Four times a year Milwaukee's galleries and art museums open their doors on a Friday night and let throngs of art lovers see what there is to see - for free.
It seemed that more people than ever were trolling Milwaukee’s arty areas for Friday’s Gallery Night. Could it be that it’s still growing in its 20th year? Or perhaps people were taking advantage of the last Gallery Night before the New Year and the emergence of winter; or possibly people have realized that Milwaukee has an incredible art scene and have finally decided to explore it. Whatever the reason, the streets in the Third Ward were flooded with art enthusiasts and amateur admirers; and I wasn’t going to miss it!
Presented by the East Town and Historic Third Ward Associations, Gallery Night and Day has grown into a two-day premier art event in Milwaukee spanning Friday evening and Saturday afternoon. Eric and I opted for the Friday Night experience and noticed that not only were galleries and museums holding receptions with artists on hand, they were serving free beer, wine and hors d'oeuvre, which made it an alternative to the bar scene and one of the social highlights of the season, not just a standard art exhibition.
Despite those who were there for the freebies instead of the chance to witness really great local artwork, I had been wanting to attend Gallery Night for a while. I like the fact that it's an occasion that welcomes both the experienced artist and new devotee, which is also why I wanted to bring Eric along with me. I have a couple years of experience under my belt whereas Eric has appreciation for art, but might not be able to distinguish Realist from Impressionist paintings. That's what makes it fun though. It’s like watching a movie like the Sixth Sense with someone who hasn’t seen it before – they express a little more awe and are a little more intrigued.
On Friday, I went from work to my apartment on the East Side, and after a shower and a quick bite to eat, I was beckoned by Eric’s truck horn. Seconds later I met him outside and we proceeded to the Third Ward. Every time I venture into the Third Ward, I feel like a tourist because it’s part of the city that I don’t know very well. Therefore, Friday night was a great chance to discover all of its nooks and crannies.
This October, the quarterly Gallery Night featured 64 venues throughout the downtown area to choose from, which was quite big and overwhelming, especially since this was our first full Gallery Night. Since there was no way we’d tackle every single exhibition in one evening, we chose to stay around the Third Ward.
Before we moved on to the various galleries, we planned to meet up with Evan Nicoud, one of the fashion design contestants in the third round of Project Lela during the Summer Gallery Night.
Since Eric and I found immediate parking, we were a couple minutes early, so we ducked into Lela Boutique and waited for Evan. We killed time by paging through racks of their fall collection and perusing the photos from Lela’s 4th Anniversary Fashion Show, and of course we didn’t turn down a complimentary cup of Spotted Cow from the keg next to the register. Meanwhile, daylight waned and night came on and brought along with it wind that became wicked as the night progressed.
Promptly at 7 p.m., Evan arrived. We had been emailing back and forth for a couple weeks prior to Friday, but I vaguely remembered what he looked like (Project Lela seemed so long ago). Luckily, neither of us had any trouble picking out each other from the swarm of gallery-goers outside of Lela.
Since neither Eric nor I knew the Third Ward like the East Side, Evan was a huge help as he escorted us around for about an hour and gave us a guided glimpse into what Gallery Night offered.
As the three of us joined droves of locals flocking to popular galleries or shops, blustery winds whistled through the dark alleyways and blew crisp gold leaves in circles and onto the sidewalk. On our tour we went to at least half a dozen galleries that displayed works ranging from drawing and painting, to sculpture and apparel, to mixed-media and photography.
While we weaved around old industrial buildings that were revamped into chic boutiques, galleries and trendy eateries, Evan and I talked about our day jobs, side projects and hobbies. We also gushed over quaint East Side shops and Bay View bars, and discussed where to get good French cuisine and where to buy over-the-top bathroom and kitchen wares. I learned that Evan is quite the “Jack of all trades” seeing as he juggles web designing, fitness training, and fashion designing while leading a sewing club each week. Since both of us are pretty busy people, it was great to find time to finally meet.
We began on Buffalo Street and our first stop was Freckle Face, a specialty childrens wear boutique offering apparel, footwear, bedding, classic children's books and other specialty gifts. Upon entry my eyes were drawn up towards the ceiling where handmade airplanes and birds soared from fishing wire. It gave a unique perspective to self-taught artist Benjamin John Van Male’s “Flying.” If you couldn’t guess from the title, Van Male’s mixed-media, drawings, paintings and sculptures all concentrated on the act of flying.
