DIY WOOD STUDIO FARGO of

It’s Not Just For Guys!

It was the night they wouldn’t go home,” Kiley Clapper recalls with laughter. That was the indication that DIY Wood Studio should add more classes just for women. The family business opened in January of this year, and is owned by Jim and Ann Clapper, Kiley’s parents. They originally considered middle-aged men as their primary target market but have found that women are eager to learn wood-working skills as well. The most recent group of women to take the introductory class had so much fun they stayed an hour after closing time. They bonded so closely as a group, they asked to take the next level class together.

The mission of DIY is to promote the joy and art of wood craftsmanship throughout the community. Located at 3231 4th Avenue South in Fargo, the studio is a place where an experienced wood worker can come and use tools they may not have at home, have coffee, use the resource library, and make new friends who share their love of the craft. For those with little or no experience, it’s a place to take classes and have an opportunity to build their skill level at their own pace.

The idea to offer a class just for women came from one of their previous female students. The rationale is that women typically know less about using tools and need to start at a more basic level, especially older women who never had an opportunity to take shop classes in high school. “They are often at a disadvantage, lacking the hands-on or life experience with tools and machinery that men often have,” Ann Clapper said. One female student admitted that at first, she was afraid of the sound of the saw. “We have brand new, top-of-the-line equipment with the latest safety features that can make a big difference.”

“If people work up the courage to come to the studio, it’s an easy place to be,” Kiley Clapper explained. “No one is going to judge you, we are open to every skill level.” In fact, the statement, “It’s an easy place to be,” has been echoed on a class evaluation form by one of their earlier students.

Another strategy the Clappers employ is selecting the right teachers and technicians for each class. For the women’s class, they brought in an emerging female wood worker. “We feel that peer to peer instruction learning from someone who is closer to their skill level is very effective,” Ann Clapper said.

“When a woman learns a nontraditional skill, it translates well into the workplace, school, relationships it builds confidence in everyday life,” explained Kiley. “And working with your hands activates other parts of your brain,” Ann added. The consensus being that even those who don’t continue with woodworking benefit from trying something different.

Along with an opportunity to hone a new craft, DIY provides a sense of community that has become less common due to the Internet and social-media sites. “It’s a different feel, being able to talk face to face,” Kiley Clapper said. The direct interaction at the studio encourages a wonderful exchange of ideas.

The age range of students is broad―ranging from elementary students to grandparents, and everyone in between. The Clappers also encourage service groups and youth groups to use their facility as a resource or to sign up for classes.

Classes are offered on a regular basis on woodworking, turning and carving for beginners to professionals. Membership packages of different sizes are also available. The studio is open Monday through Saturday, 9:00 am to 9:00 pm, and noon to 9:00 pm, Sundays.

They offer drop-in workshops for kids five and older every other Saturday from 1pm to 4pm. Projects consist of assembling pre-cut pieces. Child-sized hand tools are available and safety basics and shop rules are introduced. The kids can select the type of project they want to make from kits like birdhouses, foot stools, tool boxes and more. A parent or adult needs to attend, so it makes for a great family experience.

Find a class schedule, list of tools and more at www.diywoodstudio. com. As they say on their website, come in and make some saw dust!

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The mission of the Plains Art Museum is to bring art and people together for learning and inspiration .

The mission of the Plains Art Museum is to bring art and people together for learning and inspiration. Providing leadership for such a lofty goal is a task Colleen Sheehy, Director and CEO, embraces with enthusiasm. Her role necessitates wearing many “hats”—from leading the artistic direction of the museum, to cultivating the support of donors and raising funds, to occasionally curating exhibitions. Through each of these diverse roles Sheehy is aware that the ultimate goal is to foster a way for people to connect with art and enrich their lives.

As a young girl growing up in the Minneapolis suburb of St. Louis Park, art and museums were not part of Colleen’s early experiences. When she was just 10 years old her father died leaving her mom to raise eight children on a limited income. “Quite simply, we were poor, and all of us children had to work to contribute to the family, so extras like museums were not in the budget. And it was not a time when schools took field trips to museums.” Even though times were challenging, Colleen and each of her siblings enjoyed life and found success in school. All eight eventually graduated from college and several even earned advanced degrees, a fact that brings understandable pride to Colleen’s voice. “We all consider our mother a saint,” Colleen explained, for the support and encouragement she provided in spite of the challenging circumstances.

