Madison Locally Sourced–July-August 2023

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I love our Open Air issue. At the time we start to work on it, summer is right around the corner. Greater Madisonians are shedding winter layers to start enjoying the warming outdoors.

We’re happy to continue our newest tradition of featuring some of our area’s favorite food carts in this issue. We have fantastic indoor options all year long, and then the summer brings us even more. With so many choices, we could dine out three meals a day, seven days a week, and experience a different fabulous meal each day. It’s an incredible gift our culinary community provides us.

But some days, you just want to stay home, and The Patio Warehouse in Sun Prairie can set you up with the goods to make time at home better spent. Their business-model change from wholesale to retail passes along some pretty great savings to you, and the choices are plentiful.

To get even more out of your outdoor space, incorporate some tips from Madison Audubon to create a welcoming bird habitat. It’s two birds, no stones: you’ll be doing your part for conservation and have something human and feathered friends will love.

cover photograph

Monarch at Goose Pond taken by Lindsey Taylor

photographs on page 7 ( left to right ):

Ma Greb’s Slow Chicken from Braisin’ Hussies taken by Eric Tadsen

The Patio Warehouse taken by Eric Tadsen

Baltimore oriole taken by Ryan Readio Motion Study provided by Martha Glowacki

Be sure to use this time to explore our beautiful state. If you don’t know where to start, the Natural Resources Foundation of Wisconsin hosts over 260 field trips each year. With trips covering numerous areas of interest and accommodating any ability level, you’re certain to find the right one for you, your family, and your friends.

I encourage you to also visit Belleville’s Library Park. Library Park, on the National Register of Historic Places, is a focal point of the town. The Badger State Trail crosses the park, and the Sugar River is nearby. It’ll be a lovely day.

Finally, when you need a break from the heat, visit Chazen Museum of Art to see a range of beautiful and intriguing work, including Martha Glowacki’s My Arcadia . Chris Gargan’s dive into Martha’s work will impact how you think about science and nature.

Happy summer adventures!

INSIDE what’s

jul–aug 2023

Lisa Abler, Olivia Seehafer contributing

Jeanne Engle, Chris Gargan, Brenna Marsicek photographer Eric Tadsen

Ben Albert, Andrew Badje, Martha Glowacki, Joe

Jannsen, Brenna Marsicek (Madison Audubon), Joshua Mayer, MSCR (Madison Sports and Community Recreation), Catherine Nguyen, Ryan

Readio, Lindsey Taylor, USFWS Midwest Region

by Kyle Jacobson

Food Carts by Heart

Every year, more and more people are finding out that some of the best chefs in Madison don’t own a brick-andmortar restaurant; they drive a food truck. It’s impossible to say who’s the best, but we’re happy to highlight two favorites that have proven themselves over recent years.

Braisin’ Hussies

Michael Sollinger (Solli) of Braisin’ Hussies has worked for some of the country’s most renowned restaurants, even owning a few, but after over 30 years on the inside, he was ready for a lifestyle change.

Solli’s vision was making light and lean food for part of the year then taking off for the rest of the season. He didn’t start out thinking Madison would be the right place for his food truck, but after looking at Austin, Boulder, and Seattle, Solli was sold on being able to live rent free with his sister and brother-in-law by the isthmus. That and “Madison’s proclivity for small food carts was a real plus,” he says.

There’s an intimacy for Solli in what he’s doing that he couldn’t achieve working in the kitchen at a restaurant. Behind the scenes, maybe he’d recognize people by their food, but now he can operate more like a bartender and get to know his regulars by name. He’s come to realize that nobody is as excited about the food he’s serving—slow-cooked veggies and meat served over rice, grain, and noodle bowls—than him, and he gets to

Jason’s Jerk

Braisin’ Hussies

Braisin’ Hussies

share that excitement with anyone who comes to his window.

“The one cornerstone recipe to this menu is the braised pork shoulder,” Solli says. “I’ve used some version of that recipe for a couple of decades now. Braised pork, tomatoes, onions, garlic, chipotle, chicken broth—puree all that. Use the reduction after the pork comes out after eight hours for a gravy. I either mix it in with the meat or ladle over the pork after I serve it.”

Solli’s food focuses on accuracy and replication over what he calls a machoism sometimes exhibited by world-class chefs. He cooks his pork belly sous vide, meaning he vacuum seals it, places the package in water, then uses an immersion circulator to bring everything to temperature. You can’t overcook the food, so every

bite of Dashi Pork Belly is just as he intended. In short, he says, “Precision is better than pride.”

