MontiArts June Newsletter
Summer Summer SUMMER
Oh my gosh you guys. Grab onto summer before the state fair hits. You know the deal; it’ll be here before we know it. We have some really, really, cool stuff on the horizon for you, so scroll on down and mark your calendars. People are making a lot of new art friends at MontiArts, and there are always new people joining the mix. You will feel very welcome, so jump on in.
Will this be the summer of creative exploration for you? It could be!
Stay Curious & Creative. - Sue Seeger
BIG ANNOUNCEMENT: Nordic Brewing Will Be At Our Community Art Show!!
You do not want to miss this! We will be showing off the work of over 40 local artists and Nordic will be leveling-up our 6th year celebration as well. All exhibiting artists will be wearing indentifying ribbons, like last time, so even the introverts can find their people and mix and mingle.
We’ll be creating a temporary patio area behind our building for Nordic, which will be serving food, brews, and n/a beverages. Big thanks to Zach and the crew at Nordic for being such big supporters of the arts in Monticello and for being at our event.
Another cool thing that will be happening at the party is a CD decorating activity where anyone can use acrylic paint pens to jazz up an old CD that can be added to the CD curtain in our front window.
Seriously— get this on your calendar. It will be a fun night. I’m not exaclty calling it Art Prom (or AM I?) - But it is a great excuse to bust-out your arty outfits and enjoy a night out in downtown Monticello.
Arts In The Parks Program Debuts June 27th From 1 to 4 At Otter Creek Park
How cute are these two?
This is a brand new thing and we are so excited about it. Thanks to a grant from the Central Mn Arts Board, we are bringing Montiarts into our parks surrounding the downtown this summer. There will be 5 pop-up events in different parks. Erica Witzmann and Sadie Nielsen will be heading-up these events, with help from Yasmin Solares. Here is the schedule:
-June 27th, 1 to 4, at Otter Creek Park
-July 18th, 3 to 6, at East Bridge Park
-Aug 15th, 1 to 4, at Ellison Park
-Aug 29th, 3 to 6, 4th Street Park
-Sept 19th, 3 to 6, West Bridge Park
We’ll have some fun art projects anyone can participate in at each one, and thanks to our grant and one of our amazing artists who is bilingual, we will have a Spanish translator at each event!
New and COOL: We will have some basic level digial cameras to sign-out during the event for use at the events. We will be offering some very basic photographic instruction during a portion of each event, so anyone who would like to participate in the MontiArts Community Photography In Our Parks Show is able to. (Wow- that event name really rolls off the ol’ tougue. Will work on it.) That show will be in October at MonttiArts, date TBD.
Photography In Our Parks Inspo Pic By Erica Witzmann
These pop-up arts events are intended to bring our programming out into the neighborhoods and encourage folks who might not have been bold enough to come to MontiArts in person (yet!) to express/explore their creativity. MontiArts really is for everyone, and we want people to feel welcome to forge new connections in our community through the arts..
There Are Still Open Spots!!
Buckle-up mosaic artists. We’re about to launch into overdrive! Thanks to a grant from the Central MN Arts Board, we have an opportunity to work with regional mosaic master Laura Ruprecht. Some of you took her beginner workshop last fall. This will be a whole new ball-game. The designs on the flier are some examples of her extraordinary work. But for this project Laura is creating 6 all-new original designs, just for Monticello.
In these workshops we will be working similar to the old-world apprentice style of art making, where we are all working together to create pieces true to the lead artists Laura’s vision. You will learn advanced glass cutting and shaping skills, and how to create an intricate mosaic on top of a printed design overlayed with backing mesh.
This is it, Monticello artists; the beginning of our mosaic movement. It’s a chance for us to build a coalition of highly skilled mosaic artists right in our own midst. This will be an opportunity for us to absorb and pass these skills along to others in subsequent years. Let’s create a legacy of community-built public art in Monticello together.
The design-reveal workshop dates with Laura are Sat June 29th, Sat Aug 3rd, and Sat Sept 7th, from 10 to 4.
