You don’t have to look far on social media to find a list like “Wisconsin’s Real Seasons” that calls this time of year “Mud Season” or “Spring of Deception” or “3rd Winter” or something else that alternatively breaks your heart or causes a small bird in your chest to puff its feathers and take flight. In a late heavy snow, we lost one of the cedars by the Federal Spring and now the Shake Rag Alley campus is looking a little different as we navigate this whiplash season, carefully navigating the ice and mud as the daffodils poke their way through. 

Our March workshops engaged our sense of touch, warping looms and making rugs, or sketching the shapes of the ordinary around us with Drawing for Beginners, and we were gratified they filled quickly. We are all wanting community, to gather together and make with like-minded people, learning together. We even had a workshop crasher, a lovely ginger cat who supervised instruction, purring her way through a Sunday afternoon.

One sure sign of spring, and burgeoning creativity on campus, is the presence of our inaugural Scherbarth residents: Claire Jussel, Suzi Dillinger, and Sharon Evans. In addition to planned projects, their energy and creativity is already leading to new opportunities for conversations about art and making, as well as pop-up events and exhibitions. A group show of their work hosted by Green Lantern Studios at 261 High St. opened Saturday and runs through April; hours are 11 am-5 pm Thursday-Saturday and 11 am-3 pm Sunday. The show includes work from each of the resident artists, showcasing the connections and diversity of work across text and image, fiber, and graphic novel. 

As we turn from our “3rd Winter” into what will be a true spring, we invite you to look at our April offerings and choose creative space for yourself. The stunning image above is a detail from the work of Sarah Rehmer — whom we’ll be welcoming this April for Encaustic Collage + Assemblage. The curves of pages made sculptural invite us to enter into a dialogue with materials: text becomes path, the semantic tactile. For a slightly more light-footed journey, our Makers & Shakers Art Parties have begun and will continue the third Wednesday of each month: In April you can Make Your Own Stamps with Sharon Stauffer, and in May create an Instant Gratification Container Garden. Our local community of poets will be live at Cafe 43 for the Driftless Poets Reading & Open Mic on April 8. Our bellies may be a bit leaner after the winter, but we’re grooming our coats and ready to emerge into the bright sunlight.
                              
Christina Kubasta                                          
Director of Education