I’ve been asked hundreds of times what my favorite artwork is in the Woodson Art Museum collection. My answer always centered on a question: do you have a favorite child?
What I do have are memories, including my first impressions of a work and the stories I conceive in my mind while standing before a work; I’ve always had a great imagination. Many factors influence my opinion of each artwork.
Over a stellar forty-three-year Woodson Art Museum career, Jane Weinke has traveled far and wide, happily returning to Wausau, the community she has always called home. Jane will retire in October, leaving an extraordinary legacy. The growth and quality of the Museum’s collection is a tribute to Jane’s professionalism, diligence, and commitment to our vision to set the standard for art of the avian world.
The roll out (pun intended and regretted) of the Woodson Art Museum’s Art à la Carte offering has been enthusiastically embraced by visitors, however, staff envisioned more. For curator of exhibitions Shannon Pueschner, facilities manager Dave Jones, and me, the Art à la Carte cart needed some improvements – better yet, a custom build.
When I was a child, my grandmother taught me how to quilt. My cousin and I learned together, taking turns on Grandma’s sewing machine, as she gathered fabric scraps for us to cut into squares, patch together, and stitch into quilts for our dolls.
For over a year now, the Woodson Art Museum has been teasing the opening of a rooftop sculpture garden atop the Museum’s 2011 addition.
Earlier this month, sculptor Sarah FitzSimons pulled her car into the Woodson Art Museum’s loading-dock parking lot, safely transporting the Pacific to the Midwest. The ocean, folded and wrapped in on itself, fit in the trunk, where it waited patiently to stretch and spill out across the gallery floor.
I’ve always been a reader – books, magazines, recipes, and blogs. Typically, I learn something, and frequently I’m inspired to try something new.
The same holds true for a file I started many years ago titled “Exhibition Ideas.” Each time I discover an interesting phrase, an exceptional exhibition title, an artist biography, or sometimes just random articles, they are filed for future reference. When it’s time for a new exhibition, I start there.
Looking at the world through the eyes of my grandsons has helped me to see things in new ways. At ages 3+ years and eighteen months, they are curious, ready learners.
Coworkers Catie, Elaina, Dave, and Shannon head out for a Woodson Art Museum Sculpture Garden nature sketch session and to test out a new product for a pilot drop-in program at the Museum.
The Museum reopened in early February, after a proactive closure.
Before visiting, check www.lywam.org for any updates and what to expect.
Road Trip & Staycation Recommendations
Posted on June 16, 2021On the cusp of the summer solstice, if you’re searching online reviews for ways to savor the season, scroll no further; plan to visit the Woodson Art Museum with family and friends. Whether a traveler or local resident, you’ll find plenty of ways to savor the season, solo or with others, here this summer.