Mary Bergs - Installation

Mary Bergs

Name:   Mary Bergs
City/State:  Minneapolis, MN
Email:  bergsmary@gmail.com
Website:  www.marybergs.com
MNartist.org profile: www.mnartists.org/mary_bergs

Bio~ 

Mary Bergs is a visual artist who lives and works in Minneapolis, MN.  Bergs works in a variety of  2D and 3D media. She has exhibited her work at The Bloomington Art Center,

Soo Visual Art Center, MN Center for Book Arts and many college and university galleries. Her work is included in the Drawing Center’s Viewing Program Bergs is a recipient of a 2013 Artist Initiative grant through the MN State Arts Board.  She holds a graduate degree in Social Work from the University of Louisville and completed a BFA at the University of MN.

Tell me about your work? What are you currently working on? How is this different from past projects?

I am an installation artist.  I work with found images, objects and materials arranging them into large compositions.  I am interested in the unexpected connections between objects and how this influences our experience with objects we encounter everyday.  In my exhibition at the Bloomington Art Center I incorporated drawings into several of the installations, this is a new direction for my work.  It introduces the maker’s hand into the work and emphasizes formal elements of the found object compositions.  The show is titled the Sublime Mundane and pairs my found object installations with the amazing paintings of Dan Buettner.  Both of us are examining our relationship with objects and re-presenting objects to the viewer.

How did you decide to become an artist?

I decided to become an artist when I visited a remote silk weaving village in India….  a romantic and true story. 

What was the best advice given to you as an artist? 

Stop thinking.  Go Play.

Many artists struggle to find ways to sell their art.  How do you sell your work?  How do you market yourself?

I guess I am focused on exhibiting my work and not really on creating work that is saleable.  I occasionally sell drawings, or collage work.  The installations are more about playing with ideas and thinking out loud with objects

Who are some of the Minnesota artists you enjoy?

Harriet Bart  www.harrietbart.com

Anne George  http://annegeorge.tumbler.com

Charles Matson Lume  http://www.mnartists.org/artistHome.do?action=info&rid=57006

Margaret Pezalla-Granlund  www.mpezalla.com

Joe Smith  http://www.mnartists.org/article.do?rid=275001

Ken Steinbach  www.kennethsteinbach.com

Anne Sugnet  http://www.mnartists.org/event.do?rid=221233

If I were to follow you around to see art in Minnesota, which places would we go? What would we see?

The Twine Ball in Darwin, MN

David Petersen Gallery  www.davidpetersengallery

Franklin Art Works  www.franklinartworks.org

Rochester Art Center  www.rochesterartcenterorg

Soo VAC  www.soovac.org

Any small town historical society, museum, or thrift store.

In addition to www.Local-Artist-Interviews.com, where do you go online for good art resources, whether to find a new artist, or to see what is going on in the art world locally and otherwise?
Art 21  www.art21.org

But Does it Float  www.butdoesitfloat.com

Drawing Center Viewing Program  www.drawingcenter.org/viewingprogram/

NY Times Art  www.nytimes.com/pages/arts/index.

Do you have any exhibits to promote in the near future?

Sublime Mundane at the Bloomington Theater and Art Center

May 23 –July 12, 2013

Artist Talk June 27, 7:00pm

In August I will be doing a project in the garage at Tuck Under. I am playing with architectural and mechanical drawing forms and the geometry of that space.  I told Pete Driessen that I am channeling a frustrated old man who was a recluse and created drawings and inventions in his garage but they were all based on a made up understanding of geometric forms. 

Image List:  All work 2013

1. Sublime Mundane  Gallery View

2. Detail   “Listen”   (Crochet balls)

3. Sublime Mundane  Gallery View  (BlueRedLevels)

4. Detail  “Catalepsy”  (redblue)

5. "Underlined"

6. "Shelf with No.3"
7. Image of artist

Layl McDill - Mixed Media

Blue Bird Reveal's Spring, 

Colored pencil, acrylic, polymer clay, 14"x14"x2", 2012

Layl McDill

Name: Layl McDill
City/State: Minneapolis, MN
Email: layl@claysquared.com
Website: www.claysquared.com
MNartist.org profile: http://mnartists.org/artistHome.do?rid=232908
Facebook page:  http://www.facebook.com/pages/Layl-McDill/51305441418
Twitter: @  https://twitter.com/#!/LaylM
Etsy Page: http://www.etsy.com/shop/Laylmcdill