At each of these Sat Workshops we will receive 2 new designs from Laura and will have roughly a month to complete our work. Laura will get us started, and check on our progress throughout the project. We will get to see our work installed onto the round benches and grouted as the project unfolds. At the end we’ll host a public unveiling and have a party.
You can sign-up for one workshop, or all 3. This will be a time commitment. This will be exactling work. The results will be spectacular and unlike anything else in our region. The workshops will have a limit of 8 people. This workgroup will be an excellent chance to make some new art friends. We will arrange for many worksessions throughout the month to accomodate people’s schedules in order to complete the mosaics in time for the next launch. There will be some independent work sessions available once everyone’s skills have been brought up to par, too.
This is not a beginner’s project. If you have some mosiac experience and want to be part of a legacy project everyone will be very proud of, sign-up now, and let’s make some amazing art together this summer!
Sign-up HERE for Session 1 (June 29th), HERE for Session 2 (Aug 3rd), and HERE for Session 3 (Sept 7th).
New Info:
These workshops will take place at our main space— 213 W Broadway— in the AC. (Yay!) Laura will provide detailed printed designs, with a mesh overlay. These designs will be separated like puzzle pieces into chunks, allowing artists to work on their adopted section at a table with their own little work area. We will create a storage area for the sections for in between work sessions.
Once we complete the initial Sat workshop with Laura, we will determine a schedule that works for each specific work group for the ensuing month, during which we will complete our “Homework” by finishing the designs on our own.
It should be meticulous work, but really fun, and we’re hoping some of the people who participated in or were waitlisted for the Fish Mosaic Project (or any other artists with glass cutting experience or who are up to the challenge) will sign-up.
Feel free to reach out to sue with any questions— sue.montiarts@gmail.com
Coming July 12th: Solo Show: Brian Larson- Color & Flow
Brian was nice enough to sit for an interview recently. He is one of our MontiArts residency artists, which means he uses a studio space at MontiArts for his “art office” and helps with various creative goings on in town.
Brian is a painter, and a talented musician. He has a strong online following through his yourtube channel, Metaverse Music. He also has an art website, a music website, and is about to launch an app.
Brian is one of the most introspective and interesting artists I’ve ever had the pleasure of interviewing, and is very humble and easy to talk to. Be sure to mark your calendar now for this show, which promises to be very cool and unlike anything we’ve held before. He will have orignal pieces for sale, some small affordable art, and even tee shirts and other items with his art printed on them. He believes art should be accessible to everyone. He’s going to be creating a mural on the back of MontiArts this summer with help from student artists and former interns from the High School Art Club.
Here’s a bit of my conversation with him, transcribed from an audio interview.
Sue: Hi Brian! Thanks so much for taking the time to talk to us today. Tell me a bit about your artistic journey. I think you mentioned you were always doing art, and were in bands in high school. Were you always an art kid?
Brian: Of course! Thanks for setting this up! Yeah I always was, for sure. I started out drawing comics. I would draw Spiderman, and Batman and Wolverine in Jr High and into high school. Then I started to get into painting in high school and took an independent study art class my senior year. I made this giant orange juice carton, like, (laughs) 5 feet tall. I wish I still had it! it took up so muich room though.
S: That is a cool thing about sculpture work. The undeniable presence of “Look, I made a THING!” (haha) Did it have some kind of underlying meaning for you, or was it an exercise in taking a very familiar object and enlarging it?
B: Yeah, it was a replica of the same exact orange juice cartons we had for lunch in the caffeteria. It was just like, “What if this familiar thing we saw every single day was just suddenly massive, and standing in the middle of the hallway?” (laughs)
S: At that point were you thinking ahead at all? Were you thinking of yourself as an artist? Were you thinking, “I’m going to do this and be an artist my entire life”? Were you thinking it would be your career?
B: I was, yeah. Musician and artist— I always knew. Yeah. With music I used to have Casio keyboards, and a couple tape reorders, and I’d bounce tracks between 2 different boom boxes— this was in jr high, and I was really into rap. So I was super into making my own little rap songs, then it changed to heavy metal, and then The Beatles, then back to rap, (laughs).
S: Were you combining your visual art and music back then too, or did that come later?