Early Exposure to Art

“My first experience with art and museums was in eighth grade when I took a wood block printing class with a friend at the Walker Art Museum in Minneapolis.” That experience sparked an interest that continued to grow through the coming years. While living in Seattle and Minneapolis during college, Colleen became a regular visitor to museums. At the University of Washington and later the University of Minnesota, she pursued her lifelong love of literature and writing, naturally leading to a major in English, combined with a minor in humanities, which included art history. This left little time for courses in studio art, but, never-the-less, her interest in arts and crafts grew.

Colleen’s favorite college class, entitled “Modernism,” studied 20th century visual art, theatre, music, literature, science and politics, focusing on the interrelatedness of each of these disciplines. It was a wonderful course for an inquisitive mind like Colleen’s combining study in so many of the areas she loved. During this time she also received college credit for her work as an intern at the Walker Art Museum providing tours of the “Naives and Visionaries” exhibit. Through that experience, Sheehy noted, “I realized that I loved museums, loved talking with museum visitors and I developed a love through this exhibition of environmental art, public art, landscape art, and folk art.” Colleen eventually enrolled in a study abroad program called SPAN – Student Program for Amity Among Nations –which culminated in a summer abroad in Ireland. Each student was expected to complete an independent research project, and Colleen’s focused on the history of weaving in Ireland. These experiences continued to build a strong foundation for her developing expertise in arts and humanities. By the time Colleen enrolled in her master’s degree program in American Studies at the University of Minnesota, her love of research and culture had evolved into a clear career goal to work in art museums and have a holistic impact on communities as they relate to their museums. Her focus in her graduate work was on American art, including contemporary art and folk art.

Among other influences, Colleen has been inspired by the writings of German artist Joseph Beuys, who believed that artists could transform society by creating networks for people to connect on a variety of levels. Combining her acute sense of observation and her love of places, landscape and folk art, Colleen’s dissertation on American yard art, entitled “The Flamingo in the Garden,” studied people’s expression of art in daily life. This unique topic exemplifies how Colleen can take the work of everyday people and highlight its significance. Sheehy received her PhD in American Studies from the University of Minnesota in 1991 while juggling the many responsibilities of work, family and school.

Following grad school, Colleen returned to the University of Minnesota and accepted a full-time position, eventually becoming the Director of Education at the Weisman Art Museum – a role she held for 15 years. While there she curated numerous exhibitions. One colleague from her time at the Weisman was Shelly Willis, the current Interim Director and Public Art Director at the Sacramento Metropolitan Arts Commission. As Willis glowingly described Colleen’s work, her admiration and respect was evident: “Colleen has a unique ability to pull together different voices surrounding a subject and find connections. She can take an exhibition that may at first seem difficult or lacking in interest and make it profoundly engaging for the audience.” One such exhibit was entitled “In the Heart of the Beast” describing the radical impact a regional puppet and mask theatre group had in transforming the Lake Street region of Minneapolis. As Willis said, seeing Colleen’s work in this exhibit was so “powerful and moving” that she had to find a way to work with this visionary woman.

The Plains Art Museum

Located at 704 First Avenue North in downtown Fargo, the Plains Art Museum finds its home in a turn of the century machinery warehouse that was skillfully redesigned in the mid-1990’s to fit an art museum’s needs. The sun-filled, spacious 56,000-square-foot building contains three main galleries which typically present 12 different special exhibits along with several smaller exhibits each year. The Plains Art Museum is truly a dynamic and exciting place. Along with the display studios, the Plains is also home to the Café Muse, the Goldberg Art Lounge, performance

FROM.LEFT.TO.RIGHT,.THEY.ARE: MEGAN.JOHNSTON.(DIRECTOR.OF.CURATORIAL. AFFAIRS.AND.INTERPRETATION), MARK.RYAN.(DIRECTOR.OF.COLLECTIONS.AND. OPERATIONS), COLLEEN.SHEEHY.(DIRECTOR.AND.CEO), MARK.HENzE.(CFO), SANDY. BEN-HAIM.(DIRECTOR.OF.EDUCATION) areas, meeting and reception space, and permanent collection storage and care areas.

