When I was younger, I used to have to go to church every time the door was open, but I never complained when a missionary was coming to speak. They always darkened the room as the glow of another land would piece the darkness of my rust belt hometown.
I feel the same way about Cabin Time, having experienced not only their mission of creating a roving artists residency program, but also the chance to see firsthand the results of the artists who participated.
For their second installment earlier this summer, the space at Nice was packed elbow to elbow (no help to the giant cabin built inside the middle of the gallery space) with art from the 18 artists participating.
For this third venture, their numbers had to be paired down to six artists becasue of space concerns from Rabbit Island, who invited this uniquely West Michigan project to visit their emerging space.
So golden ticket artists Isabella Martin (UK), Mary Rothlisberger (Palouse, WA), Sarah Darnell (Grand Rapids, MI), Miles Mattison (San Francisco, CA), Colin McCarthy (Grand Rapids, MI), Ryan Greaves (Grand Rapids, MI), and Cabin Time creator Geoffrey Holstad (Grand Rapids, MI) were hand-selected to live on the newest summer arts colony in the middle of Lake Superior.
On Friday, folks are invited to join the hundreds who will descend upon the tiny Division Avenue space, Miscellany, in an attempt to secure one or two items for this exciting program birthed and administrated from Grand Rapids.
And while I will admit the cliché of images often employed by the missionaries of my childhood still abound even here, there are plenty of outstanding images and creations to make me and my cynical heart overlook as I experience the real joys (vicariously) through the unplugged artists of the Cabin Time artist residency program.
You can read the piece recently in
Gawker or, after attending the opening, wander down to the Pyramid Scheme where I have no doubt a good number of the artists can be discovered boogying at the latest installment of the Bottom 40 dance party.