Maybe people are more familiar with Dashi Pork Belly now, but Solli points out this wasn’t the case in the beginning. “When I started the cart in 2016, people were asking what it was. But much to the credit of the open-mindedness of this community, whatever Dashi Pork Belly is, they’ll try it.” For the yet-to-beinitiated, it’s his signature slow-cooked pork belly with dashi, miso glaze, miso pickled carrots, sesame cucumbers, radish, and toasted seaweed served over soba noodles.

Solli knows for a fact that his menu today is better than when he first opened thanks to his focus on evolving his flavor. He might not be looking to grow the scale of his business, but he’s never

been satisfied with good enough. With each tweak and change, confidence is key. “Ultimately, you have to stick to your own convictions that what you like is going to sell. But you have to cook for yourself first. You have to really like what you’re cooking. You can’t try to outguess the public.”

Whether it’s the people, the lakes, or the food scene, this world-traveled chef has come to call Madison home for most of the year. “It’s one of the most lovely places I’ve ever lived.” He sees himself metaphorically as an obscure local band playing to regulars and appealing to anyone willing to listen, hoping you’ll swing by soon to check out his style.

Jason’s Jerk

I just learned that there’s a stigma in the chef world surrounding the use of the word fusion. Some go so far as to call it cringey. Turns out there was a trend in the early 2000s to bring together flavors from European and Asian cultures that just didn’t work, and the bad taste lingered. Luckily, I’m not a chef, so when I was told about the Caribbean fusion food at Jason’s Jerk, I didn’t shy away.

Braisin’ Hussies - Braised Pork Shoulder Taco

You have to cook for yourself first . You have to really like what you’re cooking .

The big aspect for

Madison-area lifer Jason Beilke is the knife and brains behind Jason’s Jerk. Growing up in Monona, Jason recalls experimenting with the food at Cousins Subs when he was working there at age 13. It’s a philosophy that has always been central to his cooking. “The big aspect for me is fun,” says Jason. “I never really follow the rules too well.” But you gotta know the rules to breaks the rules, so Jason went to culinary school at Madison College and gained a better understanding of how he could go his own way.

When Jason’s Jerk opened at the height of COVID in 2020, there were a lot of question marks in the air, but the proof is in the rice bowls and tacos. “Our most popular item would be the Classic Bowl. It’s just my take on a rice bowl. It’s coconut lime rice and red beans. You get

your choice of chicken, pork, shrimp, or sweet potato. Jerk sauce, mango salsa, cilantro, and then the little tortilla gets fried then cut up.”

If you’re familiar with Caribbean cooking, you probably noticed Jason said sweet potato and not yams. It’s one of the little things he does to make it his own. “I also add a little bit of sesame oil in my sauce, which isn’t really from America or the Caribbean, but I think it adds a nice kind of nuttiness to the finished product.” He also uses a mix of hickory, apple, and cherry wood when smoking his meats to mimic the traditional pimento wood.

One noteworthy aspect of Jason’s menu that doesn’t come from his kitchen are the tortillas. They come from Tortilleria Zepeda in Lone Rock and make up the

second-most-popular item at Jason’s Jerk: the tacos. “The corn flavor goes with the pork really well. The cilantro. A little bit of sweetness from the mango salsa. Same with the sweet potato.”

And then there’s the namesake ingredient. The jerk sauce. “To me, it’s what makes my food more Jamaican than anything else I do, not so much the types of dishes I’m putting together.” It’s what I think is the true testament to fusion food, the ability to bring a new flavor to something familiar. By making his food more approachable, elements like the jerk sauce work as a gateway for patrons to dive into Caribbean cuisine on their own between their visits to Jason’s Jerk. If it hasn’t happened yet, Jason and likeminded chefs will make using the word fusion to describe combining foods from different cultures cool again.

Jason’s Jerk

- 3

Thanks to the reception of food carts by Madisonians, fresh opportunities for thoughtful menu experimentation encourage new and established chefs to challenge themselves in ways no other format can. Best of all, both chefs and patrons reap the benefits.

Kyle Jacobson is a writer/editor taking each day a week at a time.

Braisin’ Hussies Food Cart braisinhussies.com

Capitol Square Lunch: Main Street near King Street

Tuesday–Friday, 11:00 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.

