The Sheboygan North High Artist Lecture Series (est. 2010) is an in-school program at Sheboygan North High School. We invite local and regional visual artists to share their journey as artists with the beginning, intermediate, and advanced art classes. Visiting artists present and introduce art students to such as but not limited to: how to present a portfolio, share a body of work, facilitate an art demonstration, or talk about about their artistic journey. This provides our students the opportunity to interact with the artists. 

Due to COVID-19 we will be offering our artist lecture series as a virtual artist lecture series for this 2020-2021 school year.

The 2020-2021 Sheboygan North High Virtual Artist Lecture Series is supported by a grant from the Kohler Foundation, Inc. This artist talk series is in collaboration with Artdose Magazine.

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Past Artist Talks

Linda Schrage, ceramic artist & gallery owner (Appleton)

Linda Schrage began creating at a young age.  Always trying something new and working with different materials. She got serious about her art, and had the desire to teach. She received her bachelors degree in 1994, and her Masters in Education in 1996.  She has worked with students of all ages. She taught in the Wisconsin Public School System for 21 years; for Marian University; UW Oshkosh; University of Platteville; and Adamah Arts Studios. 

It wasn’t until I began student teaching in 1991, that she found a love for clay. Working in clay has brought back the desire to push boundaries and try new materials.  She enjoys wheel throwing and hand building.  She works in both stoneware and porcelain; each having their own unique qualities.  

In 1995 she began working for the Freedom School District. She was the only teacher for all of middle school and high school students. Soon, there were 2.5 high school teachers, an Art Honor Society in place and an active Art Club.  She continued there for 20 years. 

In 2012 she began painting for Peerless Design Studio, llc.; for their home staging business.  She soon fell in love with the abstract designs and creating in mixed media.  She adores watercolor, but have found it equally exciting to use many other painting mediums. Many of her works are in acrylic.

January 2018, she opened a business having 18 other artist on consignment. The business became a gallery with a working/teaching studio. To date there are 9 artist that teach classes as well as 18 that show their work. 

Teaching had always become of her passions and now she could create and share at the same time. In January she added art supplies to the studio. She wanted to have a resource downtown for artist to get their supplies. Being next to a liberal arts college she has lots of inquirers. 

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Cristian Andersson, painter (Appleton)

Cristian Andersson is an artist working in Appleton, Wisconsin. While much of his work tends towards abstract painting, he believes that the medium must fit the message and will experiment with installation and performance based mechanisms to craft what is necessary to deliver his thoughts to the audience. His years at Columbia College in Chicago studying painting and performance, and then later graduating from the University of Wisconsin – Green Bay with a number of photography and printmaking courses, allowed him the platform to begin his multi-disciplinary approach.

It is through this work that he wants the audience to assess the passage of time. Question our collective past, what is remembered and forgotten, and, ultimately, how we use our history to reconcile new opportunities afforded to us through modernity. With every sea-change  in our society, Andersson asks for us to consider what it does to our humanity.

Scriptorium Statement

The contemporary nature of “breaking news” is that it is pervasive. It is invasive. It is an onslaught. And, it can be addictive.

Newspapers and network television have always been sources of insight, but now with the infiltration of the news into social media and alerts presented by mobile devices, I have become constantly aware of the next social or political concern that I “have to deal with.” Maybe you feel this also. Thankfully, there is the ability to lightly skim through social media. Multi-task while the television is on, and temporarily push the storylines into the background. And yet, it is hard to completely shut out.

This work asks what happens when I do the opposite of tuning out and instead completely submerse myself into the unpredictable current of my Twitter feed and news alerts. I ask myself what are the opinions, and what are facts? I question the mechanisms of deliverance. And then, ultimately, wonder how unpredictable any of this really is. This work is the product of six months of forced inundation, and it hopes to answer what the weight of all this information looks like, and possibly hints what the impact has been upon me – and perhaps you too.

Welcome to the “Scriptorium.”

