Published by
of the Red River Valley
A guide to the area’s arts and culture
november/december 2012
Photos by Dan Francis
What the new
Center for Creativity means for our community
By Kris Kerzman he Katherine Kilbourne Burgum Center for Creativity at Plains Art Museum made its long-awaited public debut in October. After years of fund-raising and rallying community support, the kickoff was made in style, with the afternoonlong affair starting off several weeks’ worth of exciting offerings, including a hiphop graffiti festival and an appearance by polymath artist DJ Spooky. After the dust settles on this new expansion, though, and the celebration ends, what does this new facility offer the Fargo-Moorhead community? Plenty. And, plenty that should both give us pride and serve as an example to other communities across the nation. Our commitment to arts education. By replacing the deteriorating Creative Arts Studio, the Center for Creativity will give area school kids an opportunity to stretch their creative wings in an environment enriched by its proximity to the museum’s galleries and our downtown art community. The phrase commonly used is “going from seeing the artist to being the artist.” Instilling creative skills helps children develop other skills more easily and provides attitudinal and social development perks on top of that. In other words, more well-rounded children ready to face the challenges of the 21st century.
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More center
for creativity on page 6
Top right: Museum Director Colleen Sheehy cut the ribbon to the Center of Creativity along with community members. Clockwise from top left: Activities abound during the grand opening celebration for the Katherine Kilbourne Burgum Center for Creativity. Attendees were able to try out the Center’s new studio spaces, receive instruction from arts educators, and even draw on the walls.
‘Yarn bombs’ adorn downtown lampposts By Randi Olsen n case you haven’t noticed, Downtown Fargo has officially been “yarn bombed.” The lampposts have been bundled up for the winter with sleeves created by local artists. It all started as an idea, or complaint, really, about how Fargo needed to be jazzed up a bit. Mara Morken, after moving back to the F-M area from New York, found herself missing the public art she was used to seeing in a big city. But unlike most, instead of just complaining, she actually did something about it. Morken saw “yarn bombing” while she was in Brooklyn and fell in love with the concept. She figured it would be the perfect project for Fargo because fiber arts is so traditional in the Midwest, and a large variety of artists would be able to participate. It was no problem getting the city of Fargo to cooperate with the Knit Fargo project. In fact, the citizens and city leaders were pretty much begging for it. Morken put out a call for artists on her personal website and Facebook page, and passed out cards in yarn stores and coffee shops. Not only did local artists respond, but people from all over the country wanted to be a part of it. Sleeves were donated from Texas, New York, Virginia and Nebraska, as well as surrounding areas like Minneapolis, Lake Park and Alexandria. Dawn Conant, a local artist, said, “When I first came to Fargo, I saw the painted bison. After seeing the bison, I really wanted to be a part of a themed public project. Knit Fargo was something I knew would be exciting, doable and fun for an artist with a day job.”
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Photo by Kris Kerzman
Mara Morken, left, and Fargo City Commissioner Mike Williams replace a damaged yarn sleeve on a downtown lampost.
More Yarn
bombs on page 4
• inside artspulse •
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