"Within you is the power of unlimited creation" - Bryant McGill

Dear WRAP artists and friends,
In our every changing world with the coronavirus, school and group closings we sincerely appreciate your flexibility as the situation develops and changes daily. I'm working with coordinators to reschedule upcoming WRAP's for April and possible May...(to be determined).We will be in touch with more information when we have more information. Our biggest concern is for your health and safety! The best thing for everyone currently to do is to stay home, not panic and CREATE ART. Please use our Wisconsin Regional Art Facebook page as a platform to share your current creations during these interesting times. Let's inspire each other. Again, thank you for your flexibility as your health and safety again is our main concern.
If you have specific questions please email angela.johnson@wisc.edu

A fantastic kick off to this guide is Art at Home which includes over 60 options for art contests, museums, art games, art education, digital art, and art at home. Distantly Together is another great resource that includes opportunities to connect with other artists, call for art, online exhibition spaces, and much more.
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Movies, shows, and more about art
PBS Wisconsin has some great options for those who want art from home. The Arts Page, found here provides episodes that feature four to five segments on arts and culture in the Milwaukee area. PBS Wisconsin has other opportunities to watch shows about art. You can click here and search by “Arts and Music” in the Select Genre drop down. Our other reading suggestions outside of PBS Wisconsin include ​Meet Frank Juarez and  Artdose Magazine Vol 28.
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Theater
Starting April 6th The Globe is streaming  Hamlet, Romeo & Juliet, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, The Winter’s Tale, The Two Noble Kinsmen, and finally, The Merry Wives of Windsor. Find more information here.

Great Theater, Dance, and Classical Music to Tune Into While Stuck at Home
Lincoln Center has a new online portal; the Royal Danish Ballet is streaming; and museums and galleries expand online offerings. Here is a list of digital content.

Resources for you and your organization
Center for Disease Control and Prevention 
World Health Organization
Wisconsin Department of Health Services
ArtsReady
Preparing Your Organization for the Corona Virus Disease Outbreak
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Speaking of Book Arts is a current exhibition in the Chazen Museum of Art in Madison, WI. It includes fifty years' worth of book art, quite literally telling the story behind the art through oral history. The Chazen Museum of Art, Kohler Art Library, and UW archives, along with twenty-one students and faculty collaborated to create this exhibit for the public. The auditory element of this exhibition is not only unique, it allows the art to tell a story in more ways than one. Speaking of Book Arts if open February 1st through April 19th 2020. The Chazen Museum of Art is open daily, galleries: 11am-8pm.

The University of Wisconsin - Superior is holding an annual juried exhibition. Natalie Salminen Rude is the juror for varied-medium exhibition. This highlights the talent of UW Superior students on campus while offering a space for surprising new voices in the visual arts. The Exhibit is open March 5th-25th 2020 (2-6pm Monday-Thursday), along with a reception March 25th 12pm-1pm.

MMoCA Hosts Kids' Art Adventures: Uncommon Accumulation
Sunday, March 15, 2020
1:00 PM - 2:30 PM

Sauk City Public Library Hosts Kids Art Afternoon
Monday, March 23, 2020
1 PM – 4 PM


Sheboygan Visual Arts Hosts WAKE UP to Arts
Friday, March 27, 2020
6:00 PM - 9:00 PM
Family Friendly

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​Follow this link to find information regarding all upcoming WRAP Exhibitions!
https://continuingstudies.wisc.edu/conferences/wisconsin-regional-art-program/wrap-schedule/

​Clarence Boyce Monegar never gave up on his passion to pursue art despite the many obstacles that crossed his path. Monegar was a Native American man born in Wittenberg, Shawano County, on April 10, 1910. His family viewed a career in art as an unreliable source of income. His father discouraged his passion for art and urged him to help provide for the family. Although Monegar’s career in art was not taken seriously by his family, his mother tried to support him when she could. She herself was a lover of art and enjoyed craft.
Monegar found more support for his art at school. For three years he was a student at Parochial Indian School. It was here that his talent was first recognized by the Reverend T. M. Rykken. From there he was sent to Tomah Indian School to advance his skills. Although he was very talented, Monegar was unable to finish school.