Bio~ 

Layl McDill grew up in Gillette, Wyoming where she began creating things at a very young age. She majored in illustration in art school at the Columbus College of Art and Design with plans to write and illustrate children’s books. Layl did illustrate three books for a small publishing company in Columbus, Ohio but the restraints of working on a flat surface were too frustrating.  When Layl found success selling her art at arts festivals even when she was still in art school she began to realize conventional illustration was not her real love.  Now she works primarily in polymer clay  creating series of work that tell stories about whimsical worlds including animals, women, bugs, flowers and whatever else pops into her imagination.  She is a master of the millefiore technique where she creates tiny pictures in the clay which cover all of her creations.  Layl lives and creates in NE Minneapolis with her two daughters and husband.  In 1999 she and her husband, Josh Blanc, opened their studio/showroom Clay Squared to Infinity in North East Minneapolis.  Here she sells her work and Josh makes and sells tiles.  She still does many festivals through out the year and teaches her clay technique to children and adults.

Bees and Keys, 

Polymer clay, Mica Powder, Colored Pencil, Acrylic, Wire, Beads, 26”x22”x3”, 2012

Tell me about your work? What are you currently working on? How is this different from past projects?

I create playful imaginative sculptures from polymer clay (a colorful oven baked clay), glitter, found objects and Apoxy Scupt (an air dry clay).  Most of my pieces are wall pieces ranging in size from a few inches to 4 to 5 feet.  My goal with my art is to provoke a feeling of wonder that is similar to what it felt like to be a kid experiencing the world for the first time.  I like to embed whimsical stories into my work- sometimes with actual words but mostly with scenes that make you wonder what will happen next or why something is happening.  In the last two years my work has steadily gotten bigger and more involved than it had been since I first switched to the mediums I use now.  In a lot of ways I am going full circle back to the types of works I made as far back as high school when I had a feeling of "anything can be created".  

My upcoming show at the Bloomington Art Center with the large amount of space to fill has really given me the incentive to make these larger more involved pieces.  A lot of thought has to go into structural issues when using my medium of polymer clay (which is usually used for jewelry).  Larger pieces also give me a chance to slow down and work on one piece for a much longer time and really enjoy the trip that the piece takes me on.  Many of these pieces have revealed truths to me about myself and life in general that I didn't realize until the piece was actually finished.  

In particular I didn't see the resemblance to my own life in "She Made it Look Easy to Control the Rhino Puppet Show" until this piece was finished.   Another new aspect to my work as been the integration of sketches into my pieces.  I have been making a series of 1 foot square pieces that start with a sketch applied to the painted board and then dimensional clay pieces are added to create the final piece. 

She Made it Look Easy to Control the Rhino, 

Polymer Clay, Wire, Beads, Apoxy Sculpt 28"x20"x4", 2011

How did you decide to become an artist?

The story goes in my family that as soon as I could talk I declared "I want to be an Artist and a Mother" and this is what I have done.  I always knew both would be equally important to me and I took on the challenge of making this work.  I never slowed down when I had my daughters who are now 12 and 15.  When they were newborns I even brought them to art fairs and nursed them as I sold work!  It has helped to have a husband who is also an artist.  I am driven to create no matter what I am lucky that I get to do it everyday of my life.


What was the best advice given to you as an artist? 

When I was at an art camp as a teenager an artist said "There is a market for every kind of art you just have to find it".  

This sticks in my mind anytime I find myself doubting that I can sell something that I plan to make.  A large part of making my art is finding an eventual home for it (otherwise it would fill up my house!) so I am always thinking about who will be it's eventual owner but it is also important for me to feel free to create on a whim without knowing for sure who will own it one day.  So I constantly remind myself of this concept.

Cup Cake Factory in the Flowers, 

polymer clay, wire, beads, Apoxy Sculpt, 35"x32"x5"

Many artists struggle to find ways to sell their art.  How do you sell your work?  How do you market yourself?

Art fairs have been my primary selling opportunity since 1993.  I really enjoy all aspects of the art fair- even packing up my car which is always a fun puzzle.  I love to meet people and talk to them.  It is true that art fairs have been less profitable than in the "old days" but I still find that they are the best way to get my work out there.  It is a great way to be seen by a lot of people even if they don't all buy.  I also like to show my work in the many amazing art centers in the Twin Cities.  I may not sell a lot at these venues but this gives me a new audience besides those that go to art fairs.  

