If you want to see the original work of the artists on the Studio Artour but are short on time… Six studios will be open Friday October 19th from 4-8pm and will be featuring the work of 16 artists. They are…
#4 Holmquist Pottery, Northfield, featuring the work of potters Chris and Sue Holmquist, painter Marsha Kitchel, and glass artist Lucky Rimpila.
#5 Jody Hanscom Studio, Faribault, featuring the murals of Jody Hanscom.
#7 Sunset Studios, Northfield, featuring the work of potters Tom Willis and DeAnn Engval, jewelry and textiles by Judy Saye-Willis, photography and books by Patsy Dew, weavings by Kathy Anderson, lampwork and jewelry by Sue Peoples, and watercolors by Kathy Miller.
#8 Somers’ Studio and Gallery, Northfield,  featuring the paintings of Fred Somers.
#10 JMF Studio, Faribault, featuring the work of painter Julie Fakler and textile artist Deb Johnson.
#24 Jim’s Stained Glass, Faribault, featuring the work of glass artist Jim Pichner.
Pick up a brochure  with a map at the Faribault and Northfield Chamber of Commerce or go to the web site www.studioartour.com.

Judy Saye Willis

By Elizabeth Child
Sue Hammes-Knopf’s warm, welcoming smile belies what fellow artists say about her. She’s the den mother of the McClaughry Building in Northfield. With artist’s studios nearing double digits, the McClaughry Building at 101 East 5th Street is Northfield’s version of Minneapolis’ Northrup King building.

Sue Hammes Knopf

The scale may be smaller, but the quality of the artists is at least as high. Every artist in the building is opening up his or her studio for the Studio ArTour this year—a feat no less than getting every last voter on your block to vote.

Last week, Hammes-Knopf invited me to Wine Time, an evening ritual she hosts with painter and studio-mate Maryrose Gondeck. I got to preview the studios, meet members of the McClaughry art community, and yes, share the fine wine 😉

“I’m excited to invite customers to see my workspace,” says Hammes-Knopf who has been touting the tour all summer. Known for her brightly colored, contemporary jewelry, she says she wants people to see that the joy and exuberance in her work is reflected in the artist and the studio, too.

Hammes-Knopf is well known in southern Minnesota, throughout the Twin Cities and in Florida where she winters. And that’s just for starters. In June she was awarded Best of Show for Jewelry at the Wayzata Festival of Arts. In August she was a finalist at the Uptown Art Fair. And she just heard that she was awarded an Individual Artist Grant by Southeastern Minnesota Arts Council.

October 20 and 21 from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. she’ll be among the McClaughry Building artists inviting you to feel the good vibes of their unique art community. Watch for more artist profiles right here as we count down to the tour!

The eighth annual Studio ArTour is coming up in Cannon Falls, Northfield and Faribault in just 10 days. I want to share about some of the fabulous artists you can meet October 20 and 21 (Saturday and Sunday) from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. as the 10-day countdown begins.

Pastel Painter Fred Somers

Fred Somers is a force in the world of pastel painting—not just here in flatland—but nationwide. He was the first place winner in the Landscape Division of the American Artists’ Magazine Best Art of 2011, published in their January 2011 issue. Just last month he received the Bronze Award at the International Association of Pastel Societies’ (IAPS) 10th Exhibition in Brea, California.  That award qualified him as the second person in the organization to be honored as Eminent Pastellist.

Count yourself lucky to be able to meet him in his own studio. Fred shows and teaches next year in far reaching places including New York and Atlanta. Unlike watercolor enthusiasts out there, though, you will be able to see where his inspiration comes from.

Documentary on Fred Somers Coming Soon

In November, Fred is anticipating the premier of videographer Paul Krause’s documentary about his painting that is now installed at the Carondelet Villages in St. Paul on the St. Catherine University campus. Visitors to Fred’s studio last year at the Studio ArTour saw Somers’ unfinished painting for Carondelet Villages.  Details of the painting and all of Fred’s work are posted at: www.fredericksomers.com.

Find out about all the Studio ArTour artists by visiting www.StudioArTour.com—and be a tourist October 20 and 21!

This weekend provides three opportunities to support three Studio ArTour artists.

On Friday, Saturday and Sunday, May 11-13, Jennifer Wolcott (Studio #2) will be selling her new garden sculptures and adornments at the Friends School Plant Sale held in the Grandstand Building on the MN State Fair Grounds in St. Paul.  Each year on Mother’s Day weekend in May, Friends School puts on the biggest plant sale in Minnesota where over 2,300 varieties of plants are offered for sale.

The hours are:
Friday, May 11, 9:00 a.m. – 8:00 p.m.
Saturday, May 12, 10:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m.
Sunday, May 13, 12:00 noon – 4:00 pm.

On Saturday May 12, Heather Lawrenz (studio #2) will be selling her new leather and file cabinet jewelry at Craftstravaganza, in the Fine Arts Building on the MN State Fair Grounds. The St. Paul Craftstravaganza is an annual urban craft fair. It is a place to find unique handmade art, meet the artists who make it, and learn new crafty skills to start your own projects. The fair runs from 10:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m

Also on Saturday, May 12, Lilla Johnson (Studio #17), will be showing her four book suite: Summer, Fall, Winter and Spring entitled “The Year After My Mother Died” at the Red Wing Anderson Center show called “The Art of the Book.”

