September 23, 2022—The Miller Art Museum in downtown Sturgeon Bay has announced that tickets are on sale now for a not-to-be-missed fall fundraising event, Swingin’ Soirée at the Dome: A Mid-Century Modern-Inspired Evening, on Saturday evening, October 15, 2022. The unforgettable evening, commencing at 5pm, will include special recognition for the evening’s honoree William C. “Bill” Parsons, fabulous cocktails, mid-century-inspired fare by Culinaria, and live music by the Milwaukee Hot Club punctuated with opportunities throughout the evening to learn about the museum’s work, its impact, and future vision to ensure the organization remains a vital piece of the cultural fabric of the Door County community. All proceeds generated will support the Museum’s evolving operational needs.
September 2, 2022—The Miller Art Museum in downtown Sturgeon Bay is set to unveil its 47th Juried Annual, an exhibition featuring 70 artworks from 52 artists across the State of Wisconsin on September 17, 2022. An opening reception celebrating the participating Wisconsin artists is scheduled for Saturday, September 17 from 5 - 6:30pm. Awards are scheduled to be announced at 5:30pm and include three Special Merit Awards ($250 each), three Juror’s Choice Awards ($200 each), the Gerhard Miller Award of Excellence ($500 and Miller Medal), and the Bonnie Hartmann Award for Outstanding Creativity ($100). Light refreshments will be served and music will be provided by Craig Schultz and Mike Miller. The event is free and open to the public.
Image credit: Aaron Boyd, Souls Train, watercolor. Katie Ries, What They Had-Appleton, WI, printmaking. Claire Erickson, Planted, acrylic.
In continuation of this celebrated museum tradition, now in its 47th year, this year’s exhibition is broader and more diverse than ever with submissions representing every corner of the state. Each submitted entry was carefully evaluated and the final selections were made by a panel of three artists and art industry professionals. This year’s jurors were Frank Juarez, artist, award-winning art educator, and founder and publisher of Artdose Magazine, Sheboygan, WI; Brandon Bauer, associate professor of art at St. Norbert College, De Pere, WI; and Meg Lionel Murphy, artist, and owner of The Hours Gallery, Sturgeon Bay, WI.
August 25, 2022—The Miller Art Museum is pleased to offer an opportunity for the Door County community to meet 2022 Al & Mickey Quinlan Artist in Residence Nicole Shaver on Saturday, September 3, 2022. Attendees will have the opportunity to meet the artist, and learn about her artistic process and what she aims to accomplish during her 8-week residency at the Dome House in a short presentation scheduled for 4:00 – 5:30pm. Due to limited on-site parking at the Dome House, attendees are asked to park at 3752 Whitefish Bay Road, Sturgeon Bay, and walk to the Dome House located 0.7 miles north on left.
The residency, now in its second year, is administered by the Miller Art Museum jointly with the Quinlan/Wagner family and carries on the original intent of the Dome House, as visioned by Al Quinlan, to serve as a creative haven. The program advances the museum’s mission to expand its role in education and to shape and influence the artistic development and growth of artists in the area. Milwaukee-based artist Nicole Shaver was selected from a pool of 24 applicants by the program’s Artist Selection Committee. In addition to being awarded an unrestricted $500 stipend, she will receive access to time, space and resources to advance her work at the iconic Door County structure.
“My research as an artist involves collecting and meditating on new places by exploring through walking, running, sketching, making, and photographing. A place is like a person, if one fails to have genuine interaction with it, it too fades from our memory. I’d be honored to get to know the unique forested shoreline of Whitefish Bay through my time at the Dome House.,” states Shaver in her Statement of Intent.
“While my concerns lie within concrete science and the threats of Climate Change, I investigate and create within an innately curious, observational, and playful scientific method. This involves collaboration with local scientists, visitors, and found materials: man-made detritus and geology. I rely on collected specimens, historical research, and spatial interaction as semiotic compasses to help navigate the undiscovered identity of the Dome House,” she continued. “During my residency, I will create visual landscapes that combine reality with impression, providing a framework that empathizes with the transitioning landscape. Through my artist body and influenced by immersive surroundings, my output is a record employed through interdisciplinary media: installation, performance, printmaking, photography, and sculpture.”