Already living in extreme poverty, his family was in dire need of his help after his father’s death. Monegar left high school to provide for his family. During this time, he took a step away from art but always kept his dream in the back of his mind.

After a few years of working miscellaneous, uninspiring jobs, Monegar was itching for more—a life filled with excitement and wonder. He decided to run away with the circus. The next six months of his life were spent pursuing this adventure until he “got the circus out of his system.” Monegar returned home and made a living painting signs. He settled down and married Emma Stacy. She was part of an affluent family that encouraged Monegar’s art. However, this stable life did not last long. His wife became ill and everything spiraled downward. After her passing, Monegar was unable to provide for his four children and was thrown in jail.

He managed to make the best out of his situation, throwing himself into his art. He spent his days in his cell drawing highly detailed wildlife from memory. Art saved his life. The Clark Country did not want his talent to go unnoticed so they allowed Monegar to be released on parole. They drove him straight to John Steuart Curry, founder of the WRAP program, so that his talent would be recognized. Curry was extremely impressed with Monegar’s precision and unique painting style. This encouragement was the very thing Monegar needed to propel him forward into his art career. Although a talented artist his entire life, Monegar truly began to thrive when he saw something in himself.

From there his art career flourished. He became a recognized member of the rural artist community and was able to partially support his family by painting— something he had only previously dreamed of. He showed and sold pieces in the next Rural Art Exhibit and continued to improve his craft. The rest of his years were spent between odd jobs and creating art. He remarried, had more children, and decided to take a few classes at the Chicago Art Institute. Monegar was successful because he never gave up on his dreams. Despite his various hardships in life, he never abandoned his family or his art.

Regional Coordinator responsibilities: 

• Manage communications between WRAP Central (in Madison) and their Regional WRAP 
• Interact with participating artists and help them through the WRAP process 
• Find an artist to act as Workshop Facilitator, and find a Juror 
• Coordinate the WRAP (choosing entry deadline, art drop-off time and location, exhibition and workshop dates) 
• Spread the word locally (word of mouth, emails, distribute posters provided by WRAP Central) 
• Report stats back to WRAP Central after your workshop 

WRAP Central provides a Coordinator Toolkit online, sends email updates, and checklists 12, 6, and 2 weeks in advance of your workshop, creates and sends posters and award cards, and does email outreach to libraries local to your WRAP. If you are interested in becoming a WRAP Regional Coordinator, please email wrap@dcs.wisc.edu or angela.johnson@wisc.edu.

Follow this link to find information regarding all upcoming WRAP Exhibitions!
https://continuingstudies.wisc.edu/conferences/wisconsin-regional-art-program/wrap-schedule/

Questions? Reach the team by email at wrap@dcs.wisc.edu or by phone at (608) 262-4911 ​

Wisconsin weather has decided to stabilize finally, leaving us with warm days, sunny afternoons, and chill nights. Why not add a little art to the mix? Here are a few listings of events happening in Wisconsin that could be of interest to WRAP participants!

- 2019 Art & Chalk Fest: July 27-28, Museum of Wisconsin Art, West Bend

- Art at the Park: July 28, Trout Museum of Art, Appleton

- Waukesha Art Crawl: August 3, Waukesha

- Starving Artist Fair: August 4, Gateway Technical College, Racine

​Looking to spend your leisure time exploring Wisconsin art museums? Here are some of Wisconsin's best art museums with their current exhibits!