I also have a website (www.claysquared.com) that has been mainly a great place to sell smaller works but I find that the more large works I do and post there the more luck I have had selling these too.  I love to market on my facebook pages ( http://www.facebook.com/pages/Layl-McDill/51305441418 

and http://www.facebook.com/pages/Silly-Millies/47507292705 )  It is a great way to interact with fans all over the country and I have had many sales directly related to my facebook postings.  My husband Josh Blanc and I also have a permanent showroom in the Keg House in NE Minneapolis- this means everyday I have a chance to show and sell my work to whoever walks in the door.  I also teach a lot of classes which has really become popular since the recession.

Just Think How a Book is Like a Birdhouse,  

Polymer clay, Mica Powder, Colored Pencil, Acrylic, Wire, Beads 36”x24”x3’, 2012

Who are some of the Minnesota artists you enjoy?  

 I totally idolize Judy Onofrio (  http://www.judyonofrio.com/ ) When I want to push my art to go further I think of her work and what she has done over her long career.

An up and coming artist whom I have known for many years and just completely admire is Felice Amato ( http://www.feliceamato.com)  Her work has such depth and strength and imagination.

Other favorites are Ann Wood and Dean Lucker (http://woodlucker.com/) 

Kyle Fokken (http://kylefokken.com) 

Mimi Holmes (http://mnartists.org/artistHome.do?action=info&rid=47536), 

Eleanor McGough (http://www.mnartists.org/artistHome.do?rid=96594), 

Nicholas Harper (http://www.roguebuddha.com/artists/nicharper.html), 

Heidi Henderson (http://www.hkhpaintings.com/)   And many more!

If I were to follow you around to see art in Minnesota, which places would we go? What would we see?

The Minneapolis Institute of Art (http://www.artsmia.org/) is my number one go to place when I want to get some art in my brain.  

I also try to get to First Thursdays at the Northrup King Building and other studios in NE Mpls.

(http://www.northrupkingbuilding.com/) 

And my new favorite is Flow Arts Gallery (http://www.flowartspace.com/) which is in the basement of the Keg House - .  Melissa Metzler puts together juried shows along themes and brings in works from all over the country.  The variety is outstanding and it's right below our studio/showroom!

She Knew All the Best Ways to Deliver Word Kites, 

Polymer Clay, Wire, Apoxy Sculpt, Acrylic, Wood 50”x44”x6”, 2012

In addition to www.Local-Artist-Interviews.com, where do you go online for good art resources, whether to find a new artist, or to see what is going on in the art world locally and otherwise? 

My main resource for info on art fairs, art marketing and to see new art is www.artfairinsiders.com/

Etsy.com also has great pointers on marketing but I mostly go there to look for art inspiration- I like their system of putting people in your circle because you can follow what other artists like and see more art along the same theme.

Pintrest.com - I have just started to get into this world but I still find that I can find more interesting art on Etsy.

And some of my friends on Facebook post some pretty cool stuff

Do you have any exhibits to promote in the near future?

My show "Fresh Baked Stories" at the Bloomington Art Center runs from July 26th to September 9th in the Atrium Gallery. 

Most of the pieces in this show will be being shown for the very first time.

Bloomington Theater and Art Center

Website

Featured Interviews

Layl McDill

Farida Hughes - Painter

Soho Blue, Oil on canvas, 2012

Farida Hughes

Name: Farida Hughes
City/State: St. Paul, Minnesota
Email: frhughes@comcast.net
Website: http://www.faridahughes.com/
MNartist.org profile
Facebook page

Bio~ 

Farida Hughes is an abstract painter with a studio in the California Building in NE Minneapolis. Her work in oil paint and watercolor on paper is shown regularly at galleries and art centers in Minnesota and nationwide. Her pieces are included in many private and corporate collections nationally, including Target, Chesapeake Capital and the Marriot and Hilton hotels. She has a BA in Studio Art/English from Fordham University and MFA from the University of Chicago. Farida is represented locally by the Nina Bliese Gallery, Minneapolis.

Night Crossing

Tell me about your work? What are you currently working on? How is this different from past projects?

My paintings are abstract, often aerial, compositions of crowds with negative space providing the architectural/natural and urban/rural boundaries through which groups move and interact. My work examines flow, human passage, collective memory and collective movement. I am consistently interested in the interactions of disparate groups or individuals and the abstracted forms they create. Negative space acts as landscape and architectural reference and creates compositional tension and balance.