Dane County Farmers’ Market: intersection of State, Mifflin, and Carroll Streets

Jason’s Jerk facebook.com

/TheOriginalJasonsJerk & Instagram @jasons_jerk

Library Mall Lunch:

Tuesday–Friday, 11:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.

Dane County Farmers’ Market

Photographs by Eric Tadsen

Photograph by Barbara Wilson

Kyle Jacobson

FIELD TRIPS

with the NATURAL RESOURCES FOUNDATION OF WISCONSIN

by Kyle Jacobson

Wisconsin and land stewardship go together like groundwater and wetlands. Whether it’s the likes of Aldo Leopold and Increase Lapham for their enduring impacts on Wisconsin ecology or the prolific degree of wildlife- and habitat-focused organizations dedicated to environmental causes, we’ve all encountered at least one aspect of our state’s commitment to the natural world.

Naturally, there’s a lot of overlap between the efforts of persons and organizations in preservation and education, and the nonprofit carrying what might be the largest umbrella in the state is the Natural Resources Foundation of Wisconsin. Shelly Torkelson, communications director, says, “We’re basically the only nonprofit that covers all conservation in Wisconsin, and only in Wisconsin. We have projects all over the state, and we don’t specifically work on just wetlands or birds.”

The Foundation was formed in 1986 to help fund severely compromised DNR projects resulting from budget cuts. Over the decades, they evolved and now support other nonprofits and initiatives in addition to their work with the state. They also have a wealth of grant programs aimed to educate and support environmental education and exploration.

“We have grants that fund access to outdoor recreation in general,” says Shelly. “We recently gave a grant to the BIPOC Birding Club, for example. We have an entire grant program just for teachers to help them get their classrooms outdoors. We also fund habitat restoration and help specific species, like Monarch butterflies. ... A few years ago, we had a really good summer for Monarchs, and I saw a Monarch every single day. I called it my daily Monarch. I want every year to be like that.”

Aside from providing funding, the Foundation partners with other organizations in a variety of capacities. One of the largest ongoing endeavors is at Rush Creek State Natural Area. Along with the Wildlife Conservation Society, the Northern Institute of Applied Climate Science, and the Wisconsin Initiative on Climate Change Impacts, “We’re involved in the first climate adaptation project for a grassland/prairie. ... They’re trying all these different methods to see what works best to prepare a prairie for climate change.” This includes figuring out which seed mixes work best as temperatures and weather patterns shift as well as how frequently prescribed burnings should take place.

Every piece of Foundation work connects to their broader mission statement: “to protect state’s lands, waters, and

Photograph by Joe Jannsen

wildlife by providing funding, leading partnerships, and connecting all people to nature.” And connecting all people to nature might be the most impressive aspect of their work.

Every year, the Foundation embarks on over 260 field trips, including boat rides, train rides, biking trips, kayaking excursions, and foraging and tracking trips. “Our field trips go everywhere from Devil’s Lake, which is one of the more popular places to recreate outdoors in the state, to a couple spots you can’t go to any other way. There’s a lot of unique

experiences or just new takes on familiar experiences, like a Devil’s Lake paddle at twilight.”

And if you’re concerned about how strenuous a trip might be, the Foundation’s website, wisconservation.org, indicates each trip’s activity level by color. Twenty field trips are even accessible by standard wheelchairs. Many more can be attended by those with limited mobility thanks to the Foundation’s partnership with Access Ability Wisconsin (AAW). “[AAW’s] mission is all about getting people outdoors

who have mobility challenges. They have these really cool outdoor allterrain wheelchairs that have tanklike tracks that can go places regular wheelchairs can’t. You can rent those for free and explore places you wouldn’t be able to in a regular wheelchair.”

On the other side of the coin, some fairly challenging field trips involve either traversing difficult terrain or longer hikes/paddles. Shelly shares one experience she was only able to have because of the experienced guide.

Photograph courtesy of Catherine Nguyen

Photograph by Andrew Badje

Photograph by Ben Albert

“Waubesa Wetlands is a state natural area, which means it’s open to the public. You can go and walk around, but you’re not going to know what you’re looking at unless you have an expert guide. It’ll be beautiful. You’ll enjoy seeing the oaks and the prairie, but it was great walking through it with Alex Wenthe, the field trip leader. ... The best part was a spot you’d never know was there. There’s not a path. We bushwhacked to get to it. There’s a fen there. It feels like you’re walking on a sponge or a trampoline covered in flowers and plants you don’t see other places. All the plants that are uniquely suited for that habitat. That’s not part of a normal hike.”