​- Chazen Museum of Art: "In the Studio focuses attention on the artist’s studio, and the unique environments in which artists do their work. The objects on view are selected from across the museum’s collection, and draw connections and inevitable comparisons between artists of different times, cultures, and media". It will run until August 11

https://www.chazen.wisc.edu/

- Museum of Wisconsin Art: "2019 Member's Show showcases works by 250 MOWA members hanging salon style in the State Gallery. With work by professional artists and weekend warriors installed on equal footing, this exhibition offers an invaluable look into the creative vision of contemporary Wisconsin art."

https://wisconsinart.org/exhibitions/current.aspx

- Racine Art Museum: "Represent: Exploring Portraits from RAM's Collection features pieces that embrace the idea of a portrait as an investigation of character and situation, tangible details, and abstract elements. From self-portraits to works that encapsulate the essence of a subject through metaphor or emotion, these works encourage contemplation about how human beings understand one another as well as the world around them."

https://www.ramart.org/content/represent-exploring-portraits-rams-collection

​- Leigh Yawkey Woodson Art Museum: "Flora, Fauna, Font: Illustrating the Alphabet features Kandis Vermeer Phillips’ illuminated alphabet intertwined with plants, mammals, and insects. Phillips integrated extensive research into the history of and the natural materials used in medieval illuminated manuscripts into an alphabet primer for her granddaughter, combining decorative letters with representations of flowers and creatures found in her garden or during family travels."

https://www.lywam.org/exhibition/flora-fauna-font-illustrating-the-alphabet/

Hello all 2019 State Day Exhibition participants! There will additional drop-off dates at the Center for Visual Arts in Wausau.
Times: Saturday, July 27 from noon to 4 pm or Sunday, July 28 from noon to 4 pm
The artwork will be transported to the Pyle Center for you.

If you have any questions regarding 2019 State Day Conference and Exhibition participation, feel free to email wrap@dcs.wisc.edu with your inquiry. If you would like to volunteer with art drop-off or hanging the pieces, please reach out as well! Thanks much and we look forward to seeing you there!

The annual Arts and Cultural Production Satellite Account reported that Wisconsin's arts and cultural production accounts for $9.75 billion of the Wisconsin economy. That is around 3.1% of the state's cumulative economy. The arts and cultural production industries support around 94, 167 jobs, creating $5.6 billion in compensation for creative workers.

Interesting enough, the creative industry employs more Wisconsinites than Wisconsin’s beer jobs (63,000), biotech (35,000) and papermaking (31,000) industries, reported Arts Wisconsin. Arts Wisconsin is "Wisconsin’s community cultural development organization, the only independent statewide organization speaking up and working for the arts, arts education, creative economy, and creative placemaking in every corner of Wisconsin" (Arts Wisconsin website).

“The takeaway is that the creative industry, which ranges from nonprofit organizations to design firms to TV stations, is a force to be reckoned with,” said Anne Katz, director of Arts Wisconsin. “To succeed in the 21st century, Wisconsin needs diversity in its economy. Hopefully, we will continue to be a strong manufacturing and agriculture state, but also a very creative state. We want to make sure that our decision makers know this and that people pay attention that it’s a sector worthy of investment.”

According to the study, Wisconsin’s top five creative and arts industries, measured by the value they add to the economy, are: printed goods manufacturing, other goods manufacturing, custom architectural woodwork and metalwork manufacturing, publishing and construction.

With the volatile nature of our state's economy, Katz maintains taht she's encouraged to see a growing awareness of "creativity as a resource".

Source: https://www.biztimes.com/2019/industries/arts-entertainment-sports/study-wisconsins-creative-industries-have-9-7-billion-annual-impact/

Arts Wisconsin website: https://www.artswisconsin.org/
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​The new piece of sculptural eye candy at the bottom of State Street intersecting Library Mall features sprawling stainless steel panels and a cut out which resembles the sun. The panels have incisions that mimic the movement of shadows. Deliberately, this piece was oriented towards the vernal and autumnal equinox. At night, the piece illuminates with LED lights to catch the gaze of all walking past. 