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Melanie Ariens, artist (Milwaukee)

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Cooper Diers, artist-in-residence (Sheboygan)

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Doug Arthur, illustrator (Sheboygan)

Doug Arthur was born and raised in Sheboygan Falls, Wisconsin. He received his Bachelor of Arts Degree in Broad Field Social Science from University of Wisconsin Stevens Point in 2009. Though he has no formal training in art, he began studying and practicing illustration more intensely in 2010. He has done commission work and freelance artwork for various aspiring writers and patrons since, but mostly spends his creativity making art for personal enjoyment. Doug has lead art based clubs at IDEAS Academy and Sheboygan North High School. His main goal is to share his love and knowledge of art with young artists and to enjoy the process.

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Justin Thao, product designer & art alumnus (Sheboygan)

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Rafael Francisco Salas, painter (Ripon)

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Megan Woodard Johnson, mixed media (West Bend)

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Tom Ferguson, photographer (Kohler)

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Sara Willadsen, collage artist (Sheboygan Falls)

Sara Willadsen was born in Sheboygan, WI in 1987. She received her Master of Fine Arts Degree in Painting from Northern Illinois University in 2014 and her Bachelor of Arts Degree from Lakeland College in 2010. Working predominantly with paint and various found materials, Willadsen’s work explores ideas of abstract spaces and structures inspired by her childhood spent in Sheboygan County. She has had work shown at the Museum of Wisconsin Art and exhibits frequently in group exhibitions. Willadsen lives and works as a visual artist and freelance designer in Sheboygan.

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Molly Sampson, artist & curator (New York & Green Bay)

Molly Sampson has over five years of New York City contemporary art gallery experience. She travels to New York frequently to keep on point with the current art market but stresses the importance of exploring local art markets. She lectures undergraduate students on professional practices in the art world and teaches art history courses on Graffiti Art. She wrote her Master’s thesis on the birth of the graffiti movement in New York and focused her research on the role of the blackbook.

Currently, she is on the committee to create art education programming to start in 2016 for the ARTgarage in Green Bay, WI. Past curated exhibitions include: Off the Walls and Post No Bills (Summer 2013), Love Me (Summer 2012), and Graffiti NYC: Artists of the Third Rail (Summer 2010). She received her MA in Modern and Contemporary Art, Connoisseurship and the History of the Art Market from Christie’s Education, New York and her BA from The George Washington University, Washington, DC.

Check out these links:

Wooster Collective

at149thst

mscontemporary

Molly’s Presentation – (powerpoint) PPT

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Amy Jarvis, painter and illustrator (Fond du Lac)

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Marty Carney, painter (Sheboygan Falls)

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Patty Aker, painter (Cleveland)

Growing up in England in the Swing’ 60’s exposed me the glamour of that era. Having sons in High School, I returned to college and pursued my passion for art and fiber. I attended class at Milwaukee Institute of Art and Design, and the University of Wisconsin Sheboygan.

My current work started when asked to create a baptismal banner for my church. I endeavored to paint the banner on silk. The project took many months of trial and error. The experience was so wonderful and addictive that it has spurned a cottage business venture, Gaelic Sands.

In January 2009, I trained as a docent at the John Michael Kohler Art Center, (JMKAC) in Sheboygan. I enjoy the docent workshops with children of all ages. The continuing training and education provided is unparalleled. I also teach silk painting classes at the JMKAC art center. This, plus joining an art group, surrounds me with enthusiastic art- centered people and provides me with drive, opportunities and inspiration for my work.

Artist Statement

Nearly every day, I drive along the lakeshore. I see the light dancing on the water, the ever changing colors of Lake Michigan, and the weather beaten trees that line the coast. I always notice many birds winging their ways to hunting grounds or songbirds flitting from one tree branch to another.

It’s a serene, beautiful environment, a sanctuary from the bitterness of this disaster ridden, fragmented world. I paint these daily images of shapes and color, of light and shadow in a simple style, yet in a complex medium. My hope is to lift the viewer’s spirit, and share my little window of peace.

Image left: Daphne’s Tree, acrylic monoprint on silk, 36×23″, 2013