Paintings Sculpture Drawings Prints
Pleased to be a part of the annual Nordic Center Spring exhibition focusing on flowers. This time of year they are a very pleasant distraction from the ever present melting snow and ice.
Opening March 6th, 6-9 PM. Exhibition runs March 6 – May. 2 Open Hours are Fridays and Saturdays from 12:00 to 4:00
Lake Ave and Superior St./Lake Superior Fountain and Park (Lake Ave. and Superior St Trans-Affirming Street Side) is showing in the Woman Made Gallery, Chicago. A virtual exhibition “Quiet Piggy: We Cannot Be Silenced” will be previewed along with “100% Human” at WINTER TORCH, Epiphany Center for the Arts , February 15th, 4-5:30 PM
CHICAGO—Woman Made Gallery (WMG) announces Quiet Piggy: We Cannot Be Silenced, a virtual group exhibition juried by Julie Carpenter. The exhibition features work in a variety of mediums by 58 artists from the United States and abroad.
Language has long been wielded as a weapon — misogynistic terms, often used by men, become instruments of control and erasure, with words used to diminish, demean, and silence women. Quiet Piggy: We Cannot Be Silenced is about the enduring power of art to confront disparaging language and reclaim agency. The exhibition confronts the language of degradation head-on. The title Quiet Piggy is deliberately provocative: a derogatory term crudely tethered to negative connotations about the female body, horrifyingly used to shame, silence, and marginalize. By reframing and challenging this insult, the exhibition subverts the term into a narrative of resistance.
Here, the term becomes a rally cry for resilience. Voices are not hushed but amplified. To remain silent in the face of such language is complicity; to speak and to defend is defiance. This exhibition insists that women’s voices, bodies, and truths cannot be reduced, censored, or erased.
Juror Julie Carpenter states: “The selected artwork in Quiet Piggy: We Cannot Be Silenced stands as both a declaration and a rally cry. In these dark times—when rights are threatened, voices are suppressed, and communities are tested—the artists in this exhibition respond with unmistakable defiance and a necessary blaze of optimism. Their work turns empathy, resilience, and solidarity into an illuminating force, proving that creative expression can still raise people up when the world feels unbearably heavy.”
Exhibiting Artists: Amended Archives, Olivia Rachel Austin, Carrie Bennett, Brooke Elizabeth, H. Buchholz, Patricia Brown, Laurie Buman, Sarah Chavez, Heather Crawford, Julianna Dail, Loren Dann, Whitney Dirks, Susanna Eisenman, Erin Rae, Jamie Frontiera, Ellie Goodliffe, Set Gozo, S. Grant, Sandra Guze, Jenn Book Haselswerdt, S Kessler Kaminski, Maegan Kirschner, Victoria Kowalczyk, Kim Laurel, Gayla Lemke, Maiyan Linane, Clarissa Martinez, Jen McNulty, Melisa of MWY Pottery, Lori Moretti, Irene Nelson, Kathleen Cecilia Nesbitt, Julia Niepert, Carolyn Olson, Gali Orlen, Suzanne Papiewski, Sylvia Phillips, Jill Sarver Rossi, Amy L Ruddy, Fran Sampson, Nicole Schulman, Virginia Shepley, Sitaaj, Sharon Stanczak, Wendy L Starn, Rebecca C. Steiner, Linda Storm, Kim Stuart, Sahar Tarighi, Jennifer Taylor, Scotti Taylor, Cheryl A. Thomas, Rhonda Urdang, Gail M. Willert, Madeline Witek, Denise Yaghmourian, Isabel Zeng, Jane Zich
About the Juror: Julie Carpenter serves on the Board of Directors of Woman Made Gallery. She is the former Director of Art & Programming at Epiphany Center for the Arts, and prior, served as the Executive Director of the Oak Park Art League, one of Illinois’ oldest, continually operating nonprofit art centers. In 2024, Julie was named one of Newcity Magazine’s Art50, recognized for curatorial leadership and contributions to Chicago’s arts community.