“Both/And — Tolerance/Innovation” was completed by David Dahlquist and Matt Niebuhr of RDG Dahlquist Studio in Des Moines, Iowa. Dahlquist, his son, and daughter are all alumni of UW. He received an undergraduate degree in arts education here.

“Matt Niebuhr and I have been a public artist team for many years, and we work all over the country and in Canada,” says Dahlquist. “Matt is not only a visual artist; he is an architect, so our experience and expertise come together on projects like this.”

Dahlquist and Niebuhr have been a team for years, working all over North America. Both are visual artists, but Niebuhr is also an architect, which is beneficial in a project like this that deals with city planning, etc. 

Both artists try to focus on story, structure, and site in their sculptural installations. Many hours were put in to photographing the space, walking around and surveying the traffic flow of students and people moving around State Street and Library Mall. “It is uniquely situated,” Dahlquist says of the sculpture, explaining  that the title is about the acceptance of many ideas. This idea is reflected in the space which it sits within, as the site is surrounded by the Wisconsin Historical Society, Memorial Library and three different churches. “It’s really, I think in some ways, what a university is about,” Dahlquist proclaims.

https://isthmus.com/arts/visual-arts/tolerance-innovation-sculpture-state-street/

Over the weekend, I was able to visit the Museum of Wisconsin Art for the first time. Currently, they are showing “Among the Wonder of the Dells”, a retrospective exhibition following photography of Wisconsin’s very own “water park capital of the world”. The photography spans the nineteenth to the twenty-first century, using eight different artist’s perspectives to portray the vastly different aspects of tourism in the Dells, shedding light on how humans have shaped the Dells with their versions of relaxation and travel over the decades.

The photographers featured are H.H. Bennett and studio, Leroy J. Gates, John A. Trumble, Dennis Darmek, and three contemporary photographers commissioned by MOWA; Mark Brautigam, Tom Jones, and Kevin J. Miyazaki.

H.H. Bennett (1843-1908) was one of the firsts to photograph the Dells. He was innovative; he created his own cameras, printing presses, stop-action shutter and other necessary equipment. LAter in life, he started to hand-tint his photographs to further bring them to life. His  photography studio was kept within the family until the late twentieth century. Leroy J. Gates (1831-1895) utilized the cartes-de-visite method of photography production, which allows the photographer to expose up to eight images on a single glass plate negative that could be cut out and mounted on cards. This sort of created a trading card economy for family and friends in the Dells at the second half of the nineteenth century.

John A. Trumble was always drawn to the Dells. He grew up around the area. Many of his photographs focus on the geology and Native American ancestry of the Dells, which are fundamental to the iconography of the tourist area. His photos evoke mom-and-pop nostalgia for many. Dennis Darmek started photographing his wife swimming at the start of their relationship in 1979. He focuses on the appeal of aquatic adventure and recreation, which has come to shape the Dells in last decades of the twentieth century.

Tom Jones, one of the MOWA commissioned artists, is a member of the Ho-Chunk Nation of Wisconsin. The Ho-Chunk have strong connections to the Dells, and Jones plays on this connection through his photographs. He seeks to display the indomitable spirit of his tribe and their never-ending, important presence in the Dells. Mark Brautigam, another commissioned MOWA photographer, oscillate between people and place. Brautigam has described them as a “more than a pause than an exclamation point”. The tranquility of his photographs comes across, which is in stark contrast to the bustling nature of waterparks. The final commissioned photographer, Kevin J. Miyazaki, set up his studio within H.H. Bennett’s old space. He invited people who walked by to have their portraits taken, and encouraged them not to smile to honor the old tradition of portraits in early history, as one did not have their picture taken constantly.

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Information will be sent out in the coming weeks regarding the 2019 State Day Conference and Exhibition being held in Madison at the Pyle Center. We appreciate you all for being so patient with us as we pull together all of this information!

