• Bemidji Community Art Center – invites you to the Annual “Members Show” as a part of the First Friday Art Walk on February 3rd, 2011.  Join us for our opening reception from 5 to 7pm featuring work that is created or collected by members of the Bemidji Community Art Center. 
• Brigids Cross Irish Pub and Restaurant –  artist Jake Baggenstoss will be displaying a series of his food-related paintings for the month of February.  Good Noise, a local band of talented artists will be performing for the opening of this show.
• Cabin Coffeehouse and Café – presents work by designer and artist Kendra Fuller of Urban Essence Interiors showcasing  wall finishing techniques on canvas.
• NEW VENUE!  FREAXIS STUDIOS – Fortuna Puppet Theatre and Skidmark present new puppets and prints in “Manifesto: bug, egg, heart” 6 to 9pm – puppet performance at 7pm, make-n-takes and refreshments for all!! FREAXIS is located in the lower level of the BCAC building (Carnegie Library Building) 426 Bemidji Ave N.
• Gallery North – 2:00 to 5:00 Showcase artists; painter Kathy Sanders and wood carver Les Sanders. The Featured Artist of the month will be fiber and mixed media artist Patty Lovegreen.  Special Visitors will be WhipStaff Animal Ranch and Rescue. Celebrating its 22nd year of operation, WhipStaff will have dogs and possibly puppies available for adoption. 
• Neilson Place – The Neilson Place Art Committee continues the exhibit with artist Melissa Moss of Blueleaf Photographs entitled “Serenity” now through the end of Feb.   Neilson Place is located at 1000 Anne St. NW, Bemidji.  
• Rail River Folk School – will host The Northwoods Folk Collective. The Northwoods Folk Collective Open Stage  Sign-up 6:30-7:30.
• Saarens Productions -  The Fleur de Lis Art Gallery announces New Works by Local, Regional and Featured Artists 2:00pm to 6:00pm.  READ FULL POST FOR INFO ON INDY FILM FEST AND RUBY LIPS CHANGE IN SCHEDULE.
• The Center of Therapeutic Arts -  3:30 to 5:30 for “Lucy Learns to Color” by artist and educator Nina Lubarski. 
• Wild Hare Bistro and Coffeehouse – presents painter Jami Burdick will display her pastels on black paper Friday, February 3rd from 3:00 to 5:00 pm.  After the Art Walk, experience Wild Hare’s own culinary artists at the First Friday Wine Bar, 5:00-9:00pm.

Cabin Coffeehouse and Café – presents work by John Egger in his exhibit entitled “RURAL IMAGES”.  Join us on Friday Jan 6th for his reception from 4 to 6pm. Homemade is in the Air at the Cabin serving all day 7 days a week ! Try our chefs specials daily!  The Cabin is open Mon. – Fri. 7am to 9pm, Sat. 8am to 8pm and Sun. 8am to 6pm. Visit us at 214 3rd Street or call 218-444-2899 for more information

Gallery North – Continues their annual Holiday Boutique of hand made items for the month of January.  Gallery North is located at 502 3rd St.  For further information email galleryn@paulbunyan.net

Neilson Place – The Neilson Place Art Committee continues it’s exhibit with artist Melissa Moss of Blueleaf Photographs entitled “Serenity” for the new year.  Melissa says, “Photography is an unexplainable hidden treasure that only reveals itself when the picture is brought to life.”  Her goal as a photographer is to share the world with you through the lens of her camera.  The focus for this exhibit show is the word Serenity, what it can mean to different people and the idea that everyone finds peace or comfort in different things.   Melissa’s artwork will be on display now thru the end of the year.  Her work is for sale and a price list is available at the Reception Desk.  Neilson Place is located at 1000 Anne St. NW, Bemidji.

Saarens Productions -  The Fleur de Lis Art Gallery announces new works by local artists will be featured in the exhibit rotation beginning Friday, January 6, 2012 as part of First Friday from 2:00pm to 6:00pm.  New Works by Local & Regional Artists:
Scott Fadness, Terry Honstead, Gayle H. Highberg, B. E. Jolly, Sue Knudson,
Kim  Kovacic, Nancy Marcott & Harriet Powers, Dee Anne Najjar, Pat Shough/Sillimandi.   Featured Artists include: DeeJay Arens,
Albert Belleveau, Roy C. Booth, Janet Burke, Keith Cich, Melissa Davidson, Phyllis Diller, Thomas Hamilton, Mary Knox-Johnson, June Kramin, Steve Saari & Judy Lunseth, Bemidji, MN – Steve Saari & Cast of “Playing the Bill”, Don Zeiman.  Many Artists also have fine prints and beautiful, one of a kind cards available for purchase.

