In the days before the pandemic, the city of Superior held regular artists talks with wine and cheese receptions in the gallery of old City Hall.
Those activities were suspended during COVID-19, with the Superior Council for the Arts that hosted them dissipating afterward. Now, the group has been reconstituted and new events planned, beginning with a juried art show at Empire Coffee in Superior on Jan. 9.
Arts Council member Chéri Fitch was recruited to the group by its president, photographer JoAnn Jardine.
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“JoAnn has very good timing,” Fitch said of the call she got from Jardine. She had just attended an arts panel in Duluth that presented grant opportunities for artists in Minnesota. But none were available for those living across the border.
“I was on the hunt for what Wisconsin artists can actually apply for, and JoAnn called a day later. I said, ‘Aha! That’s the organization I’m looking for.’”
Fitch and Jardine spoke with WPR’s Robin Washington on “Morning Edition” about the January event and ongoing opportunities for all area artists.
The following interview has been edited for brevity and clarity.
Robin Washington: Tell us about the call for artists and performers.
Chéri Fitch: This art show is for everyone in our area.
The only thing is, Minnesota keeps its grant dollars to Minnesota artists, and we’re just doing the same with our Wisconsin artists for grant reasons.
But all of our actual events are open to every artist and everyone who loves art.
JoAnn Jardine: We’re adding an Artist of the Year award for someone who has contributed to public art in the city and has gone over and above with their care for art. We’ll be presenting it that night.
RW: Aside from the Jan. 9 event, what else is planned?
JJ: This spring, we will have the third annual Northland Peep Marshmallow Sculpture Competition in Superior.
There have been two shows in the past at Fairlawn Mansion and now the council will run it at a location to be announced.
What’s great about marshmallow art is that it’s an entry-level medium. A creative person of any age can do it. Sometimes they paint them, sometimes they melt them or torch them.
We’ve had peacocks, the Lift Bridge and birthday cakes. I did a sled dog team once.
RW: Who are some of the local artists who stand out to you?
CF: Our board treasurer, Alysia Tessling, is a glass artist. She can make anything from blown glass.
Just the way she can visualize how a piece will look from little broken-up pieces of glass is crazy to me.
JJ: Sculptor and painter Sterling Rathsack is very well-known.
Another is Bill Gedde. He does a lot of art restoration. He just restored five murals discovered in a building that was being renovated. They were painted in 1935 in a room that had been a casket showroom for a funeral home. He basically repainted them all and brought them back to life.
RW: So he brought them back to life — from a casket company!
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