Mark Michels Inspired Paintings

Mark Michels was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota. He was employed for 27 years with Delta and Northwest as a flight attendant, calling his home base at that time Detroit, Michigan, but also living in Boston, MA, Virginia and more. Now, back in Minneapolis, Mark has been joining us here at Interact for only a few months and he has proven to be a very talented addition to our artistic group, working primarily in acrylic paint. Recently we have expanded upon his traditional medium and applied it to the jewelry arts as well. Salvador Dali and Picasso are two of Marks favorite artists, which can be seen in his unique style of painting. When Mark gets into his painting mode, his work flows out of him in a very natural way. He is uninhibited and allows for his paintings to happen organically, creating beautiful, lush and prolific pieces. Mark believes that Interact is a very laid back place, which is what he wants. He feels he doesn't get so hung up on things that don't matter, which in turn allows him to produce his artwork in a very freeing environment. He also enjoys the social aspect of Interact, in particular getting to know such diverse artists that have so many great and different attributes from each other. Mark believes Interact is a very unique place and believes word should get out about it more and more. Here, here, Mark!

The Palace of Wonder!

Well for those of you who couldn’t make it, the collaborative efforts of Patty Mitchell and Robert Lockheed of Collaborative Art International, and the visual arts department from Interact Center for the Visual and Performing Arts has come to an end…temporarily (we hope to work with these wonderful people again:). The Northern Spark night turned out beautifully! Weather cooperated by giving us a nice breeze and warm air, the installation went up better than could be imagined, and so many people from the community came out to enjoy the Palace of Wonder that our artists and many others worked hard to create. I would like to give an enormous shout out to Patty and Robert for all they did with Interact and other like minded organizations from Minneapolis, and to Stephanie Serna, who is a videographer following Patty and Robert around to capture on film their vision in helping organizations all over the states and beyond (we can’t wait for Stephanie to come back as well!). Please stay tuned to our blog and Facebook for more information about future events coming up soon, including Uniquinox, where we will not only revisit some of the art from the Northern Spark event but have many more puppets, performances and art pieces for you to enjoy! Uniquinox is happening on September 22nd of 2012:)

Interact Centers Visual Arts and the Minneapolis Institute of Arts combine for Northern Spark Festival

Interact Center’s visual arts department has recently had the great pleasure of working with Patty Mitchell and Robert Lockheed, of Collaborative Art International, who are currently Artists in Residence at Minneapolis Institute of Arts (MIA) for the Northern Spark Festival. On June 9th, 2012 you can visit the MIA and see the incredible amount of work that our artists did in collaboration with Patty and Robert, from painted panels that make up the “Palace of Wonders” towers to decorated fabric that has found its way into numerous beautiful quilts (these are not your grandmothers quilts, folks:). Please come out and see what our inventive troops have created. Northern Spark Festival is on June 9th at 9pm to dawn. Find out more at 2012.northernspark.org.

The Many Talents of Riddle…

John Riddle was born in Phoenix, Arizona and currently resides in the Minneapolis area.

John has proven to be a valuable new addition to the artists at Interact Center, and, according to himself, he is super cool (we happen to agree).  He enjoys working in many mediums, from pen and ink to sculpture to jewelry, bringing a fresh perspective into each of his projects.  John has many inspirations for his art, including the work of Andy Goldsworthy and James Turrell, vastly diverse artists from each other, but we can distinctly see the influence in pieces of Johns such as his untitled  work (photo #3).

Outside of Interact, John is very heavily into music.  He enjoys listening to jazz and metal, and also plays the guitar.

He is also currently in physical therapy to try to regain the ability to walk independently, which fills up much of his time outside of Interact.

John very much enjoys coming to Interact to work on his different forms of creative expression.  He enjoys the social aspects and the opportunities to produce artwork with us.

“Devil cracked the earthy shell, foretold she was the one, blew hope into the room and said ‘you have to live before you die young‘”-Opeth

Lucy’s Lovely Bird Neclace

Possessing the desire to create, Lucy Johnson joined Interact Studio in 2008.Lucy works predominantly in oil pastel, acrylic and watercolor, but she is open to experimenting in all mediums, and enjoys jewelry making and fine crafting as well.  This beautiful necklace is one of Lucy’s latest creations.  She hand felted not only each of the felted beads, but also the bird that is the centerpiece of this gorgeous piece of artwork.

Lucy’s 2d work, bold in color and often eliciting a surrealist feel, is driven by her expansive imagination, evident even in her portraiture, which has kept her busy over the past year.  In 2011, she was commissioned to do a portrait of Interact founder and artistic director Jeanne Calvit, which

was featured on the invitation for Interact’s first annual benefit.  Lucy also created giant paper mache puppers of Frida Kahlo and Diego Rivera for Interact’s first Uniquinox festival last year.  She is an incredible self-promoter and her prolific body of work speaks for itself, in addition to the numerous commissions she has received over the past year.
Most recently, Lucy was commissioned to design the labels for a line of spicescreated by her sister, Minnesota Nice Spice. Over the years, Lucy’s self-assuredness and dedication to her artistry have led her to be one of Interact’s most notable artists.

Check back soon to see more of Lucy’s work!