Right now I am finishing up a group of paintings based on observations at street crossings and intersections. These expand on a group of small pieces completed in 2009, and are specifically inspired by the crossings of foot traffic at urban university/campus sites, bus sites, and platforms for public transportation. Some of these pieces are different from previous work because the compositions display more of a grid-like structure.

Emergence, Oil on canvas, 2011

How did you decide to become an artist?

It is something that I always knew. Creating a work of art, for me, is a problem solving experience, an intellectual exercise that builds to a kind of performance of intuitive mark-making in my studio. It is getting to the exhilaration of the finishing stages of a painting that I crave. It is hard work but also a very rewarding activity that I just keep doing over and over again.

Following Up and Down, Oil on canvas, 2012

How has your work developed over the years?

Somewhere along the road I decided to remove the figure from my work. This limitation in subject matter helped me to develop as more of an abstract thinker; I began to focus on physical space and the movement of objects in space. I am talking about real spaces in the world: landscapes, cityscapes, interiors, not the cosmos. Eventually my objects became the forms of people, groups of people, in a variety of spaces. My work now is focused on the experience of bodies interacting with and moving through spaces, and though it was not intentional, I am amused that I came back to figures in this very abstract way.

What was the best advice given to you as an artist? 

A grad school advisor told me I had to take the horizon line out of my paintings. I was painting landscapes and cityscapes but I wanted to dig deeper into human connections to their surroundings; I was developing into an abstract painter, wanting to combine the influences of abstract expressionism and color field painting which was all around me in my youth, but still work with subject matter. Removing the horizon line was a real challenge but extremely liberating.

On the business side of things, a great piece of advice was to join artist registries. Back then they were slide registries; it is much easier today with digital images and online image banks. Great advice for any young artist!

Grand Avenue, Oil on canvas, 2009

Many artists struggle to find ways to sell their art.  How do you sell your work?  How do you market yourself?

I use my website http://www.faridahughes.com/

mnartists.org 
http://www.mnartists.org/artistHome.do?rid=206337

Facebook page 

I keep several mailing lists and send out a sort of newsletter or email invite when I have something of note going on.

I work with a couple of art consulting firms; I sell my work through commercial galleries but I also like to show at art centers, university galleries or other spaces which helps to expand the audience.  It is good to keep an online presence as well as continue to exhibit in both solo and group shows.

Who are some of the Minnesota artists you enjoy?

Lisa Nankivil  http://www.nankivil.com/

David Rathman  www.larissagoldston.com/artists/davidrathman/index.aspx

Mary Bergs  http://www.marybergs.com/

Amy Tillotson  www.mnartists.org/artistHome.do?rid=180839

Betsy Byers  http://www.betsyruthbyers.com/

Corners, Oil on canvas, 2012

If I were to follow you around to see art in Minnesota, which places would we go? What would we see?

Walker Art Center http://www.walkerart.org/

Traffic Zone http://www.trafficzoneart.com/

Nina Bliese Gallery http://www.ninabliesegallery.com/

Bloomington Art Center http://www.bloomingtonartcenter.com/

Open studio events throughout the Twin Cities

In addition to www.Local-Artist-Interviews.com, where do you go online for good art resources, whether to find a new artist, or to see what is going on in the art world locally and otherwise?

http://www.mnartists.org/

http://www.mnoriginal.org/

http://www.artinamericamagazine.com/

www.nytimes.com/pages/arts/index.html?8qa

http://www.walkerart.org/

www.renaissancesociety.org/site/

Momentary Passing, Oil on canvas, 2011

Do you have any exhibits to promote in the near future?

I have an exhibition opening at the Bloomington Theater and Art Center on June 29, 2012

“Speaking of Space”, Farida Hughes and Danelle Griner

June 29 – August 10, 2012

Opening Reception Friday, June 29, 6-8pm

Artist Talk: July 19, 7pm

Bloomington Theater and Art Center

1800 W. Old Shakopee Rd.
Bloomington, MN 5543

This is a painting exhibition but it will incorporate a 3-dimensional installation in gallery space that pushes the conceptual ideas behind both Danelle’s and my work. This is the first time I have done a collaborative piece for an art exhibition and I am quite excited about that addition to the show.

Farida hughes

Bloomington Theater and Art Center

(Featured Interviews)

Sherry Lee Short - Ex-Pat - Drawing

Hat of Knives

Sherry Lee Short

Name:  Sherry Lee Short

Location:  Fargo, North Dakota

Website:  www.sherryleeshort.com

Why did you leave Minnesota? 

