ART CITY FOCUS: DOOR COUNTY, WISCONSIN
By Kelly Carper
The Door Peninsula of Wisconsin has over 300 miles of shoreline with 53 public beaches, five state parks and 11 historic lighthouses—giving it the repetitive yet appropriate title of “Cape Cod of the Midwest.” Stretching into the waters between Green Bay and Lake Michigan, the peninsula’s unique landscape ranges from dense lowland forests to expansive sandy shores, with limestone cliffs and rocky bluffs towering over peaceful waters. Eleven quaint villages dot the peninsula to collectively form “Door County,” which also encompasses orchards, wineries and lush farmland. Door County’s rural beauty and vacation vibe has long attracted regional visitors whose weekend visits or long-term summer stays spike the year-round population—which is only about 28,000. But this picturesque peninsula also draws nationwide visitors who in addition to seeking respite along the shores of Lake Michigan, come to experience the county’s
flourishing creative colony.
Historically a logging, fishing and farming community, Door County became a vacation hot spot in the early 1900s, particularly for Illinois and Wisconsin. Professors and artists from the Art Institute of Chicago and other urban areas began gravitating north to the peninsula for the summers, drawn to its peaceful environment as a place to create and share work. Word spread about this artsy oasis and it soon became a haven for artists, crafters, writers, musicians and more. Old barns were repurposed into galleries and studios, theaters opened in state parks, and renowned artist educators began hosting retreats and workshops—fueling an artist community that continues to thrive.
Today, nearly 100 art galleries and studios are sprinkled throughout Door County, whose waterfront communities offer art crawls, fairs and festivals from spring to fall. The Door County Plein Air Festival
is one of the area’s most popular summer events, drawing more than 30 national and international artists each July for a weekend of outdoor painting.
Whether you’re seeking art or inspiration, the best way to orient yourself to the dense Door County art scene is to first visit the Hardy Gallery, a nonprofit art space that’s been a pillar of the local the art community since the mid-1900s. Located directly on the shores of Eagle Harbor on Anderson Dock, this warehouse-turnedgallery is a work of art in itself—covered with graffiti signatures by boat captains from the steamship era as well as more recent visitors. The Hardy Gallery kicks off the season each May with open exhibitions for all mediums as an opportunity for emerging or established artists to gain exposure in Door County. These shows are also a great way for collectors to scout out the region’s up-and-coming talent. “We’re really the starting point for artist visibility,” says Hardy director Sarah Zamecnik. “Many of our community’s renowned artists got their start from our Wall-to-Wall Salon and Annual Juried Exhibit. We’ve springboarded a lot of artist careers.”
To close the season, Hardy Gallery offers something a little more experimental with an exhibition that connects prominent local artists to the wider contemporary art world. In an area where plein air painting is king and functional pottery is plentiful, the Hardy aims to expose the community to unexpected mediums or concepts such as abstraction or surrealism. This year Hardy presents By Fire: A Contemporary Ceramic Exhibition, opening August 30 with a focus on sculptural, non-utilitarian ceramics. “We want to push the envelope and mix up what Door County is used to seeing,” says Zamecnik of the season’s final show, on display through October. “It allows us to redefine what Door County art is—and the
type of work that can be seen here.”
When it comes to commercial galleries, two of the most popular stops for collectors are Fine Line Designs and Edgewood Orchard galleries, which both carry notable local artists in addition to regional and national artists. Like many of Door County’s galleries and studios, both are destination venues with incredible settings and intriguing history.
Edgewood Orchard, located on 80 acres between the villages of Egg Harbor and Fish Creek, was once a successful apple and cherry orchard that operated into the 1950s. The gallery opened in 1969 in the orchard’s old stone fruit barn and is now in its third generation of family ownership with Nell and J.R. Jarosh. Anne Haberland Emerson, Nell’s mother, moved to Door County from Chicago in the late 1960s to help Nell’s grandmother, an eccentric art lover and educator, open the gallery. “Mom had a section of antiques at one end of the barn and I traveled to art fairs and universities all over the Midwest meeting artists and bringing back their work,” Emerson recalls. “When we opened the doors, we had no lights but we had champagne. There were only a few artist studios here at the time and there was great camaraderie.”
Now 50 years later, Edgewood remains one of the premier galleries in the area in its representation of over 150 regional and nationally recognized artists of all mediums. The gallery grounds provide a peaceful setting with sculptures at every turn, nestled among old orchard trees in an immense wooded sculpture garden.
Less than 10 miles north in Sister Bay, Fine Line Designs boasts an equally impressive yet distinct location. The gallery was originally a chicken coop in the 1950s and has since been renovated into the rustic yet elegant venue it is today. Its defining stone silo is lined with windows that draw natural light into the gallery, where more than 140 artists are represented. Also on the property is an additional showroom and 2-acre sculpture garden. “We curate an eclectic, balanced and cohesive collection,” says owner Shari Gransee, who travels all over the country to seek out new artists. Every October, the gallery showcases over 75 regional artists
for their juried Townline Art Fair, drawing over 5,000 people for a two-day exhibit of glass, pottery, sculpture, painting, fiber art and photography.
Once you’ve oriented yourself to the Door County gallery scene, you can head off the beaten path and start exploring the many artist studios that are nestled in the woods or tucked away off back roads. In Ellison Bay, Rob Williams Studio & Gallery is a beautifully curated space in a quiet wooded oasis, where his contemporary landscapes in oil and watercolor are vivid and bold, yet soft and soothing. Also in Ellison Bay are several pottery studios as well as Turtle Ridge Gallery, which offers handmade leather goods along with Mary Ellen Sisulak’s unique mixed media, leather and encaustic paintings.
On the southern end of the peninsula is Sturgeon Bay, home to more than 20 artist studios. Contemporary art lovers will find their way to abstract painters Margaret Lockwood and Karen HertzSumnicht, while glass lovers should prioritize Popelka Trenchard Glass, owned by nationally recognized glass artists Stephanie Trenchard and Jeremy Popelka. Also in Sturgeon Bay is the Martinez Studio, which represents 30 years of collaboration between symbolist painter Sandra Martinez from Milwaukee and master weaver Wence Martinez from Oaxaca. Blending traditional textiles with modern design, the duo translates Sandra’s contemporary painting studies into handspun, hand-dyed tapestries representative of Wence’s Zapotec heritage—a truly unique offering for the area.
It’s clear that creative energy has been flowing through the Door for decades, drawing artists of all types from traditional to contemporary, from fine art to craft. No matter the medium, Door County artists have an authenticity about them that is refreshing and inviting, as many quietly make waves on a national level. Searching for these secluded artist studios, finding galleries inside old barns and warehouses, encountering unexpected performances in parks and under stars—this is what makes Door County a delightful discovery for both returning artists and visiting collectors.