Getting out in nature in Wisconsin inspires people in ways nothing else can. Shelly says, “It opens up a door in people’s minds, and it makes them realize how much they value these things that we have here in Wisconsin. How lucky we are.” Whether a lifetime naturalist or an infrequent trekker, anyone can be left speechless on a Foundation field trip.

UPCOMING FIELD TRIPS

Tallgrass Prairie Ecology & Restoration Workshop

(Arlington): Average Difficulty

August 22, 9:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. A wagon ride with hikes through Goose Pond Sanctuary, owned by Madison Audubon Society. You’ll learn about select plant species, rare species, the benefits of prescribed burns, invasivespecies removal, wildlife usage, management challenges and techniques, and grant opportunities. Birdwatchers will also appreciate the wealth of opportunities to spot avian residents.

Explore the Waubesa

Wetlands State Natural Area

(Fitchburg): Extreme Difficulty

September 8, 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. A four-mile trek through a hidden wetland gem, just south of Madison. You’ll be exposed to ancient organic soils, a large bedrock valley and glacial formation giving rise to dry prairie, sedge meadow, and rare peat-

accumulating calcareous fens. You might encounter unique waterbirds, including terns, loons, and osprey. Be forewarned, there are no bathrooms. Check out waubesafilm.com to see the beauty of the wetlands through the eyes of director Ben Albert, producer Moss Hegge, and drone operator Calen Albert.

Photograph by Joshua Mayer

Photograph by Lindsey Taylor

John Muir’s Boyhood Haunts

(Montello): Average Difficulty

October 7, 9:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

John Muir is among the greatest naturalists to call Wisconsin home. You’ll explore Muir Park State Natural Area and other haunts of the original Muir homestead. Enjoy Observatory Hill State Natural Area and visit Wee White Kirk, where John’s father preached and his family is buried.

Photograph by Barbara Wilson Kyle Jacobson

600 Water St. Sauk City, WI | 674 S. Whitney Way Madison, WI | 803 E.

Washington Ave. Madison, WI Water Sauk City, 674 Whitney Madison, 803

Washington WI

Kyle Jacobson is a writer/editor who enjoys a long walk down a short trail.

Photograph courtesy of MSCR (Madison Sports and Community Recreation)

by Kyle Jacobson

The PATIO Ware house

Everyone living in Wisconsin has experienced more than just the traditional four seasons. It’s like the Lord of the Rings meme where Merry and Pippin are talking about how many meals are in a day. “We’ve had one, yes, but what about second winter?” The cold months are far behind us for now, and the different summers have arrived. I don’t know the names for them, but for me it goes from enjoying campfires and beaches to wondering if the paint on my siding is going to melt off.

Some of you might be lucky enough to have a patio, allowing you to enjoy the best parts of the season right from home. Even the worst parts are made bearable because you have a fantastic patio furniture set. At least, I hope you do. But maybe that patio is new or new to you, so you haven’t bought furniture yet. Maybe your old set of patio furniture is

in need of an update. Todd Zhang at The Patio Warehouse in Sun Prairie says that with quality pieces, you’ll have something you can use throughout most of the year.

Todd has been working for the manufacturer of The Patio Warehouse’s furniture for 10 years. Something that he really seems to appreciate is how his role changed five years ago when the furniture manufacturer shifted its focus from wholesale to retail, thus creating The Patio Warehouse. Before, most of the pieces you’ll find at The Patio Warehouse were available at big-box stores, including Menards, Walmart, and Home Depot. Those big-box stores typically only carried one or two tiers of quality: either low, mid, or high. For the consumer, Todd thought it was pretty inconvenient—you only get to choose from either low-quality sets or very expensive pieces.

By opening a physical location to sell items outside of wholesale, LP fire pits, plush cushioned seating sets, dining collections for large groups, and bistro sets can now be found in one retail location, and there’s a lot to look through. Even though they carry sets for all price ranges, Todd likes to remind people that the more-affordable ones are made from steel and are typically heavier than the aluminum sets. In addition, if scratched, the

steel may need touch-ups to avoid rust. If you can afford it, he always recommends going aluminum.

