in the Northland, and like the Great Lake many artists draw inspiration from this. 

The walls are awash with local art here. 

Like many artists, their reproduced pictures make great gift cards.

The guests on the right stand admiringly in front of Anderson's work.

The natural beauty of the region is compelling in any season.

The gallery has a wide range of gift items, locally made.

The title of Anderson's show is "Winter Woods."

Lakeside Gallery is located on Superior Street at 45th Avenue East. The door to the adjacent coffee shop is always open. Grab a cup of pick-me-up and enjoy the gallery. Anderson's show will be featured through the month of February.

Meantime, art goes all around you. Engage it.

Local Art Seen: Sue Rauschenfels' Open House

This past month Sue Rauschenfels hosted an art opening in her home on the South Shore of Pike Lake. Rauschenfels is an artist whom I'd first gotten to know through her contributions to a Duluth Dylan Fest art show in 2014 and a subsequent show of her work at Beaners and Superior's North End Arts Gallery, which led to my interviewing her for  my column in The Reader at that time.

Upon entering her home one is struck by the light cascading off the glistening woodwork, showering into the rooms through an abundance of windows, providing ample light for viewing her work. The lakefront property, quietly poised on the waterfront, has a tidy feeling of warmth as you approach it, much like the paintings and pictures she creates, working in watercolor, acrylic, ink and/or collage.

Here are some photos I took of her paintings. The reflections on the glass and all the light flooding the room resulted in several happy accidents.

The colorations and expressions remind me of Marc Chagall.

I see vibrant pastel flowers dancing.

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Meantime, art goes on all around you. Engage it.

Local Art Seen: Watercolors and Poetry at the North End Arts Gallery

One of the seven art openings I attended on the July 10 Second Friday Art Crawl was a watercolor exhibit at the North End Arts Gallery. Watercolors Northcoast WI features both new work and a very special surprise.

Before sharing the surprise I need to backtrack. If you are new to the area, say within the past 25 years, you may have occasionally heard references to the Marshall sisters, Julia and Caroline. What I knew about them was that they were benefactors in our community who gave generously to various causes. The most visible gift of the sisters is the stage at Bayfront Park. Think about all the remarkable events that have taken place there -- Wilco, Dylan, Blues Fest, Steve Martin, and so on -- and then thank the Marshall sisters.

That's the sum total of what I knew till I went to the Watercolors Northcoast exhibit last month. As you enter the gallery space watercolor paintings by Julia Marshall will be on your left. Marshall, I quickly learned, was not only a supporter of the arts, she was an artist herself. And a photographer. During World War II she served as a photographer in the Women's Army Corps. Several of her works are maintained as part of the Tweed Collection.

Study of a door by Julia Newell Marshall, with notes.

Her reputation as a philanthropist was well-deserved though. She helped found the Duluth Art Institute and the Duluth League of Women Voters. She and her sister together formed the Duluth Improvement Association, purchasing the land that has become Bayfront Park.

Marshall not only made art, she also taught classes, influencing many young artists of future generations, including arts advocate Patricia Lenz, an artist and former director of the Duluth Art Institute who is active in the Superior Council for the Arts. "She (Julia) is the reason I got involved in arts organizations."

Lenz shared another little known insight about her great aunt. Marshall was a friend of Georgia O'Keefe, often travelling to the Southwest as a result of her connections to the art scene there.

This show would stand alone as something to see even without the Marshall pieces. I sometimes wonder if we diminish the works of watercolorists because we all did a bit of it in elementary school. (Or have those classes been cut these days?) Fine watercolor paintings are painstakingly achieved and quite something to behold. If you are able, grab a lunch sometime this month at the Red Mug, then make your way upstairs to the gallery and enjoy the show.

"We're Taking Over" by Amy Wilson.

"Poplar Trees, Water, Snow Bank" by Dennis Aho

Patricia Lenz,(L) with members of the local arts community.

Meantime, art goes on all around you. Engage it.

M