Showing at the Light Ideas Gallery located only two blocks away and inside the Marshall Building was photographer Troy Freund’s “Something that Will Last.” His black and white photos exhibited candid, sensitive subjects of everyday life and the moments of clarity that exists within daily events. The photographs were so real and honest that it seemed like I was looking through my family’s photo album; I felt like I knew those people or as if some of them could have been Eric or Justin or my mom or me.
Also on display was the “Milwaukee Mass Portrait.” I heard on the news a few months ago that on June 16, hundreds of Milwaukeeans gathered at Menomonee Valley Community Park to form a mass portrait of contemporary Milwaukee in all of its diversity. Finally on Friday, the photos from the event were revealed. It’s unbelievable to see hundreds of thousands of people in one photo; in fact, it was nearly impossible to distinguish one face from the next – it was like trying to pick a pine nut from a tub of pesto penne.
At Grava Gallery located in the same building, Tom McCann showcased "Woodies," images on panels of ash. At first I couldn’t figure out what medium he used to create the computer graphic-like images. By chance, McCann was on hand at Grava, so I seized the opportunity and asked him about his work. McCann explained that the panels are layered with lacquer, and then landscapes and abstracts are built up by burning the wood and using pastels and paints. After that, the grain becomes part of the painting, he explained.
How cool was that? It wasn’t that I was “star struck” of anything, but seldom does anyone have the opportunity to ask the actual living, breathing artist questions about their work.
Evan departed for his dinner date an hour later and we were left to fend for ourselves. We revisited a couple of the galleries like H2O and 218, and stopped into some shops such as Broadway Paper (I’m taking a greeting card making class there in November), J. Bird Boutique, Sprout and Urban Accents since they were also open until 10 p.m. Then, we decided to locate a couple of the galleries we read about in the brochure, but hadn't been to yet.
I’d never been to Thunder Mountain or its Northwoods Gallery. When I got up to the fifth floor, I was surprised by the rustic décor and unique art studio and how well it suited the work of the “Mountain Men” – Scott Zoellick, Don Kloetzke and Jerry Gadamus – popular wildlife artists. Each artist had their own style and choice of media, for instance, Gadamus used a free hand airbrush to make unbelievably detailed paintings. (I couldn’t believe that he didn’t use a stencil or paint brush.) Even though their methods were different, their subject matter – landscapes, wild animals, outdoor sports and World War II aircrafts – was very similar.
Downstairs in the same building was the Thomas Queoff Sculpture Studio. In this loft-style gallery we enjoyed weaving around the sculptures by the one and only, Thomas Queoff. The room was cluttered with large and small scale works in bronze, steel, wood and stone. His sculptures reflected his love for the outdoors, which was evident in my favorite piece, “Mother and Child.” In this work he translated bronze into a humanistic form and emulated a simple grace that was clearly inspired by nature.
As we left the two galleries and headed towards Water Street, I realized that we only had an hour until most of the shops and galleries would close. But after a phone call from Lara who was also parading around the Third Ward with some friends, Eric and I found ourselves trekking over the Third Ward Bridge and to the Warehouse Lofts. This was when I perceived that heals weren’t the best choice of footwear for the evening (I seem to have issues selecting proper attire).
At the Historic Warehouse emerging student artists showcased their works, which encompassed painting, print and photography. Lara’s friend was displaying her series of self portraits here. We were able to mull over each piece for a couple minutes as we sipped on a small glass of red wine.
Without exception, this beginning-of-the-school-year exhibit revealed new, unknown talent. It was a great place to spot new artists.
Two glasses of wine and a couple cubes of cheese later, Eric and I were ready to head back home. There was way more to see and eat and drink than we could possibly fit into one evening. But whether you head to Gallery Night or Day for the free wine or to admire local artwork, it’s certainly an event not to miss.
The next Gallery Night and Day is set for January 18 and 19 in 2008. Mark that on your calendar!
I got a really nice e-mail from Troy Freund... YAY!
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Just wanted to say 'hello' and 'thank you' for mentioning my show "Something That Will Last" in your recent blog. I hope you enjoyed the show--the B+W images and the MilMassPortrait. It sounds like you appreciated the work. So, again, thanks for your time and words.
Best wishes,
Troy Freund, photographer
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Thanks for the nice message, Troy! I look forward to seeing more of your work in the near future!
Posted by: Karen | November 02, 2007 at 12:54 PM