 Other than to leave for graduate school, I lived in Minnesota from age 7 until my late 30s.  During most of that time, I lived in Moorhead.  Moorhead and Fargo, North Dakota, are twin cities.  I first moved to Fargo because the house I was renting in Moorhead flooded badly in a summer flash flood.  Five years later, I bought a house in Fargo.  It was exactly the kind older home I was looking for and nothing in Moorhead that was available at that time fit the ticket. 

Silence

Tell me about your new city of residence?  

Truly, in many ways, it is not a “new” city for me.  “Fargo-Moorhead” is an interconnected urban area of over 165,000 that also includes a couple of smaller communities on both the Minnesota and North Dakota sides. Although I still feel like a resident of Fargo-Moorhead, the longer I have lived in Fargo the more I have moved to identifying with North Dakota, the state, as my home.  This is because I am interested in a number of political and environmental issues.  Because I can affect such things both through activism and by voting as a resident, I have begun to pay more and more attention to what is happening in North Dakota.  

There are issues specific to the state that are distinctly different than issues in the state of Minnesota.  For example, through a project of the Archibald Bush Foundation, I was part of a group that worked to identify what issues impact artistic participation in the Dakotas.  I am also concerned about the political leadership that has allowed widespread environmental destruction in a large area of North Dakota by allowing almost unfettered oil extraction. These are just two examples of how my new residency has influenced my participation and awareness.

Haiku

How has your art changed since moving from Minnesota?

In 2004, I started to explore landscape.  Until then, I had exclusively worked as a figurative artist.  However, I have always had a passion for many things outdoors and decided to explore integrating that passion with my art.  Interestingly, at first I didn’t think I had any interest in the North Dakota prairies.  Instead, I headed up to the North Shore along Lake Superior in Minnesota and the Upper Peninsula of Michigan.  However, those places are hours from where I live.  So I also started taking shorter day trips to areas closer to my home, such as the Sheyenne National Grasslands in North Dakota.  Slowly, I started to develop a sense for the aesthetic of the prairie.  The bright summer sun and the brilliance of the white glaring off of the prairie draped in snow now imbues much of my work, even crossing over to affect the aesthetic of my figurative work.

Divide

If you come back to Minnesota for one weekend and you need to see your old favorite places, where would you go to see art?

My favorite places to see art are in community spaces, such things as coffee shops or an apparently random light pole “hit” by yarn bombing.  I like to just discover art when I am out for a run or walking through a community space.

Warrior

Who are some of your favorite artists still living in Minnesota?

Joyce Lyon    http://www.land2.uwe.ac.uk/jlyon.htm

Mara Morken   http://maramorken.com/knit.html

If you could transplant one aspect of the Minnesota arts community home with you, what would it be?

There is greater support for the arts in general in Minnesota than North Dakota.  For example, grants available to North Dakota artists are nominal.  Minnesota artists are eligible for big grants such as the Jerome and the McKnight.  In North Dakota, the largest grant available is through the North Dakota Council on the Art—it’s $2,500, and it’s only available to one visual artist every three years.  I would love to see foundations recognize that the Dakotas are populated by a diversity of artists who deserve the grant opportunities available elsewhere.

Bride

Do you have any exhibits to promote now or in the near future?

Unveiling:  Three Women Explore Identity (portraits), May 19-June 24, 2012, Bloomington Art Center, Bloomington, Minnesota.  Artist Talk: Thursday June 14, 7:00PM.

Reflections from Solitude (solo landscape exhibition), September 30-November 4, 2012, Rourke Art Gallery, Moorhead, Minnesota.