Sheehy calls the Plains “one of the gems of Fargo. It is unique for a community of this size to have such an excellent caliber museum.” Colleen’s guidance, professionalism, creativity and exceptional leadership have paved the way for many new initiatives which have brought exceptional value to the people of this region.

When Colleen joined the museum as CEO in October of 2008, she took on reviving the capital campaign, which had begun in 2004. It is a testimony to her tenacity and ability to develop meaningful relationships that, in spite of the economic recession that surfaced within weeks of her accepting the job, she was still able to see the successful completion of the capital campaign within just four years. Thanks to the support of more than 300 donors, who contributed gifts ranging from $5 to $1 million, the campaign raised $6.8 million. As John Q. Paulsen, former chairman of the Plains’ Board of Directors described her accomplishments, “Colleen has done a remarkable job leading the Plains Art Museum to reach new heights in serving the community.”

In 2012 as a culmination of the capital campaign, the Plains added the Katherine Kilbourne Burgum Center for Creativity, a 24,000-square-foot building filled with studio classrooms and galleries specially designed to be used by the community for participation in art creation. In addition to the museum’s usual 50,000 visitors each year, this new space, ideal for teaching and learning, will allow over 12,000 additional visitors to engage in the creative process.

Another exciting initiative that reached fruition under Sheehy’s leadership was the commissioning and installation of James Rosenquist’s The North Dakota Mural. Rosenquist, a North Dakota native, is considered one of the top artists in the world. His works have been featured at the Museum of Modern Art, the Guggenheim, and the National Gallery of Art as well as galleries world wide. His acceptance of this commission to create a work specifically for the Plains demonstrates his loyalty to his roots. Paulsen would suggest that it is also a tribute to the work of Colleen Sheehy. “Rosenquist is just one of many world famous artists who have developed an interest in and support for the Plains Art Museum because of her commitment to developing meaningful relationships with all types of artists and supporters of art.”

A search through the museum’s website and blog provides amazing evidence of a place pulsing with mission and momentum. Recent displays have included a wide variety of artistic genres. “A Creative Life: Honoring Charles Beck,” provided a tribute to the 50-year career of regional artist Beck who specialized in stunning woodblock prints, paintings, drawings and watercolors. The playful work of Meg Spielman Peldo, “no lumps, thank you; a bra anthology,” took a humorous and contemporary look at the genre of still life while simultaneously raising awareness for the issue of breast cancer. “Graffiti 101 The Foundation of Street Art” explored the energetic and often underground art phenomenon rarely seen in museums. In combination with a Hip Hop festival featuring DJ Spooky, the historic and contemporary expression of art through graffiti was brought to life.

“Our Treasures: Highlights from the Minnesota Museum of American Art” included works from such noted artists as Thomas Hart Benton, Grant Wood, Paul Manship, Cameron Booth, Joan Mitchell, Louise Nevelson, George Morrison and Warren MacKenzie among others. A family-friendly educational “treasure hunt” brochure accompanied the exhibition.

Colleen spoke enthusiastically about each exhibit she described. A personal favorite for her was a 2010 show titled “Individual to Icon: Portraits of the Famous and Almost Famous from Folk Art to Facebook.” Work from 14 regional and national artists was presented and the topic of the obsession with being famous was investigated. “The wide variety of work provided many points of entry for viewers,” Sheehy stated.

A prolific writer and editor, Colleen frequently shares her love of language through exhibition catalogs. Reading her narrative of a display provides an engaging and informative experience no matter what the topic. As many who have enjoyed her writings said, “She makes you want to learn about the topic.” Arlette Preston, current chair of the Plains Board of Directors described Sheehy as “a visionary, forward-thinking person who recognizes the need to reach all kinds of people, young and old, and especially under-recognized artists.” This personal drive to search out art that will provide opportunities for finding new ways to view life and the world is thus shared with the public she so generously serves.