Angela Johnson, WRAP Director, and myself (Abi Case, student assistant to WRAP Director) had the opportunity to take a tour through the newest temporary exhibit at the Wisconsin Veterans Museum. It is titled “In My Spare Moments: The Art of Harold Schmitz” and curated by Yvette Pino, whom gave us the tour.

Yvette Pino spent the last three years researching and planning this exhibit. Along with working at the Veterans Museum, Yvette is apart of the Veteran Art Movement, “a decentralized network of veterans and service members committed to making art and using creative practices to transform themselves and a society grappling with endless war, militarism and dehumanization.” She is a practicing print and painting artist, whose most recent work involves the examination Native American imagery themes while trying to reinterpret them through Illuminated Manuscript appropriation. Yvette constructs her artistic pieces from “experiences in Iraq as a deployed soldier and overlap with symbols of her [my] Catholic upbringing in New Mexico”. Here is a link to her personal website: http://yvettempino.com/ and the Veteran Art Movement’s page: https://www.veteran-art-movement.net/

Harold Schmitz was a World War II veteran from Milwaukee. He attended the Layton School of Art (now the Milwaukee Institute of Design and Art) from 1934-1937 to study advertisement design. After graduation, he was employed by the Hammersmith-Kortmeyer Company, an engraving and printing agency. Because of his experience with printmaking, he was hand selected as a topographical draftsmen in the South Pacific, specifically New Caledonia. He started his service in November of 1942, and began to paint the landscape of Noumea Harbor with colored pencils and graphite. In his words, these were the most practical mediums. As time passes, his fascination with the surroundings subsidizes and many of his drawings emulate Hollywood magazine illustration styles. Harold Schmitz’s art reflects a different side of conflict, one that oscillates between personal art production and mandated service. In his spare moments, he was able to shine light on his life on service.

We touched on the Wisconsin Idea while on our tour. Yvette said “Wisconsin artists and veterans are able to go to that experience, which is global conflict, document it, bring it back and communicate it to the community.” Through the implementation of the G. I. Bill, veterans are able to go back to school and become instructors, teachers, professors. Yvette emphasizes the “impetus to serve” that returning veterans feel for their community. They have encountered a breadth of life many haven’t, and search for a way to process their experience through service to the community. Yvette mentions specifically the Veteran Print Project, which pairs veterans with printmakers to exchange a dialogue that will result in an edition of prints made based off of the conversation. They have collaborated with Combat Paper which takes material from uniforms, breaks it down, and processes it to paper for use. 

Link to their website: http://veteranprintproject.com/

“In My Spare Moments: The Art of Harold Schmitz” will be open until summer of 2020. The Wisconsin Veterans Museum is open Tuesday through Saturday 9:00 am to 4:30 pm, and Sunday (April-September) 12:00 pm to 4:00 pm. The address is 30 W. Mifflin St., Madison, WI 53703. Their phone is 608-267-1799.

Again, thanks to Yvette Pino and Karen Burch for the awesome tour and information! Make sure to check it out.

WRAP operates under UW-Madison's Division of Continuing Studies, which also offers a plethora of opportunities to be creative! Listed below are some of the art classes being held this summer:
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- Drawing Fundamentals: Classical Approach: 6 weeks, Tuesdays, June 25-July 30, 7:15 pm to 9:45 pm, $165

- Drawing on Nature: Vignettes in Scientific Illustration: 5 weeks, Tuesdays, June 4-July 2, 6:00 pm to 8:30 pm, $155

- Painting with Acrylics: What I Wish I Knew at the Beginning: 8 weeks, Thursdays, June 13-August 1, 9:00 am to 12:00 pm, $210

- Papermaking: A Transformative Art Process: 6 weeks, Sundays, May 19-June 23, 2:00 pm to 5:00 pm, $195

- And not to mention... WRAP Regional Workshops! $30, check out our website for more specific information

