Dennos Museum Summer Exhibit

As a History of Art major, it should come as no surprised that I'm a big fan of Traverse City's Dennos Museum Center (housed on the Northwestern Michigan College campus). And, even though I technically studied the "history" of art, I'm a big fan of art in the here and now. New artists and fantastic pieces are popping up all the time, and whenever I get the chance to wander about and admire some awesome artwork, I'm all over it. 

The Dennos has two great exhibits going on right now: Sideways (which explores skateboard art and culture) and Perimeter (a photo story filled with portraits taken around the perimeter of Lake Michigan. The high-quality visual images in these two exhibits greatly compliment each other.

 As someone who knows absolutely zero about skateboarding (and probably couldn't make it down a straight road on a board without falling over), I found this exhibit to be so fresh. It's bold, colorful, and rooted in a culture I know nothing about but am now totally enraptured by. 

The Dennos put out a call for skateboard art submissions to the community at large, and in return they received a wide array of clever, original, and downright awesome designs. Artists range from all ages and locations, and there are some really beautiful works on display. I have a few favorites myself, but I don't want to ruin the fun for everyone else, so you should go see it for yourself!

Professional artists are also represented. There's a gorgeous mural covering an entire wall in the gallery room, detailed screenprinted works, plus stunning photographs from Michigander Mike Blabac. Honestly, though, nothing took my breath away like the simple yet powerful works of Aaron Draplin, an NMC alum who is absolutely slaying the graphic design world. There's a whole wall of his latest and greatest designs, and he'll be in TC this Friday giving a special presentation as part of the Dennos' skateboard weekend extravaganza (June 20-21). A few of my favorites from Draplin:

 Skateboarding not your thing? Well, it's impossible to not be a fan of the Great Lakes, and Kevin Miyazaki's portraits taken from all around the border of Lake Michigan remind us just how many people love and live around the majestic Michigan. The portraits hug the whole gallery. It's great to see the lake personified in the faces of all these people: young, old, working, vacationing, in groups or all alone.

 My personal favorite part of the Perimeter exhibit is the wall of pictures depicting Lake Michigan from different points around the lake at different times. The entire wall engulfs the viewer in sky and water, and it creates a really intriguing geometric pattern.

 Both exhibits are on display at the Dennos until early September, so go and check it out! Don't forget about the fun and festivities for the TC Park Jam this weekend, too!

Seungmo Park at the Dennos Mueseum

Happy Cherry Festival Week, everyone! While I've not had the chance to take part in any of the Festival events yet, I've done the obligatory wandering through the Open Space, scoping out what rides to ride at the Midway, and cursed about the traffic a few times. Don't get me wrong, we love having our tourists come and check out our awesome town, but it's a whole different beast now that I have to park downtown to work. Thank goodness for my bike!

While I'll make sure to fill everyone in with some Cherry Fest goodness next week, this week I wanted to share one of my absolute favorite exhibits I've ever seen at the Dennos Museum. I've seen all the exhibits moved in and out of the museum the past three years, and this one totally captivated me.

Seungmo Park's beautiful wire and mesh sculptures are larger than life, and truly stunning. Seungmo Park stacks layers of mesh wiring, then trims it piece by piece and little by little to create stunning portrait sculptures that engulf the viewer in their size and intricacy. I mean, just check this out:

Park photographed these models underwater, then layered the mesh (overlapping and stacking them just so, to create the proper effect, leaving about two fingers' width of space between each layer) and finally snipping away at the wires until these gorgeous, massive sculptures were complete.

And they are HUGE. We're talking, like, 10 or 15 feet across and wide. I love that I can move all around them and get super close to the artwork, watching the image change as I take it in from a different angle or distance. Getting up close to each piece really helps me appreciate the patience, tenacity, and vision that Park puts into these masterpieces. Every snip of the wire is intentional and gives the image incredible depth and detail. 

The pieces below, with the forest pathway and crowd, allow the viewer to walk behind the scene and become part of the image to those looking on from the other direction. Any art that encourages viewer participation and interaction gets a major A+ in my book.

The crowd is my favorite of Park's works on display at the Dennos; I love the anonymity of the scene, the elongated shape, and the variety of techniques Park used to create so many different textures and patterns. I'm not kidding when I say I could spend a few hours soaking up the brilliance in this piece and the personalities Park shares in these figures.

In addition to these hanging mesh works, there are also some of Park's aluminium wire wrappings, in which he casts an object and then wraps it in wire. While these aren't my favorite of his works, they certainly take a lot of skill and patience to craft, too. The realness of each sculpture and the space these occupy in the room make them feel oddly alive and conscious, like they're going to start moving or taking at any minute; it's pretty surreal. Also, I love this woman's hair!

If you've not checked out the exhibit yet, I highly recommend it. Park's work is only available for viewing in Seoul, New York City...and now, Traverse City. Who'd've thought? These works are well worth a visit to the Dennos, especially if it's raining or you need a break from the crowds downtown. Stop on over and take a look! The museum is open Monday to Saturday from 10 am to 5 pm, Thursday until 8 pm and Sundays from 1-5 pm. Admission is $6 for adults and $4 for children.

World traveller makes Traverse City home - Guest Blogger - Sakura Raftery

Who wants to live in Traverse City? I didn't know it was me!

On my first flight to Traverse City, MI to meet my future husband’s family, I blurted out, “I’ve never been to the middle!”  Aside from a one-week cross country voyage to New York City for business school and countless layovers at Chicago O’Hare Airport, touching down in the Midwest was a first for me. Born and raised in Honolulu, Hawaii, I spent most of my adult life in Boston, New York City and San Francisco. Between that and two passports full of travel across the globe, little did I know that one of the great gems of our country sat in a nook of a giant mit.

Fast forward four years, two kids, and a Great Recession. My husband and I questioned all the reasons why we choose to live in San Francisco, threw out that plan and packed for Traverse City to make a pit stop before our next move. The prospect of leaving city life was absolutely terrifying for me. All the unknowns about rebuilding a community of friends, job prospects, childcare and staying connected to the world converged at once.

The unmistakeable tacos from Roaming Harvest!!!

What I found when we got here was a community on the verge of exploding with creative, young, talented people who wanted to make it the best possible place to live. My husband’s friends from other big cities were moving back, building families and getting creative with their professional careers. From great child care, cost of living, food and wine, a community of friends and family, to the accessibility of outdoor recreation, the reality of living in Traverse City far exceeded my expectations and we decided to stay.

There were three critical elements to making an unplanned move to Traverse City successful for me:

1.     Think about your long-term professional skill set—plan accordingly. Early in my career in corporate finance, I knew that it was just the beginning of the road for me. 6 years into a successful but unsatisfying career on Wall Street, I re-tooled for a career in non-profits by going back to business school and luckily landed a great job at Goodwill Industries of Northern Michigan. Staying on top of developing skills only enhances your job prospects as industries change.

2.     Get outside of your comfort zone, often. Part of my personality is driven by seeking different cultures and lifestyles. Every place is a new adventure and mentally preparing yourself to embrace change makes drastic moves fun!

3.     Focus on what is here, not what isn’t. People often ask me, “Do you miss the city?” and truthfully, not really. Yes, having hundreds of restaurants and cultural events on a given night is exciting, but it comes with a lot of strings attached: pollution, high prices, small apartments, crime. Northern Michigan balances big city amenities with the peace of living Up North. Living in TC doesn’t mean you can’t still visit the city every now and then!

Sakura Raftery