As for the wholesale side of things, it’s still there, but it’s now selling through furniture stores in many regions all over the country. That’s mainly because they just can’t make sufficient margins with big box. It’s kind of a win-win-win for furniture-focused businesses, The Patio Warehouse, and customers. Those businesses get a great product to sell, The Patio Warehouse doesn’t have to lose as much money to corporate overhead, and customers are rewarded with lower prices. Todd

says, “Our price is guaranteed lower than every competitor.”

The Patio Warehouse has also given Todd a more personal way to meet people and build relationships. “A lot of customers know our company and location. ... We get a lot of customers from word of mouth. They bought furniture from us in the past. The first couple of years, we had a lot of customers, and they just spread all over.”

There’s a gratifying marriage for Todd between providing what he can for his customers and enjoying the patio furniture business. When I asked what

attracts him to the industry, his answer was simple. “It’s fun to work here. I enjoy what I do.” His knowledge of the product line is a point of pride. Much of their selection is made to be very high quality, and the upper tier provides stylish patterns meant to last.

Being a warehouse, it’s important for customers to understand that this isn’t like some of the shopping experiences they may be used. There aren’t dozens of customization options to go through and make pieces just the way you want. Though some of the lines have a deeper catalogue, for the most part what you see is what’s available, and when it’s gone, it’s gone. The good news is there might be something different in stock the next time you visit, so check in often if you’re on the hunt.

Great furniture, great prices, great selection. If you’ve ever taken Highway 151 westbound in Sun Prairie, you’ve seen the large white sign with black letters. You may have even thought about stopping in sometime. Well think no more. The Patio Warehouse is open year-round, and the short trip is well worth the effort no matter the season.

Kyle Jacobson is a writer/editor who thinks that even the most serious conversation has room for a bad joke or two.

Photographs by Eric Tadsen

Photograph by Barbara Wilson

Kyle Jacobson

There’s a gratifying marriage for Todd between providing what he can for his customers and enjoying the patio furniture business.

Homemade Homemade BIRD HABITAT

by Brenna Marsicek

There’s something so instinctually satisfying about having a beautiful bird visit one’s yard. It’s both an honor and a compliment that such an incredible and independent creature should choose your feeder of all feeders or your tree to nest in of all trees. You get to enjoy the birds and know the birds are enjoying your space.

Creating bird habitat in whatever area we have is not just fun and beautiful, it’s also a powerful act of conservation. Birds need food (seeds, insects, caterpillars, worms), shelter (trees, shrubs, clumps of grass, nest boxes), and a place where they’re safe from harm (pesticides, cats, and window collisions).

And here’s the best part: no matter what your housing arrangement is, you can provide some or all of those things. Balconies, yards, farms, schoolyards, neighborhood parks, they’re all spaces we can convert to thriving wildlife habitat, big or small. And what’s good for birds is also good for pollinators, fireflies, amphibians, and other beloved critters.

Doug Tallamy, faculty at the University of Delaware and a New York Times bestselling author, recently gave a great interview for Fine Gardening magazine entitled “Why Native Plants Are Key to Saving Our Ecosystems.” My favorite takeaway from the interview was the

importance of incorporating one or more of eight keystone plants into your yard. These plants support tons of caterpillars, which support tons of other animals. In the article featuring Tallamy, writer Christine Alexander says these keystone plants are “massive ecological boons to the environment” and a natural version of a bird feeder. You don’t need to add all eight at once, so start small and see how many of the following plants you can incorporate into your area!

1. Goldenrods (Solidago species, including stiff, showy, zigzag, etc.)

2. Asters (Aster and Symphyotrichum species, including New England, frost, blue wood, smooth, etc.)

3. Sunflowers (Helianthus species, including ox eye, tall, woodland, saw-tooth, etc.)

4. Oaks (Quercus species, including black, white, red, bur, swamp, etc.)

5. Cherry (Prunus species, including black)

6. Willows (Salix species, including black, white, pussy, etc.)

7. Birches (Betula species, including river, paper, white, etc.)

8. Cottonwood (Populus species, including eastern)

Birds need water just like we do, so a bird bath, pond, or some type of water source is ideal. Bird feeders can be a fun way to support birds too, and the types of feeders and feed vary based on which species you’re hoping to attract. Ask a salesclerk at a backyard-nature store,

like Wild Birds Unlimited in Middleton, about which types to get. Keep feeders and baths clean (wash with a 10 percent bleach-water solution every other week) to keep birds healthy and avoid the spread of disease.