A lot of times, the question “What happens at WRAP workshops?” is posed. This past weekend, the Madison workshop occurred which provides a great opportunity to detail the inner workings of a workshop day. Here is a typical workshop schedule:

8:45 am – 9:45 am: Registration and viewing the exhibit

9:45 am – 11:00 am: Presentation by workshop speaker/judge

11:00 am – 12:00 pm: Morning critique session

12:00 pm – 1:15 pm: Lunch time

1:15 pm – 3:30 pm: Afternoon critiques

3:30 pm: End of the workshop

On our website, https://continuingstudies.wisc.edu/conferences/wisconsin-regional-art-program/, we have started to include the regional Honorable Mention and State Award winners on a tab on the far left side of the site. This will act as an archive for upcoming WRAP workshops. We plan on starting with this year, and carrying on for many to come.

Mary Betzenderfer was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota but lived in Wisconsin for a majority of her life. Throughout her childhood, she entertained herself with music and painting. She graduated from the University of Iowa in occupational therapy, but continued to continued to study art and emphasized her focus on portraits. Betzenderfer has been noted for a style that reflects light and color in floral landscapes and wildlife depictions. ​

Regional Coordinator responsibilities:

- Manage communications between WRAP Central (in Madison) and their Regional WRAP
- Interact with participating artists and help them through the WRAP process
- Find an artist to act as Workshop Facilitator, and find a Juror
- Coordinate the WRAP (choosing entry deadline, art drop-off time and location, exhibition and workshop       dates)
- Spread the word locally (word of mouth, emails, distribute posters provided by WRAP Central)
- Report stats back to WRAP Central after your workshop

WRAP Central provides a Coordinator Toolkit online, sends email updates and checklists 12, 6, and 2 weeks in advance of your workshop, creates and sends posters and award cards, and does email outreach to libraries local to your WRAP. If you are interested in becoming a WRAP Regional Coordinator, please email wrap@dcs.wisc.edu or angela.johnson@wisc.edu.

Reach the team by email at wrap@dcs.wisc.edu or by phone at (608) 262-4911!

February is Black History Month, a time to pay tribute to generations of African Americans who struggled with adversity to achieve fully accepted citizenship in American society. Black History Month began as Negro History Week, it was only a week long in February which coincided with Frederick Douglass's and Abraham Lincoln's birth dates. Carter G. Woodson, a Harvard-educated historian is credited with the creation of Negro History Week. In 1976, President Gerald R. Ford expanded the week into a month, to "seize the opportunity to honor the too-often neglected accomplishments of black Americans in every area of endeavor throughout our history.” 

Throughout history, art serves as a communicative tool to express injustices, culture, and ideas. Many times when words are not heard, art is seen. This proves true for Milwaukee artist, Della Wells. Wells struggled to process certain aspects from her youth, a schizophrenic mother and stern father. When she was 18 or 19, she sat at a bus stop across from The Gallery Toward the Black Aesthetic at 4th and Garfield. She peered in the windows for weeks and finally entered when someone invited her in. Her eyes were open to the world of art. This was her first exposure to black and female artists. 

Wells has been working to return the favor her whole life- educating people on the history of African-American art in Milwaukee, and throughout Wisconsin. Many of the great galleries, publications, and meeting places of the Black Art Movement did not persist like in other cities. Wells actively works to unearth and educate people on the thriving artist community and remind them that it still exists. 

Wells has since had her pieces purchased by the Smithsonian and participated in major art fairs such as the Kentuck Festival of the Arts, had gallery representation, and collaborated on a play inspired by her life. 

Celebrating Black History Month, through many mediums such as art, serves as a way to remind everyone that black history is our collective history. It is important to honor and preserve African American art and learn about African American history which is the heartbeat of American history.

Make sure to check out your local museums, libraries, and community centers to see how they are celebrating Black History Month.

Reach the team by email at wrap@dcs.wisc.edu or by phone at (608) 262-4911