This show features seventeen artists from the Minnesota Center for the Book Arts and runs May 12-June 15. Throughout the afternoon on May 12, there will be book arts demonstrations and poetry readings, with a reception for the visiting artists at 6:30 p.m. in the Main Gallery. The event is free and open to the public.

Lilla Johnson, Summer Lithograph from "The Year After My Mother Died"

Acquiring parts

Cutting through metal

Necessary tools

"Who Do You Love?"

The American Craft Council project: Upcycle

Title: “Who do you love?”
Medium: Sheet metal, oddments and slate
Artist: Jennifer Wolcott

Jennifer Wolcott was invited to participate in a show within the big American Craft Council show that runs this weekend at the Rivercentre in St Paul. The objective was to make a piece of art/craft out of something else. Jennifer chose to build a small cabinet skinned in pieces of the truck hood topped with slate blackboard. Wolcott describes the piece as “A play between the lush curves of auto body panels and something proletariat like a beer cooler.”

The Dodge Dakota truck hood came from a salvage yard in a sea of mud last March. The blackboards are from the middle school sale a number of years ago. “I have hauled eight full size real slate black boards from town to the farm and now the village. It is great to be finally using them” Wolcott said. “The story behind the piece is the memory of driving a pickup truck down rural roads as a teenager listening to Bo Diddly scratchy on the radio from Chicago. “

To see Jennifer’s piece in person this weekend, head on over to the ACC show

Friday, April 20, from 10 a.m. – 8 p.m.
Saturday, April 21, from 10 a.m. – 6 p.m.
Sunday, April 22, from 10 a.m. – 5 p.m.

Prudence On Table

“I’ve always been painting and drawing as long as I can remember,” Julie Fakler states. After spending a summer on a hobby farm, Julie fostered an interest in the animals’ distinctive physical characteristics and personalities. “The anti-social cat, the over affectionate dog, the protective donkey, they all give me inspiration to paint.” Most of Julie’s latest paintings are of her cats, who were all strays before she adopted them.

I paint domestic animals and I was trying to think of a way to help out local domestic animals. That’s when I came up with the idea to paint portraits of the animals at the Prairie’s Edge Humane Society. The Prairie’s Edge Humane Society Portraits are paintings of the adoptable animals from the Prairie’s Edge Humane Society. The images of the animals represent their energy, personality and physical attributes. There is a wide variety of wonderful animals in need of your help right now at the Prairie’s Edge Humane Society. Please adopt from & support your local humane society. This exhibit and body of work are made possible by a grant provided by the Southeastern Minnesota Arts Council & McKnight Foundation.

See Julie Fakler’s new work on display in two exhibitions:

Prairie’s Edge Humane Society Portraits
March 2 to April 17, 2012
Paradise Center for the Arts
Carlander Family Gallery
321 Central Avenue
Faribault, MN 55021
507-332-7372

http://www.paradisecenterforthearts.org/

New Work by Julie Fakler, Philip Taylor, and John Wells
Northfield Arts Guild
304 Division Street
Northfield, MN 55057
507-645-8877

http://northfieldartsguild.org/

East Fourth Street Jewelry

Susan Crow of East Fourth Street Jewelry has been invited to exhibit her jewelry at The GreenShows presentation during the 2012 New York Fashion Week.  Harvey Russack, Owner & CEO of The GreenShows says ” Our mission has always been to present trend-setting, ethical and sustainable luxury design to the elite fashion community.”

Victoria Simes, renowned jewelry designer and stylist, will curate this installation of contemporary ethical fashion accessories from a select number of jewelry designers.  Susan says “This is a huge opportunity for me to meet and show with other designers that believe in the strength of luxury ethical fashion.” Congrats, Susan!

Fred Somers painting

Want to be a part of Studio ArTour 2012?  Applications are now available, and are due March 1, 2012.  This year will be better than ever!

Jill Ewald Painting

Today begins the 7th annual Studio ArTour and Sale!  From 10-6 on Saturday and Sunday, we invite you to stroll through our studios and see what we have created. Enjoy demonstrations, learn about different art processes and maybe, take home some new art.  Have fun this weekend!

Lori Schmidt Lampwork Beads

Glass Bead Making Studio

Lori Schmidt Lampwork Beads

Lori Schmidt Beaded Beads

Lori Schmidt (studio #17) has been hard at work creating glass beads and beaded beads that she will display as finished jewelry on the Tour.  She makes her own glass beads by melting glass rods in a torch, then manipulates the molten glass over a metal rod which creates the hole in the bead.  During the Tour, she will be demonstrating the fascinating art of lampworking, or glass bead making.

Despite the challenge of making matching sets of handmade beads, Lori carefully selected pairs of beads that she made into stunning earrings that will be for sale on the Tour.  In addition to her lampwork jewelry, Lori will have another style of jewelry on display.  Over a single, large bead, she stitches tiny seed beads one at a time in a process that takes hours to complete one beaded bead.  Lori then incorporates these intricate beaded beads as components in beautiful bracelets, necklaces and earrings.

Guests in Lori’s studio are Mary Foote and Jessica Prill.  Mary will have her new paintings on display, and Jessica will be showing her jewelry, some pieces featuring the keum-boo process.