Now that your outdoor space is a beacon for birds, it’s important to think of

ways that we can prevent these spaces from also being a source of danger for birds. Chemicals designed to kill weeds, insects, and rodents can also be harmful to birds, so use sparingly and choose the least toxic options or alternatives. Outdoor cats kill over two billion birds every single year in the United States alone, so these cute but ferocious hunters

Photograph by USFWS Midwest Region

Photograph by Ryan Readio

should be kept indoors. And windows can kill up to a billion birds each year, so pay close attention to whether birds are hitting your windows. If you’re hearing or seeing birds hit your windows, put up a window treatment, like Feather Friendly or CollidEscape dots, or hang a Zen curtain made of paracord on the outside of the glass. These are easy, fun DIY projects, and the birds you love will be better off because of them.

All of these actions will create a marvelous place for birds to thrive. Whether you like hearing their songs, seeing their colors, observing their behaviors, or just knowing they’re there, having a bird-friendly outdoor space is fun and important. Thank you for caring about nature, and happy birding!

Brenna Marsicek is the director of communications and outreach for Madison Audubon. Connect with the team at info@madisonaudubon.org or follow them on social media @madisonaudubon.

FINE GARDENING ARTICLE: finegardening.com/article

/why-native-plants-are-key-to -saving-our-ecosystems-an -interview-with-doug-tallamy

FIND A NATIVE PLANT NURSERY IN WISCONSIN: widnr.widen.net/s/rfsbfc22w6 /nh0698

LEARN MORE ABOUT PREVENTING WINDOW COLLISIONS AT HOME: madisonaudubon.org /prevent-collisions

LEARN MORE ABOUT THE SAVE OUR SONGBIRDS EFFORT: sossaveoursongbirds.org

Brenna Marsicek

Photograph by Brenna Marsicek, Madison Audubon

Photograph by Arlene Koziol

Library Park, about 20 miles southwest of Madison and one of five parks in the Village of Belleville, is central to life in this community straddling Dane and Green Counties. The park is bounded by Pearl, Park, Vine, and Main Streets in the heart of Belleville. The park’s first permanent structure, a brick building built in 1894, still stands to this day. Library Park and the building were added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1981.

As noted in the National Register nomination, “Library Park is a reminder of the civil development of the Village of Belleville.” John Frederick of Belleville, Ontario, Canada, acquired property around the Sugar River in 1845 and began the first construction in the namesake Belleville, Wisconsin—a dam and a sawmill. Four years later, he added a grist mill. Frederick and other early settlers platted Belleville in 1851 around a central village green space designated as public ground. This was the site of Library Park.

According to its history, the area was used to graze cows and there was a shallow well providing a public source of water. Library Park became a tent city for laborers who built the railroad that came through Belleville in 1887. The land occupied by Library Park was crossed by an early Native American trail that led from a Winnebago (Ho-Chunk) camp in Green County to another camp near Lake Waubesa.

Belleville’s Library Park

by Jeanne Engle

Currently, the Badger State Trail crosses Library Park. “The trail brings people into Belleville,” says Rhea McGee, Belleville’s village clerk. “Many stop for lunch as they’re biking the trail.”

Ten Junk Miles Racing will be using the trail for six races July 29 and 30 ranging in length from a half-marathon to a 100-mile race between Belleville and Orangeville, Illinois. “In fact,” says Scott Kummer, CEO, “ultramarathons have put Belleville on the map. No one had run a race on the trail until we started in 2019. I wanted to show it off. Runners from all 50 states and from countries as far away as Thailand have run the Badger Trail Race. When they fly in and pass through customs, the usual response they get from agents is ‘Where is Belleville?’ Now they know!

“We encourage race participants and spectators to spend money in Belleville. We leave a big footprint in the village with donations to Friends of the Badger State Trail and Shop with a Cop (where economically disadvantaged kids can purchase family Christmas presents with a Belleville police officer).”

From its founding, Belleville served farmers in northern Green and southern Dane Counties. Early settlers raised wheat for the first 25 or so years following Belleville’s founding. However, once wheat farming depleted the soil’s nutrients and an outbreak of chinch bugs destroyed the wheat crop, dairy farming became popular. For a community of less than 400 people at the time of its incorporation, 1892, Belleville had a bustling commercial sector. One of

the first public libraries in Wisconsin opened in Belleville prior to its even becoming a village.

