Wausau, Wisconsin: The 30th annual Wausau’s Artrageous Weekend, Saturday and Sunday, September 7-8, offers fun for all ages during north central Wisconsin’s biggest art extravaganza, spanning both sides of the Wisconsin River.
This weekend favorite overflows with art throughout four admission-free locations – Art in the Park in Marathon Park, the opening of “Birds in Art” at the Woodson Art Museum, the Festival of Arts, and the Center for the Visual Arts galleries, both in downtown Wausau.
The weekend art extravaganza offers distinct, complementary experiences, including the “Birds in Art” 44th-annual opening festivities and Artists in Action on Saturday morning at the Woodson Art Museum; artwork, adult art classes, family art activities, music, and food at the Festival of Arts (on Third Street and the 400 Block); artwork at the CVA, 427 N. Fourth Street, and its gift shop in the Third Street Lifestyle Center; and an array of artisans’ handcrafted work at Art in the Park at Marathon Park. Children’s art activities, food, and entertainment abound. All events are admission free and are linked by complimentary, handicapped-accessible, shuttle bus service. For an overview, check the Wausau’s Artrageous Weekend webpage, https://www.lywam.org/wausaus-artrageous-weekend/ and to see the 2019 brochure.
MARATHON PARK: Art in the Park brings together more than 120 exhibitors in the East Gate Hall and Historic Exhibition Building in Marathon Park on Stewart Avenue near 17th Avenue, on Wausau’s west side. Affordable fine arts and handcrafted items for gifts, pets, children, home, and garden include pottery, wearable art, paintings, photography, and more at this lively venue. A children’s art and craft area offers free make-and-take activities as well as children’s book reading sessions. Assorted food and beverage selections are available for purchase from local non-profit groups and businesses; ATM available. Free admission. Saturday, 9 a.m.-5 p.m.; Sunday, 9 a.m.-4 p.m.
DOWNTOWN: Festival of Arts, now in its 55th year, is located on Third Street and the 400 Block and offers for purchase work by over 120 juried artists representing a variety of mediums. Strolling down Third Street, the festive browse-and-buy atmosphere is enhanced by live music on two stages. On the 400 Block, families can participate in children’s art activities in the Family Art tent and enjoy family appropriate entertainment on the Family Stage. Still Young at Art adult art classes provide adults with an opportunity to create his or her own work of art. At the Young Collector Market and Scholarship Silent Auction, art collectors of all ages can purchase art generously donated by Festival artists with the proceeds providing scholarships for area art students. Food stands, operated by local non-profit organizations, offer a delicious assortment of food and beverages. Free admission. Saturday 10 a.m.-5 p.m.; Sunday, 10 a.m.-4 p.m.
DOWNTOWN: Center for Visual Arts, 427 N. Fourth Street, in the recently renovated historic building, includes the Pottery Studio, new Vault Gallery, and Studio Room. The CVA, a not-for-profit visual arts organization, works to engage people in the visual arts and add to the livability of the Wausau regional community through free exhibitions in professional gallery venues, by offering art classes for children and adults through the CVA School of Art, selling original artist work in its Gift Shop located in the Third Street Lifestyle Center of Washington Square, and collaborating with other local organizations and businesses to enrich the community. The CVA was the Wausau Region Chamber of Commerce’s 2016 Small Business of the Year – Charitable Non-Profit – Award Recipient and the City’s Page’s 2017 Best Of… Local Arts Organization. Free admission. Saturday 10 a.m.-5 p.m.; Sunday, 10 a.m.-4 p.m.
EASTSIDE: “Birds in Art” opening weekend festivities at the Leigh Yawkey Woodson Art Museum feature opportunities Saturday morning to meet more than 60 artists who flock to the Museum from throughout the world for the opening of this internationally renowned exhibition. Early birds who visit the Museum on Saturday, September 7, 9 a.m.-Noon, can meet more these artists in the galleries and sculpture garden where they will talk with visitors and sign catalogues and posters. Browse galleries to see fresh artistic takes on birds by some of the world’s most talented artists in an array of mediums, portraying unexpected perspectives, amusing poses, and majestic bearing. This 44th-annual “Birds in Art” exhibition presents paintings, graphics, and sculptures created by more than 100 artists who bring a global perspective to their passion for birds. Always free admission. Special opening-weekend hours: Saturday, September 7, 9 a.m.-5 p.m.; Sunday, September 8, 10 a.m.-5 p.m. “Birds in Art” remains on view through December 1, 2019. A recipient of the 2017 National Medal, the Woodson Art Museum was one of only two art museums to receive this nation’s highest honor for museum service to its community, awarded by the Institute of Museum and Library Services, a federal agency supporting the nation’s approximately 123,000 libraries and 35,000 museums.
Free, handicapped-accessible shuttle buses connecting all four locations run every 15-20 minutes from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. from designated locations: downtown at the SE corner of the 400 Block at Fourth and Jefferson streets, at Marathon Park near East Gate Hall, and at the Woodson Art Museum on Twelfth Street, near the Museum’s south parking lot.
For overall information, visit https://www.lywam.org/wausaus-artrageous-weekend/
For details or additional information, contact each organization:
- Art in the Park, Wisconsin Valley Art Association,wisconsinvalleyart@gmail.com, wivalleyart.org
- Festival of Arts, info@wausaufoa.org, 715-842-1676, wausaufoa.org
- Center for the Visual Arts, info@cvawausau.org, 715-842-4545, cvawausau.org
- Woodson Art Museum, info@lywam.org, 715-845-7010, lywam.org/birds-in-art
Access photos via links, below. Click on the following URL links to access photos from each venue; please include caption information with images used.
Festival of Arts hi-res photo: Shoppers stroll amongst booths downtown at Festival of Arts during Wausau’s Artrageous Weekend.
Center for the Visual Arts hi-res photo: Artwork in the Center for the Visual Arts galleries
Art in the Park hi-res photo: Art in the Park artist demonstration at Marathon Park during Wausau’s Artrageous Weekend.
Woodson Art Museum hi-res photo: The Leigh Yawkey Woodson Art Museum welcomes visitors and artists from throughout the world for Birds in Art opening festivities during Wausau’s Artrageous Weekend.
