Weaving Willow Encourages Growth
Posted on June 26, 2019
Last week, artist Bonnie Gale returned to the Woodson Art Museum for an artist residency and to pay a visit to Living Willow Dreams, one year after she and assistant Jonna Evans installed the living willow structure in the Museum’s sculpture garden. Living Willow Dreams offers a lush, green garden-retreat where visitors can take a moment to sit and observe the busy, although often overlooked, activities of summertime garden inhabitants.
Botanical Beauties
Posted on June 19, 2019
For years I’ve referred to myself as a real estate hog. What does that mean for a curator? Well, anytime I see a wall in the Woodson Art Museum sans artwork I look to enhance it with selections from the collection.
Cultivating Connections through Botanical Art
Posted on June 12, 2019
How many times have colorful blooms caught your eye and caused you to wonder “what is that flower?” During a recent trip to southwest Wisconsin, conspicuous purple flowers clustered along roadsides and woodland edges garnered attention and conversation. Visit the Museum often with friends and family to discover the many ways botanical art fosters connections between people and plants and deepens appreciation for beauty, creativity, and each other.
Installations & Transitions
Posted on June 05, 2019
Most professions have unique vocabularies. In the art museum world, “installation” refers to the displaying of artworks – whether hung on a gallery wall or incorporated into a space. It also is the transition between exhibitions.
This Project Means “A Lot”
Posted on May 29, 2019
While not as exciting as the work done to the lower level gallery, Art Park, or even the Museum’s roof, there’s no mistaking the importance of a tip-top parking lot.
First Museum Experiences
Posted on May 22, 2019
What do you remember about the first museum you visited? I remember an early – perhaps not my first – museum experience as though it were yesterday. Earlier this month, Wisconsin-born artist Mark Wagner – who grew up in Edgar – undertook a multi-day residency in tandem with the inclusion of his collages in Cut Up/Cut Out, now on view at the Woodson Art Museum. To our delight, we learned, the Woodson was his first museum! If you’ve been thinking about taking the plunge and engaging in a “first museum experience,” now’s the time to do so.
Showing and Sharing: Reconnecting at the Art Museum
Posted on May 15, 2019
This past weekend I visited family in Cincinnati; the trip was part Mother’s Day celebration, part long-overdue reunion.
My family visit to the Cincinnati Art Museum reinforced my belief that museum visits are moving and memorable social outings worth celebrating and sharing with others. It’s fitting that I reflect on the power of museum visits this week, as May 11-18 marks Museum Week and Arts Wisconsin’s Creative Economy Week.
The Art of Deconstruction
Posted on May 08, 2019
We have a new puppy in our household – Hawkeye, a 3-month-old Brittany. Although he hasn’t begun teething in earnest, it won’t be long. A puppy, deconstructing paper and more, has one thing in common with the artists whose meticulously cut artworks are featured in the Cut Up/Cut Out exhibition, on view at the Woodson Art Museum through June 2. Surprising materials. Hawkeye chews acorn caps, wood chips, and rocks. In addition to vintage maps, books, and leaves, Cut Up/Cut Out artists intricately cut a saw blade, tire, and an oil barrel – transforming these items into lacey, intriguing wonders infused with thought-provoking themes.
Cherished Challenges
Posted on May 01, 2019
I often share my excitement about featuring the Woodson Art Museum’s paintings, sculptures, works on paper, and decorative arts in exhibitions. Because the care of those treasured artworks is vital, I consider the continuing research and education to ensure I’m using the latest techniques and proper conservation supplies equally fascinating and challenging.
Art Friends
Posted on April 24, 2019
Last week across the globe, devices pinged, news alerts broke, and satellite transmissions bounced around the atmosphere drawing most to digital images; images of 850-year-old craftsmanship, handwork, and artistry succumbing to one of earth’s elements – fire. Interpretations are numerous and various attempting to explain why individuals worldwide stopped to share – at a minimum a view and for most, mourning of – the partial destruction of Notre-Dame Cathedral.