As Belleville grew, it became apparent that a village hall was needed, and consequently, a 30-foot-square, twostory cube building was erected on Library Park in the middle of the block. The cream bricks for the building were manufactured in Watertown, Wisconsin. A bell tower, open on all sides, is positioned at the top of the building in the middle. Decorative brackets enhance the perimeter of the roofline. Small arched dormers are centered on each side of the building’s sloping mansard roof. Initially, the roof was covered with cedar shingles.

A jail and firehouse were originally housed on the first floor of the building. The village hall and library occupied the second floor. The story goes that the village constable allowed wandering laborers to spend the night in the jail portion of the building. Bands of Romani also camped on the grounds, according to early newspaper accounts.

various community groups and private individuals use the meeting room.

In the past, village residents gathered in the park for holiday celebrations, fairs, political rallies, free summer movies, high school graduation ceremonies, and concerts. The music tradition has not changed, and for the 10th year, Belleville Public Library is sponsoring these events. Residents and visitors to Belleville can enjoy free concerts in the park on Tuesday evenings from 6:30 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. through July. From 4:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. a block away at Park and Church Streets, the Belleville Farmers Market is open for the season.

More music is on tap for Sunday, July 16, when the Belleville Community Club hosts the Brother Love Music Festival. Six bands will be featured beginning at 11:00 a.m. Food and beer will be available for purchase, and visitors can bring camp or folding chairs or just spread a blanket on the grass.

The Belleville Village offices and the firehouse in the Library Park building were relocated in the 1920s. The library remained until 1979. In March 2021, a brand-new Belleville Public Library and Community Center opened across the street from Library Park. Fittingly, the library hosts events throughout the summer at Library Park. A volunteer fair will coincide with music in the park on June 27. A picnic in the park is scheduled for July 27 at 6:00 p.m.

Public Safety Night, a free event with activities for the entire family, is hosted by the Belleville Police Department with the Fire Department and EMS. Food and drinks are provided. A Christmas tree lighting ceremony takes place in December.

The livability of the Village of Belleville has been enhanced by the presence of Library Park in its midst. Within this peaceful environment, Belleville residents can come together, enjoy the community activities, and just relax in the outdoors.

Over the years, several other structures were built on the park grounds. A bandstand and fountain were added in the early 1900s and were rebuilt in the 1980s. Today, there are benches and picnic tables in the park. The building and park grounds are maintained by Belleville’s Public Works Department. “The park is well used,” says Rhea. The building’s first floor was refurbished into a museum and meeting room. The Belleville Area Historical Society maintains exhibits in the museum, and Jeanne

The activities at Library Park extend beyond the summer season. In October,

Jeanne Engle is a freelance writer.

Engle

Photograph by MOD Media Productions

Photographs by Eric Tadsen

Madison’s LGBTQ magazine since 2007

What are the roots that clutch, what branches grow Out of this stony rubbish? Son of man, You cannot say, or guess, for you know only A heap of broken images, where the sun beats, And the dead tree gives no shelter, the cricket no relief, And the dry stone no sound of water.

from The Waste Land by T. S. Eliot

Upon entering the dimly lit gallery at Chazen Museum of Art, one encounters postapocalyptic remnants in an elaborate display: a cabinet of curiosities titled, somewhat paradoxically, My Arcadia , constructed of rich, dark mahogany supporting a large glass case. Inside reside three variously sized bell jars, each housing tortured and desiccated treelike forms rooted in a ground littered with the detritus of conflict and conflagration. The lower cabinet features drawers on opposing sides containing what appear to be fragments of bone; skeletal bird skulls; parchment documents, which are photoetched copper plates; and, in the most shocking revelation, the dried and hollowed remains of a cat cast in what seems to be pewter or lead, adding to the dread and solemnity of its presentation

(the actual process is more direct and proprietorial, involving polyurethane and graphite powder pigment).

This hugely ambitious work, now on permanent display at Chazen and most Madisonians’ first encounter with Martha Glowacki, provides a select glimpse into the discipline of natural philosophy, the forerunner of today’s modern science. The cornerstone of that philosophy is careful and recorded observation married to a thoughtful effort to order and explain the meaning and mechanisms that support those observations. Wealthy persons collected specimens from the natural world, art objects, and even fictional marvels masquerading as examples of the biological world and displayed them in rooms or cabinets specifically designed for that purpose. In a sense, these

collections were an attempt to reconcile the two magisterium of science and the arts or, as legendary paleontologist Steven Jay Gould would have, science and the humanities.