B: A bit later.
S: The stuff we see on your Metaverse Youtube channel, with the mandalas etc, are those your animations?
B: Yep. I have created a huge catalog of original music, first on my Youtube channel, then I got my website up where people could buy mp3s, and now some people are also licensing the music, so I’m really glad I did that. The app will be somewhere people can have full streaming access to all my music and there will be some guided meditations, similar to the Calm app, but heavily music focused.
S: A lot of your work seems centered around mindfulness. Would you say that it’s at the heart fo your work, and your art and music are sort of the vehicles you’re using to get people there?
B: Yes. I use my art and music as tools to help people connect to their inner selves.
S: Personally, I love your channel. When I’m working from home I’ll often have it on all day playing in the background. It’s not distracting, but creates a very pleasing atmosphere.
B: Thanks. Yeah. I worked really hard on it, leanring video editing and Aftereffects etc. I started out in a practical art career— being a web designer, so applied a lot of those skills to what I’m doing now.
S: Let’s talk a bit about your visual art; your paintings. Your work has a lot of movement and flow to it, even when there might not necessarily be action in the piece itself. I believe I heard you’re a synesthete, is that accurate? Can you explain what that is?
B: Yes- I get a lot of inspiration from walking out in nature. I love walking at Westbridge Park and Montissippi Park. I take pictures. I might see a cool tree and take a picture of it, but only use it as a guide. I see and feel a lot of flow in images, and somtimes the flow seems a bit chaotic at first. Painting is teaching me how to use both sides of my brain to tame that flow somewhat into a chohesive composition. I’m always trying to capture the energy I see in nature. Yes, I have Synesthesia. It is a melding of senses I guess. I thought everyone had it until during a carpool conversation about what color letters of the alphabet were. (Laughs) And the rest of the people in the car were like, “What are you talking about?” (Laughs) I did a little research then and found this is a condition some people have. It’s not super common, but can apply to any melding of the senses. In my case letters and numbers all have colors, shapes, textures, and personalities. It’s kind of a mind’s eye type thing. I just automatically see things that way without trying at all. Like, 3 is green, and has kind of a mischienious personality. (Laughs) And music is like that for me too; kind of a moving painting, that I hear and see all at once, and it has texture and is 3 dimensional. It all interconnects and interrelates. It can be sensory overload at times. That is probably the main reason I got into meditation, for a refuge.
S: Wow— fasinating. You have mentioned nature quite a bit, and a lot of your paintings depict nature. Do you find it sort of grounding?
B: Absolutely. I’ve been meditating sitting at the bases of trees a lot lately, and it just pulls everything out. It just really heals me. It’s so healing being in nature. It pulls all the tension out and relives me greatly.
Let’s Chalk Returns Aug 24-25
Mark your calendars right now for Chalkfest— officially known as “Monticello, Let’s Chalk.” This year the festival will take place right along West Bridge Park in the Block 52 lot, along part of River St, and on the plaza end of Walnut north of Broadway. MontiArts will be open all weekend for visitors to check out Brian Larson’s art show and the general coolness of MontiArts. Please stop in and hang out for a bit. This will be practically right outside out back door!
The event facilitators are already in the planning stages of this which means it’s time for all you local artists who’d like to participate in Monticello, Let’s Chalk to sign-up by emailing sue.montiarts@gmail.com. Please title your email “Chalkfest.” Each artist will be issued a set of professional artist chalks to keep.
We’ve had great participation from our creative community in past years; people have had a great time creating chalk art right alongside the pros brought in from all over the country. It is a wonderful opportunity to observe the techniques of these masters of the medium first hand, and to get a chance to visit with them and ask questions.
Amateur artists are typically given a 4’ x 4’ spot, but larger spots might be available. Ask if you are interested in that and we’ll find out if that’s an option.
Brand New: Indigenous Open Studio Starts June 11th
If you are an Indigenous person and you’d like a supportive place to find community and explore your creativity; this group is for you. Please help spread the word to those who might be served by this new program, facilitated by Jamie Randall. If you have any questions, please reach out to Sue via email. sue.montiarts@gmail.com