BTAC

Danny Saathoff - Mixed Media

Mechanical Migration Danny Saathoff Edina, MN dannysaathoff@yahoo.com dannysaathoff.com MNartist.org profile: http://mnartists.org/artistHome.do?rid=125594 Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Danny-Saathoff-Visual-Artist-and-Jewelry-Designer/157140090987660 Bio~  I grew up around Minneapolis. I graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Stout with a Fine Arts Degree. After college, I moved to Colorado where I dropped out of the art making scene and really just lived to play (ski, backpack, whitewater kayak) for about eight years. I started a graphic design and sign shop to make enough money to keep up with my adventures. I ended up learning to sail on a resevoir at about 9000 feet up in the mountains, which was downhill from my house at 11,000 feet! I got so hooked on sailing that I decided to make a major life change and move back to the midwest where the is much more water. Since then, we've moved up to a good sized sailboat on Lake Superior where my wife, two boys and a dog spend most of our summer.  Start to Finish Tell me about your work? What are you currently working on? How is this different from past projects? Currently, I'm working on a large scale exterior sculpture that will be installed on a wall outside patient rooms at a local hospital. The wall is within 20 feet of the windows for these rooms and the current "view" is not very conducive for healing. I've been commissioned to build a piece that would provide an interesting visual experience/distraction that would also help promote a healing environment. This is by far, the largest piece I've ever constructed. There are just very few opportunities to build something 30 feet long and up to 12 feet tall. My gallery work has been an evolution out of my work as a jewelry designer. My jewelry is bold and incorporates found objects but I can only go so big before the jewelry becomes unwearable. That's the point where jewelry becomes sculpture, although I don't really buy into the whole art vs. craft debate. Jewelry is traditionally viewed as a "craft" along with pottery, glass, woodworking etc. I think the lines between art and craft have been blurred so much that it's not really worth debating the topic.  Cityscape Bracelet "What is Art?" is certainly too big of a question to ask here, but what do you hope your audience takes away from your art? What statement do you hope to make? My inspiration is all over the map. Sometimes politics creeps into my work, quite often nature is my inspiration and modes of transportation and the process of getting from point A to B often get my attention. I rarely look to make a statement through my work. More than anything, I like the work to lead the viewer to question what the work is about. It's like giving someone the first sentence of a short story and having them finish it. I enjoy putting things together and very often find meaning in the work long after a piece is complete. Sometimes random objects just want to be near each other in a piece and finding ways to make them work together is what I do. Sometimes the meaning is the inspiration but often the meaning comes after the piece is done. I've even found the meaning to evolve as time passes and I've had time to live with a piece. I love to hear what other people interpret my work to be about and sometimes, their interpretations are far better than my original concept. As for a statement? That comes far later in my career with retrospection. What was the best advice given to you as an artist? After an eight year hiatus from making art or jewelry, "You should really start making jewelry again", courtesy of my wife, Kari Halker-Saathoff. Watering Sand Tell me about your work space and your creative process. My work space right now is in limbo, not a good thing when I have a large commission in the works. Formerly, my studio was at my home in Robbinsdale. We bought that house for the 3 car, oversized garage that became the studio. My wife is also an artist as well as a high school art teacher so we shared that space. We just moved into a home in Edina with space to build our dream studio, but for now I'll be jammed into a single car garage stall and a basement studio space. I often think I should have a studio in NE Minneapolis to be among peers and build relationships with other artists, but I really enjoy being close to my work and my workspace. I also have a family and being close to home really helps. My creative process is really backward. For the artwork, most people would build the frame last, after the art has been finished. I build the frame first from whatever size wood I have on hand. My work evolves as it is created, I rarely know what the piece will look like when it's done so I need the structure of the frame to build from which is why that has to be first. After that, I scavenge for parts and pieces, I paint, draw, stain, bend wire, screw things together and go sailing to find inspiration. Sailing is a big part of our life and sometimes I think making art is a way to re-live some of the adventures we have sailing. Workspace Who are some of the Minnesota artists you enjoy? Kari Halker-Saathoff  http://mnartists.org/artistHome.do?rid=51375 Sarah Sitarz  http://www.sarahmichaeladesigns.com/ Marisa Martinez  http://www.meztizadesigns.com/ Scott McGlasson  http://woodsport.net/modernwoodcraft/ Rod Massey  http://www.rodmassey.com/index.html If I were to follow you around to see art in Minnesota, which places would we go? What would we see? I hate to admit this, but I really don't get out to see much work or many shows. Life has a way of filling my time. I think this goes back to having the studio at home where I love to be and not hearing through the grapevine about who's doing what and where. I'm no purist, but I think this helps keeps my work purely my own.  I do work regularly with Merry Beck at Gallery 360 in Minneapolis. I also have a number of friends in the Casket Arts Building http://www.casketarts.com/ so you might see me bumming around there. Inner Space Do you have any exhibits to promote in the near future? I have a show opening Friday, April 13 at the Bloomington Art Center with an artist talk on Thursday 5/10 at 7:00 PM It runs through May 18, 2012 with painter Jack Dale. Danny Saathoff Bloomington Art Center