Moving on ... up the road - Studio Gallery closes, Schulmans move, exhibit artwork one last time — at museum
By Deb Anderson, Variety Editor
Monday, March 10, 2008 11:12 AM CDT
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Marge Norris, right, of Menomonie, is served homemade vegetable medley, one of several donated soups featured at Empty Bowls on Saturday. The meal, which also included a wide variety of homemade breads that were also donated, was served by volunteers of all ages. Proceeds benefit hunger programs. Deb Anderson/Dunn County News
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As long as there is a kitchen table or room for an easel in the corner, Bill and Shirley Schulman will have a place to create. That’s important to the retired artists and teachers who have made the decision to pare down and move.
Art is what brought them together, and the union produced not only a family and flourishing careers, but paintings, collages and more. Now that their four children are grown, the Schulmans find that their house is too big for their needs — and too much to care for.
Regardless of their attachment to the residence and the well-intended opposition to the move by family and friends, the choice to relocate was the only conclusion.
“It was a traumatic and difficult decision,” said Bill, “but the only one that took into account ‘health’ problems that lay ahead in our near rather than distant future.”
The Schulmans have sold their home in North Menomonie, that also housed the Studio Gallery, where both enjoyed space to work, display and sell for 25 years. Fittingly, another artist couple has purchased the property.
On Tuesday, April 1, the Schulmans are moving “just up the street,” as Shirley says, to the Village at White Pine.
But moving has spawned a need to divest themselves of a lifetime of art and possessions. Beginning the process was daunting, but like kismet, good things began to unfold, making it seem like it was all meant to be.
First, in January, Bill was asked to present a cover image and article for Art in Wisconsin, The Wisconsin Painters and Sculptors/Wisconsin Artists in all Media January newsletter. Then the Russell J. Rassbach Heritage Museum came calling with an invitation for the couple to prepare a duo retrospective exhibition for the spring as a celebration of the museum’s additional building and space.
The latter led to holding a joint art exhibit (their 10th and last), “A Retrospective,” that is running from Saturday, March 15, through Monday, May 26, at the museum, located in Wakanda Park, Men-omonie. Artwork that spans their individual careers and 51 years of marriage will be displayed in the new section of the museum, many pieces for sale, including four posters — two by Shirley, and two by Bill.
Prices will be marked, but offers will be accepted. A large portion of the proceeds will provide a lasting legacy for the Dunn County Historical Society and the museum.
“Bill and Shirley are generously donating 30 percent of the proceeds from this exhibition to the Dunn County Historical Society,” says Roy Ostenso, society president. “The Schulmans have a long record of promoting and supporting art in our community as well as our history.”
Art that remains after the exhibit will need to be stored. Bill says they are still searching for rental space.
Bill and Shirley’s different styles reflect different approaches, but both include a nod to the past and the present. From nostalgic to contemporary, the exhibit, like the couple, marries the best of both worlds as it provides comparisons and contrasts and celebrates old and new.
During Heritage Sunday at the museum on March 16 at 1:30 p.m., Bill, retired from UW-Stout, and some of his colleagues will host a panel discussion, “Early History of the Stout Art Department,” recounting the journey by the artists and educators who laid the foundation for the university’s leading art program. Admission is free, with a suggested donation for Interfaith Food Pantry.
Together, the Schulmans will hold an estate sale Saturday, March 22, from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. at their home, 1232 Douglas St.
“As fellow artists together sharing our Studio Gallery, it is time to turn off the lights and shutter the windows,” said Bill. “The works we produced together here, we leave for all of you.”
While the museum exhibit celebrates the influential Menomonie artists and heralds the closing of their gallery, the retrospective also signals the start of a new chapter. The “active team” has much to share with five grandchildren and looks ahead to the future. And like the pair and their art: “They hang together alright.”
Current winter hours at the Russell J. Rassbach Heritage Museum are Wednesday through Sunday, noon to 4 p.m. (Summer hours begin May 1 and run 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.) Admission is $4 for adults; $3 for seniors; $2 for students age 12-17; $1 for ages 6-11; free for age six and younger; and $12 for a family.
For more information, call (715) 232-8685. |
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