Autographed copies of DESILU:  The Story of Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz by acclaimed author and biographer, Coyne Steven Sanders, are also still available.  JANUARY 6 WILL ALSO BE THE FIRST NIGHT OF INDEPENDENT FILM SHOWINGS FOR THE UPCOMING FATHOM FILM FESTIVAL.  The Featured Filmmaker for January:  HARLAN HEGNA.  Hegna is a Bemidji native now living in Los Angeles, CA where he works as an Assistant Director and Production Coordinator.
Film showing begins at 7:00pm in the Wild Rose Theater.  We are located at 501 Bemidji Ave. in the Mason’s Lodge.  Gallery hours are Wednesday to Friday, 2pm to 6pm & Saturdays, Noon to 4pm. and during Wild Rose Theater Events and By Appointment. Contact: Steve Saari or DeeJay Arens at 218-556-1777 or Email: ssaari@paulbunyan.net or arens@paulbunyan.net

For information on the December First Friday Art Walk for each host location please go to our Upcoming First Friday page.

1st place receives $800 – 2nd place receives $500 – 3rd place receives $300

1st Place Award "Slipped Platter" by Matthew Quinn

2nd Place Award "Teapot" by Anthony Millette

3rd Place Award "Folded Vase" by Delores Fortuna

Harlow Purchase Award "Slipped Platter" by Matthew Quinn

 

  

Margaret Harlow Purchase Award "Set of 3 Plates" by Monica Ripley

Margaret Harlow Purchase Award "Teapot" by Dan Finnegan

Born in Maracaibo, Venezuela in 1951 Guillermo Cuellar studied ceramics at Cornell College in Mt.Vernon, Iowa where he graduated with a B.A. in Art in 1976.  After working as an environmentalist he returned to pottery in 1980.  In 1986 he set up a studio in the village of Turgua, an hour southeast of the capital city, Caracas, where he made pots for the following 18 years.

Platter by Guillermo Cuellar

In 1981 he worked as an assistant to Warren MacKenzie, who was teaching in Caracas. Subsequently he regularly shared studio experience with MacKenzie inStillwater, Minnesota, from 1984 to 2006.  Guillermo’s experience includes teaching workshops inVenezuela and Chile and participating in the organization and execution of workshops given by international guest potters in Venezuela.

His work has been on display in the Venezuelan National Art Gallery,  Museo de Arte Contemporaneo de Caracas Sofia Imber,  Museo de Arte Contemporaneo de Puerto Rico,  The Smithsonian Institution,  Northern Clay Center,  Mashiko Municipal Pottery Art Museum and private galleries in Minnesota, the United States, England, Venezuela and Chile.

In 1992 Guillermo brought a group of potters together to found Grupo Turgua, a non-profit association of artisans dedicated to the support of good craft inVenezuela.   Grupo Turgua hosted twenty-eight group sales with from 1992 to 2005 offering Venezuelan native crafts and other creative work.

Guillermo at work in Studio

In 2005 Guillermo and his family, established a home, studio and showroom in the upper St. Croix River valley near Shafer, Minnesota, where he is currently making pots and participates as one of seven host studios on the Minnesota Potters of the Upper St. Croix Valley Annual Pottery Tour.

Join us on Wed November 2^nd at 7pm for the IOC community lecture.  Cuellar will trace his personal history fromVenezuela to Minnesota and explore how the physical surroundings, sound examples of hand-made crafts, and a spirit of community have influenced his work and enriched his life.  The lecture is free and open to the public and will be hosted at the Headwaters School of Music and the Arts,519 Minnesota Ave, Downtown Bemidji. 

The workshop – Techniques For Wheel Thrown Utilitarian Pots will be hosted on the Campus of Bemidji State University on Nov. 3 thru 4. 

The Opening Reception for IOC 2011 Exhibit will be at the BemidjiCommunityArtCenteron Friday Nov 4^th from 5 to 7pm with a brief presentation and awards announcement by Butch Holden and Cuellar at 6pm.  This event is a part of the November First Friday Art walk and free and open to the public.

IOC 2011 is cosponsored by the BCAC and the BSU Visual Arts Department.  Support is provided by Holiday Inn Express Bemidji and the BSU Ceramics Club.  This activity is also made possible, in part, by a grant provided by the Region 2 Arts Council through funding from the Minnesota State Legislature.