July 28, 2022—The Miller Art Museum in downtown Sturgeon Bay announced today that its popular Art & Treasures Fundraiser, now in its 17th year, is set to debut to the public on Sat., August 6, 2022. The fundraiser will take place at M3 located at 142 S. 3rd Avenue in Sturgeon Bay. The event kicks off on Sat., August 6 at 10am; fundraiser hours are Tuesday – Friday 10am – 4pm and Saturdays 10am – 1pm through August 20, 2022.
The Art & Treasures Fundraiser presents a fun and eclectic collection of items from year to year, including new and gently used original fine art and reproductions, art-related items, objects d’ art, art supplies, books, a diverse selection of high-quality frames, household décor, vintage goods, collectibles, holiday items, fabrics, small furniture items, linens, and unique oddities.
“Art & Treasures, in particular, impacts our ability to carry out our mission and our programming,” says Executive Director Elizabeth Meissner-Gigstead. “We’re incredibly grateful to the community for their tremendous support of this endeavor through the form of donations or purchases from year to year as it, in part, sustains our work and ensures access to a continued presence for the visual arts in downtown Sturgeon Bay. And, it’s an event that the public looks forward to and enjoys every year.”
Donations will be accepted throughout the sale and can be delivered to M3 during sale hours. Donors are asked to have items contained in a bag or box for ease of unloading and storage. Items must be clean and in good condition. Items NOT accepted include electronics, CDs, large furniture, personal products (lotions, soaps, etc.), and bed components (mattresses). Additional information and details about accepted items can be found on the museum’s website at millerartmuseum.org.
“The art supplies and additional needs that are met through this fundraiser allows the museum to be able to continue to offer free and accessible public programming, events, and partnerships to the Door County community,” states Education and outreach Coordinator Marie Kimball. “We appreciate the community’s help in making these museum offerings a reality.”
For more information or to donate items for the sale, contact the Miller Art Museum office at 920.746.0707 or . Drop-off appointments can be made between the hours of 10am and 4pm Monday through Friday or at the museum 10am – 5pm Saturday. Donors are asked to have items contained in a bag or box for ease of unloading and storage. Items will be accepted through the end of July and must be clean and in good condition. Items NOT accepted include electronics, CDs, large furniture, personal products (lotions, soaps, etc.), and bed components (mattresses). Questions may be directed to the museum staff for items not specifically listed.
July 15, 2022—The Miller Art Museum in downtown Sturgeon Bay is pleased to introduce its 2022 Dome House Al & Mickey Quinlan Artist in Residence, Nicole Shaver.
The residency, now in its second year, is administered jointly with the Quinlan/Wagner family and carries on the original intent of the Dome House, as visioned by Al Quinlan, to serve as a creative haven for living artists. The program advances the museum’s mission to expand its role in education and to shape and influence the artistic development and growth of artists in the area. Milwaukee-based artist Nicole Shaver was selected from a pool of 24 applicants by the program’s Artist Selection Committee. In addition to being awarded an unrestricted $500 stipend, she will receive access to time, space and resources to advance her work at the iconic Door County structure.
“I have a specific interest in the human relationship to place: humanity's active role in construction, destruction, and idealizing landscape. I believe Door County should not be seen as something set apart from civilization, instead, depicted as place humanity fundamentally alters and continues to shape. I am curious about documenting the Boreal Forest through the lens of the Anthropocene and how that information is dispensed, whether in part truth or full fantasy,” says Shaver.
Shaver grew up along Lake Michigan, where she skipped rocks and watched fishermen gut salmon as a child. Largely inspired by ideas of place and belonging, she researches geographical sites and employs them as metaphorical compasses to navigate the space between reality and fantasy, the banal and the sublime.
“While my concerns lie within concrete science and the threats of Climate Change, I investigate and create within an innately curious, observational and playful scientific method. This involves collaboration with local scientists, visitors, found materials: man-made detritus and geology. I rely on collected specimens, historical research, and spatial interaction as semiotic compasses to help navigate the undiscovered identity of the Dome House,” she continued. “During my residency, I will create visual landscapes that combine reality with impression, providing a framework that empathizes with the transitioning landscape. Through my artist body and influenced by immersive surroundings, my output is a record employed through interdisciplinary media: installation, performance, printmaking, photography, and sculpture.”