“Pearl’s Garden” launches March 3rd with our first book reading on March 14th at the Duluth Public Library from 2:00 PM. The Duluth Community Garden folks will provide an activity supporting their “One Community – One Vegetable” program. The event is geared for young readers, ages 3-7, accompanied by an adult. Come join us!
Additional book readings:
March 21st – Next Chapter Books, St. Paul, MN 10:45 AM
March 22nd – Eastside Coop, Mpls, MN 10:00 AM
March 28th – Zenith Books, Duluth, MN 11:30 AM
April 18th – Oliver Kelly Farm, Elk River, MN 10:010 AM
May 2nd, – Mill City Museum, Mpls, MN 10:00 AM
May 16th – Fitger’s Bookstore, Duluth, MN 11:00 AM
June 13th – Gitigaan Garden Program, Giizhimiijimewining, Fond du Lac Reservation, Cloquet, MN 11:00 AM
June 20th – American Swedish Institute, Midsommar, Mpls, MN 11:00 AM
June 27th – Split Rock Lighthouse, 1:00-3:00 PM
The Duluth Art Institute has curated an exhibition of northern MN artists to show in Senator Klobuchar’s Twin Cities offices for one year. Included in this exhibition is “Waiting in Line at the Bakery”, pastel on paper 22.5″ x 55.5″ . I’m honored to join others in this ongoing exhibition in one of the most important senatorial offices in the country. #duluthartinstitute #lizzardsgallery #zeitgeistduluth #mnhspress #carolynolson “Waiting in Line at the Bakery” pastel on paper 22.5″ x 55.5″ https://carolynolson.net
“Chosen Family” and “Mutual Aid” pastel on paper March 6 – April 24
This is the last pastel in the Mutual Aid series of pastels completed in 2025. It will join the other works at the MacRostie Art Center in Grand Rapids, opening March 6th, 4-7 PM. Exhibition March 6 – April 24.
Mutual aid snow removal connects neighbors needing help (often seniors, disabled, or injured) with volunteers willing to shovel driveways/sidewalks. Some community groups are also available to volunteer their services. These efforts focus on neighborly kindness, ensuring accessibility, and supporting those who can’t afford commercial services or physically manage the task.
Are you looking for a fun holiday card with a cookie on the front, blank inside with white envelopes?? Perfect.
4 1/8″ x 5 7/8″ (blank inside with white envelopes) available. Sold in sets of 25 for $125. Up to 5 different cookies available/set. 2 weeks for delivery (Duluth area)
Select this link to see all the little cookies.
November 4 – January 4, Zeitgeist Atrium Gallery, Duluth, MN. Opening event Wednesday, November 5th, 5-7pm
March 6 – April 24, MacRostie Art Center, Grand Rapids, MN. Opening event March6, 4-7pm
For the last year I have been working on this body of work. The stories of mutual aid and chosen family are important to retell now more than ever. We’re reminded that we aren’t alone, that our families and community need us as much as we need them. We stay connected to the good – reject the chaos. We bring our best to each day and make the world better.
Carolyn Olson is a fiscal year 2025 recipient of a Creative Individuals grant from the Minnesota State Arts Board. This activity is made possible by the voters of Minnesota through a grant from the Minnesota State Arts Board, thanks to a legislative appropriation from the arts and cultural heritage fund.
This activity is made possible in part through an Artist Equity Grant from the Arrowhead Regional Arts Council, thanks to generous support from the McKnight Foundation.
“Pearl’s Garden” is the story of young person wanting to grow a vegetable garden in their urban back yard. With the help of community and family they are able to produce food to share. It is a hopeful story of how to work together and help each other as we can to achieve our goals.
Pre-orders are available through the MNHS Press or through your local book stores.
A collaboration between Zeitgeist and the Duluth Transit Authority working collaboratively to bring public art to bus shelters in support of “National Day Without Driving”. Art wraps will be installed permanently creating an inclusive positive space.
Each shelter depicts a different season with an inclusive group of folks waiting for the bus to arrive. I am thrilled to be a part of this effort. Public art is one of my passions. Making transportation welcoming and available to everyone is who we need to be as a community.
These four drawings will eventually be at 13th Ave E. and Superior St./Duluth transit shelters. Thanks to Zeitgeist and the DTA for the opportunity!