For an artist like Martha who seeks, through poetic juxtaposition, to find an emotional truth through her collection and manufacture of objects, it’s her interest in the history of science that led to her career making art that is both dependent upon and a simulacrum of scientific method and explication. Martha received her MFA in art metal from the University of Wisconsin–Madison in 1978, where she studied under Fred Fenster and Eleanor Moty, a pioneer in developing photoetching for art metalwork, a technique now essential to Martha’s work.

Traditionally, artists in the metalworking arena are drawn to producing decorative objects and body adornment. But Martha, having worked in the Wisconsin Historical Museum, became intrigued with aspects of material culture, agricultural implements, and narrative. She felt the need to expand her work into areas of inquiry not traditionally associated with the fine arts. At the same time, she began to explore ways to include found objects into her work. Reflecting back on her early childhood experiences in the Milwaukee Public

elaborate and baroque mystery

Museum, which is designed to encourage interactive exploration, she started to expand the ambition of her work to include more sculptural elements accompanied by constituent remnants of scientific tools and specimens. Her inquiries led her to further examine the work of artist/scientists like Frederik Ruysch (1638‒1731), a dedicated anatomical illustrator from Amsterdam.

As the scale of Martha’s interests and research expanded, so too did the scale of her work. There’s a current vogue in the art world for displays of art referred to as installations. Often, these can appear to be virtually random assemblages of found and manipulated materials loosely associated by theme or title. Martha’s installations, by contrast, are elaborately constructed, deeply researched, and meticulously crafted opportunities to reflect upon and resonate with areas of scientific investigation and development. Her work eschews the sometimestedious didacticism of many museum displays, choosing to engage the viewer’s observational devotion and feed their intellectual engagement. Rather than providing an explicit roadmap that might lead to a reductive truth, as with so much science, Martha provides the viewer with a multiplicity of visual

stimuli designed to evoke a different and subjective response from each observer.

In 2004, Martha created an experimental grouping of work at the Washburn Observatory on the UW–Madison campus titled Starry Transit. The overarching theme was the migrational tactic of birds to use the celestial markers of the night sky to assure their safe navigation. One of the most impressive elements is the Starry Transit cabinet,

intrigued with aspects of material culture , agricultural implements , and narrative

a six-foot-high nickel display cabinet holding an asymmetrical arrangement of black graphited birds accompanied by three-dimensional models of the constellations used by the birds on their travels. In the cabinet drawers are etched copper plates showing maps of spring and fall constellations.

In 2017, as part of a larger Chazen installation entitled Martha Glowacki’s Natural History: Observations and Reflections, Martha created a set of pieces called Deconstructing Flight: An Homage to Etienne-Jules Marey. Marey (1830-1904) was a French physiologist, scientist, and chronophotographer who used sequenced and often overlapping photos to reveal and understand animal locomotion. Martha devised an ingenious bolero jacket fitted with skeletal wings constructed of piano

action components arching out in the silhouette of wing shapes. Renowned photographer Gregory Vershbow photographed art historian Shira Brisman wearing this apparel using a gun camera, taking a series of photos that animate the motion in a threeminute loop reminiscent of Marey’s experiments with contemporaneous overlapped sequential images.

In the same show, Martha exhibited an intricate piece reminiscent of 17th century Dutch perspective boxes. Titled Lacuna , a cavity or depression, it’s composed of cast iron, bronze, wood, mirrors, marbleized paper, animal bones, and pigments. Inside of a hexagonal case sits a blasted landscape of scarred and ashy remains surrounding a conicalshaped drumlin revealing a tarry abyss from which blackened bumblebees emerge. Mirrors placed on the inside of the case extend the landscape into an infinity of loss.

Currently, Martha is working to restore a 19th century Venetian display cabinet featuring gilded figures and inlaid stone (pietra dura), which will house her imaginings of a Wisconsin garden illuminated by oculi delivering natural light to her constructed interiors. Like all of Martha’s work, an elaborate and baroque mystery to be contemplated and reflected upon.

To see more of Martha’s work, visit marthaglowackiartist.com.

Chris Gargan is a landscape artist and freelance writer working from his farm southwest of Verona. You can find his work at Abel Contemporary Gallery in Stoughton. He is seen here with his dog Tycho Brahe.

Abel Contemporary Gallery

Photographs provided by Martha Glowacki

Chris Gargan

Photograph by Larassa Kabel

Madison.

us in Stoughton, WI and online.

Image: Sandra Peterson

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