Beyond the Building

Seeking to engage people who may not come into the museum, the PlainsInsideOUT is an initiative to get out of the building and into the community. Taking to the streets on bikes, in partnership with the Great Northern Bike Company, one summer evening was filled with fun art activities and touring around town on bikes to see public art such as graffiti murals by local artist Paul Ide and commercial art such as the Sunny Brook whiskey mural. As the Plains blog reminds us “The evening demonstrated that art and transportation are vehicles (pun intended) for stitching a city together into a healthier, more vibrant place to live.”

Water Water Everywhere was a two week summer workshop in cooperation with the Minneapolis-based “Heart of the Beast” puppet troupe that used visual arts, storytelling and puppetry to explore water stewardship and our relationship to this marvelous resource. Based at the Bluestem Center for the Arts, the project was hosted in cooperation with Trollwood Performing Arts School.

Many other projects at the museum have connected with the community. Because water is always a prominent issue in the Fargo-Moorhead area, Project Flood Diversion, led by museum curator Megan Johnston, provided an outlet for the community to retell the experiences related to sandbagging, rising water in the basement, sump pump breakdowns, and helping neighbors. These stories are unique from most communities, but provide connections that are strong and important in the Red River Valley. University of Minnesota landscape architecture instructor Rebecca Krinke facilitated the project in April 2012, a year that was thankfully free from flood worries.

Each fall, members of the Fargo-Moorhead Visual Artists organization host a studio crawl which invites the public to visit a large number of local artists as they work in their studios. To collaborate with these artists and pique the public’s interest, the Plains Art Museum has provided a special preview exhibition showing a sample of these artists’ work.

In another community-based project, the Plains Art Museum staff sought funding from the National Endowment for the Arts to support Defiant Gardens for Fargo-Moorhead. The former Moorhead power plant is scheduled to be the site of a public garden designed to create beauty and foster community connection.

Another Defiant Garden project led by artist Christine Baeumler resulted in a garden-art project entitled “Playful Pollinators” for and by 4-H club members at Fargo’s Madison Elementary School. Students studied gardening, the roles of insect pollinators and creativity as they have planted and cared for their garden. The program culminated in a salsa party using vegetables from the pollinator garden. This eclectic list of examples of Plains Art Museum exhibits in the recent past clearly demonstrates the scope and diversity of the programming provided to the Fargo-Moorhead community.

When you ask Colleen what she sees as goals for her work at the museum in the future, she is quick to emphasize her commitment to serving the community. “As a leader, I try to remain focused on serving our audiences. That is why the museum exists.” It is her passion to help people find connections through art that develop networks to positively transform society. It is clear to see that both inside and outside the walls of the Plains Art Museum, our community is feeling the positive impact of this wonderful organization and nothing could thrill Colleen Sheehy more.

Life Beyond Work

Colleen does have a life beyond the walls of the Plains, but because she is a self-proclaimed “art addict” much of what she does in her down time is truly congruous with her work life. Peter Murphy, her husband of 30 years is also an artist and is employed as a media technician at the Walker Art Museum in Minneapolis. Their twoor-three-city family life, “keeps things lively,” Sheehy states. “We’re both really committed to our work with art, artists and art museums, and we make this arrangement work with trips back and forth for both of us and our kids. The Internet helps a lot too!” The couple has two daughters. Brigid, who graduated from the U of M with a degree in Fisheries and Wildlife Conservation, is currently working at the Animal Humane Society, and Annie, a student at Loyola University in Chicago, who is studying theatre. When not working or spending time with family, Colleen enjoys a simple life filled with reading, gardening, music listening, concerts, films, yoga, biking, cooking and playing guitar.

As Colleen looks to the future both personally and professionally, this renaissance woman cannot help but focus on art and learning. She loves the work she does and looks forward to fostering creativity, communication and collaboration as people are drawn to the Plains for beauty and stimulation.

To learn more about the Plains Art Museum, visit the website at www. plainsart.org or call 701.232.3821

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