Benzie County artist Jessica Kovan’s mixed media work is now on display in the GAAC’s Lobby Gallery. The Birds Are Watching, Kovan said, “asks viewers to pay attention from the vantage point of local bird species.” Kovan combines the personal with the political in this series of mixed media, avian vignettes created on cardboard. She took on the subject of local birds “in hopes of establishing a sense of interconnectedness between all beings.”
Author: Scott Bouma
Creativity Q+A Video with John Hartig
A conversation with John H. Hartig, Ph.D, author of the 2022 book Great Lakes Champions, the story of 14 people who loved the Great Lakes so much that they devoted their careers to leading grassroots partnerships to clean up the most polluted of these freshwater seas.
Exploring the Arts of Japan Series
New for 2023
In a series of classes, we teach a variety of Japanese art forms — from ceramics and printmaking —to poetry and floral design.
-A brief history of Japanese art form
-Hands-on experimentation and skill building
-Insight into contemporary Japanese art practices
Performance
Classes
FLORAL FUSIONS: EXPLORING JAPANESE FLORAL DESIGN
Creativity Q+A with Mary Beth Acosta
A Feral Housewife, an exhibition of collages by Leelanau County artist Mary Beth Acosta, take up residence in the Glen Arbor Arts Center Lobby Gallery January 6 – April 21. View it in the GAAC Main Gallery or on line.
Working under the creative nom de guerre “The Feral Housewife,” Acosta uses simple, familiar tools and a range of recycled, vintage papers to create collages about mid-century housewives, big-finned cars, and “labor-saving” appliances that were promoted as drudgery-busting machines that would revolutionize the modern home.
Please enjoy this conversation with Mary Beth, which was first published in January 2022 — a companion program for the Paper Work exhibition [January 14 – March 24, 2022].
Pictured: Auto Show Housewives, 11″ w x 16″ h, 2017, Mary Beth Acosta
Farm Stories: Leelanau County Poor Farm
As part of the GAAC’s Telling Stories exhibition [January 13 – March 23, 2023], Gallery Manager Sarah Bearup-Neal talked with Michigan residents about stories told in the sky and on the ground.
Farm Stories: From 1901 to 1961, Leelanau County residents who found themselves homeless, and in need of work, found shelter and employment at the county’s Poor Farm – a 120-acre farm, located a mile from Maple City, Michigan on County Road 616. A new documentary is underway about the Poor Farm, its history, and its progressive role in the community. In this video interview, we talk with two of the project’s members, Leelanau County residents Tina Mehren and Barb Siepker.
Enjoy the online version of the Telling Stories exhibit here.