For more information regarding this program go to IOC 2011

Join us for our Kids Workshop on Saturday October 15, 2011 from 9am to 12 noon.   

Things with String is 3 hours of open class time presented by the BCAC and Textile Center featuring with Instructor Lynn Cooper.  From braids to knots to twisted cords, there are lots of ways to turn yarns into fiber art.  We will ply novelty fibers and yarns together to make our own custom yarns.  Learn to finger knit and make yourself a trendy skinny scarf.  Finally learn kumihimo, a Japanese 8 stranded braid with cool spiral patterns that makes great bracelets and more.

This class is free and for students Ages 8 and up!  We will be making projects through out the class time so come and go as you please!  Stay for one project or stay for them all!! 

Fiber Arts Demonstration – Saturday October 22, 2011 from 10am to 3pm – Tapestry Weaving by Local Weavers Group featuring hands-on opportunity!

Stop by the Bemidji CommunityArt Centerduring the 2011 Studio Cruise weekend to learn about the art of Tapestry Weaving!  Join us for this afternoon demonstration and learn more about this unique form of weaving.  Artist Kristin Majkrzak will provide a loom to give visitors an opportunity to try their hand at weaving.  Members from the group will be on hand from 10am to 3pm to show their work and answer questions.

For more information contact Cindy and Lori at the BCAC or stop down to the art center located at 426 Bemidji Ave N.

For more information go to Upcoming First Friday.

As a part of the event Hauser will also be presenting a Writers Workshop entitled - What Did I Say?  on Saturday October 8^th from 9am to 12pm.   In this three-hour workshop with Susan, participants will learn some ways to read their writing the ways others do, including recognition of values and meanings expressed in the work. It is hard for writers to read their work afresh – they tend to “hear” what they thought they said or meant to say rather than what they actually said.   For more information regarding the reading and the workshop go to our Spoken Word page.

What the reviewers are saying about My Kind of  River Journey……

From the University of Chicago Press, Distributed for Center for American Places on My Kind of River Journey…..”The latest in a moving series of memoirs from the Center for American Places that celebrate the connection between individual and place, My Kind of River Journey takes the reader to the storied Mississippi River through the eyes of poet Susan Carol Hauser. Drawn, as many have been, to the siren call of the country’s longest river, Hauser and her husband traveled the Mississippi, from St. Paul to the Gulf of Mexico, on a repurposed ocean trawler. Here, she not only chronicles their experiences on this adventure, but also tells the story of the river, its movement and undercurrents, and its role in her personal transformation. ”

Adult Class – Saturday October 1, 2011 from 9am to 12 noon

Birch Tree Pin – Bead Embroidery with Instructor Jo Wood

Learn the basic bead embroidery stitches and create a wearable work of art. Choose one of Jo’s 4 Seasons Kit designs: Spring, Summer, Autumn, or Winter and learn to “paint with beads”. After practicing the stitches, you’ll be guided through the pattern with hints and tip for successful stitching. The kit contains all the beads and supplies you’ll need plus the directions for beading and finishing your pin.   Please bring some sharp scissors and your reading glasses if you need them. 

Maximum number for Class – 15 Adults.  First 8 students can sign up are free.  Room for 7 more students with a materials fee of $30.00.  Please note: deadline for additional 7 students is September 24^th.  

Kids Class – Saturday October 15, 2011 from 9am to 12 noon.   

Things with String – 3 hour kids class with Instructor Lynn Cooper

From braids to knots to twisted cords, there are lots of ways to turn yarns into fiber art.  We will ply novelty fibers and yarns together to make our own custom yarns.  Learn to finger knit and make yourself a trendy skinny scarf.  Finally learn kumihimo, a Japanese 8 stranded braid with cool spiral patterns that makes great bracelets and more.

This class is free!  Maximum size – 25 students.  Ages 8 and up. 

Fiber Arts Demonstration – Saturday October 22, 2011 from 10am to 3pm

Tapestry Weaving by Local Weavers Group featuring hands-on opportunity!

Stop by theBemidjiCommunityArtCenterduring the 2011 Studio Cruise weekend to learn about the art of Tapestry Weaving!  Join us for this afternoon demonstration and learn more about this unique form of weaving.  Artist Kristin Majkrazak will provide a loom to give visitors an opportunity to try their hand at weaving.  Members from the group will be on hand from 10am to 3pm to show their work and answer questions.