Monica Morris
Dear Readers, most of us are familiar with the old adages “beauty is in the eye of the beholder,” and “one person’s junk is another person’s treasure.” In today’s column we’re going to meet Monica Morris, a Ladysmith resident who finds potential beauty in things that others might regard as unusable castoffs and re-creates them […]
Bonnie Ohmstead: acrylic painter
Dear Readers: mechanical drawing/graphic art, which the dictionary defines as “drawing, as of machinery, done with the aid of rulers, scales, compasses and so on,” doesn’t appear to have much in common with fine art, which is defined as “a type of art. . .that is concerned with the creation of beautiful things.” But today […]
Kitty Mitchell, jewelry designer
Dear Readers: Appreciation for the natural beauty that surrounds us in Rusk County is a theme that runs through the work of many area artists, from painters and photographers to sculptors and carvers. Today in this column we’re going to meet Kitty Mitchell, a Rusk County resident who works with natural materials to create jewelry […]
Janelle Thompson, visual artist, illustrator and sculptor
Dear Readers: Writers, when casting around for ideas, often fall back on the useful advice to “write about what you know.” But how do visual artists find their inspiration? Today we’ll meet local artist and sculptor Janelle Thompson, who finds inspiration for her work in the beauty of nature, animals and in finding common ground […]
Don and Georgie Anderson, Musicians
Dear Readers: Many of us are familiar with the song that begins “The hills are alive with the sound of music. . .” While that song refers to mountains in Austria, today we’re going to meet Don and Georgie Anderson, who for many years have made our own Blue Hills, and the rest of Rusk […]
Nancy Wheeler—Weaver
Dear Readers: The word “weave” is defined as interlacing threads, yarn, strands or strips of some material in order to form a fabric. The word is also used to describe the ability to combine many diverse elements into a complete piece, as when a writer weaves a variety of sub-plots into a satisfying, coherent book. […]
Eileen Ziesler–writer, arts advocate
Dear Readers: The familiar phrase “wears many hats” refers to somebody who is involved in many diverse activities or plays a variety of roles. Today we’ll meet Eileen Ziesler who, at least figuratively, wears many hats in her roles as writer, publisher, entrepreneur and arts advocate. A native of Rusk County, Eileen met her husband, […]
Ruth Meszaros –artist, art advocate
Dear Readers: A person with diverse or widely varying interests or tastes is sometimes called eclectic. In today’s column we’ll focus on local artist and art advocate Ruth Meszaros, who could be called “egg-clectic” because of the nature of a major part of her artistic work. A New Jersey native, Ruth lived for a time […]
Karen Ek, Music educator; musician
Dear Readers: Many of us are familiar with “The Music Man,” a hit Broadway musical later made into a popular movie. In today’s column we’re going to meet Karen Ek, who could be called The Music Lady for her work in music education and encouraging music participation and appreciation in Ladysmith and Rusk County. Born […]
Lucinda Miller – Writer
Dear Readers: Each of us has our own individual way of looking at the world and what we believe to be the purpose of our existence. Our personal world view may be rooted in religion, science, philosophy or something unique to ourselves. Today we’re going to meet Lucinda Miller, a rising young writer from Rusk […]