Crawl, if you must, but the St. Paul Art Crawl has grown so much you’re going to have to get up and run if you want to catch it all. There are 231 artists registered in 34 locations in nine separate districts – from West Seventh to the West Side, Cathedral Hill to Raymond Station, Downtown and Lowertown, Midway, Merriam Park and the East Side.
Art of all types will be on display and for sale Friday through Sunday in open studios, exhibits in public spaces, galleries and a couple of breweries. There will be music, open mic, spoken word and even a bonfire and s’mores at one of the stops.
The twice-yearly crawl, which is in its 28th year, is a project of the Saint Paul Art Collective, explained artist Linda Snouffer, acting director of the event. Each location can have dozens of artists showing there. The Schmidt Artist Lofts location, for example, has more than four dozen artists registered to show their works.
Snouffer says she knows art crawlers have their favorite artists and stops, and she’s not saying, “Don’t go there.” But after visiting favorite haunts, she suggests, check out what’s adjacent. Or in another area of St. Paul. For an online directory and maps of the districts, go to saintpaulartcrawl.org.
Here are a few highlights:
“We Are Still Here” – Snouffer calls this a “must see” exhibit. Work on the show started two years ago thanks to the efforts of former art crawl director, artist Brenda Brousseau, who died early this month. The exhibit, which will be in the Landmark Gallery at Schmidt Artists Lofts, features work by Indigenous artists. (See the sidebar at the end of the story for more on the show.)
Galeria Paz Jesus – This gallery near the High Bridge joins the ACVR Warehouse (where the fourth floor is an open gallery space, Snouffer says) as stops in the West Side District.
Payne gain – Snouffer says Payne Avenue’s art options are a welcome addition to the crawl. Second Shift Studio Space, Studio Payne and Art @ 967 Payne join J.A. Geiger Studio and artists exhibiting at Saint Paul Brewing in the East Side District.
Yes, Virginia – Artists will be exhibiting in the Virginia Street Church in the Cathedral Hill District. Music, poetry and short stories are scheduled for all three days, “and the building itself is a work of art,” Snouffer says.
Gooey on the outside – At the Fourth Street entrance to the George Latimer Central Library in the Downtown District, there will be a bonfire and s’mores from 5 to 7 p.m. Saturday. Throughout the day there is yoga, a tour of the historic library and more.
Merriam Park – Spatial Effects Gallery is the stop for this district. In addition to paintings, sculpture, photography and ceramics, the gallery has locally made furniture.
West Seventh – It’s not all about the Schmidt Lofts. A potter and a photographer have created a “stunning” gallery, Snouffer says, Great River Gallery, on West Seventh and there will be art in the Awaken Community church on View street.
Midway – Burning Brothers Brewing will open up the back of the brewery for artists, again. There will be more art at Collide Theatrical Dance Co. on Prior Avenue.
Back where it all began – And Lowertown, where the crawl first got legs, still has more stops than any other district. The St. Paul Saints commissioned 39 Lowertown artists to make original works for “Lowertown Ethos,” which features a fine art exhibit, live music and dance performances, screen printing demonstrations and an interactive art game at the Farmers Market. There are lofts and studios open all around Lowertown and 25 artists in the huge display area at Union Depot.
If you go
- What: 2019 Fall St. Paul Art Crawl
- When: 6-10 p.m. Friday, noon-8 p.m. Saturday, noon-5 p.m. Sunday
- Where: Nine districts throughout St. Paul
- Info: Maps and a schedule of events are available at saintpaulartcrawl.org. An art crawl directory is available at all of the stops on the crawl.
“We Are Still Here”
A special exhibition in the Landmark Gallery at the Schmidt Artist Lofts tells the stories of Indigenous people who “have been here and are still here.”
More than 30 pieces from about 25 Native artists are featured in the show, said Heather Friedli, an artist who lives in the Schmidt Lofts and helped organize the exhibition. Friedli has two works in the show. The pieces were chosen by a group of artists and elders. Artists in the show are from Minnesota, Wisconsin and Dakota tribes.
“The really neat thing about the show is it goes from contemporary to traditional,” Friedli says, “and fairly apolitical to political.”
Friedli’s pieces draw from nature. “Bly Gap Oak Tree” is a landmark on the Appalachian Trail; spirit hands are clasped in the clouds in “Little Bluestem and Sweetgrass Sunset.”
The exhibit highlights traditional beadwork, paintings, wall pieces and clothing.
A graceful female wood carving rising out of a coyote pelt by Robert Butters of the White Earth Nation Snake Clan is titled “My Mothers Resurrection.”
“Sunkawakan Ota Wicayuse Win” is a ribbon skirt by Heidi Inman of the Sisseton Wahpeton Oyate tribe. The skirt is embroidered with the names of 134 missing and murdered Indigenous people. It was carried on a Nibi Walk along 550 miles from Breckenridge, Minn., to Lake Winnipeg, Canada, along the Red River, and worn on the last few days.
The exhibition is open during Art Crawl hours, with an extra hour on Sunday.
