The Mill Yard Art Review by Mill District Resident Becky Fillinger

Article and photos by Becky Fillinger

Do you sometimes think there’s nothing to do on a Sunday evening?   Not if you live in or visit the Mill District! The Mill Yard – Art at Stonebridge Lofts hosted a new art installation reception on Sunday, October 27th. The four featured artists were present to discuss their motivations, subjects and styles.

Susan Wagner

Aquaduct by Susan Wagner

Susan Wagner has her studio in the Casket Arts Building in Northeast Minneapolis. She’s past president of the Northeast Minneapolis Arts Association, an organization that now supports over 1000 local artists.  Traveling and hiking - and sketching what she sees - are essential to Wagner’s motivation. She discussed how landscapes and structures hold stories. Wagner also mentioned how abstract art is more welcoming to female artists; the dialogue of what is “art” is not so rigidly defined as in more classic styles. Her paintings on display at The Mill Yard incorporate oil, Venetian plaster and Hanji paper. Visit the exhibit and let us know if you think the piece Aquaduct is reminiscent of the bridges in our Mill District.

Peter Wong

Bitter Gourds by Peter WongPeter Wong has four decades of professional commercial photography experience and has now ventured into fine-art and travel photography. Peter enjoys taking students on lengthy US National Parks and South East Asia photography classes. He encourages his students to slow down and take meaningful photographs that show real connections. At the reception, he described an extended photo session at the market in Hue, Vietnam and pointed out the resulting beautiful photographs. The bitter gourds photograph is anything but mundane. Are you interested in a different type of travel experience? Join Peter on a 2020 trip to photograph the traditional rice harvest in North Vietnam.

Greg Preslicka and Old Tree

Old Tree

Greg Preslicka has a passion for plein air painting. He is a member of Outdoor Painters of Minnesota (OPM) and believes in the healing power of getting lost in thought while painting in the solitude of nature. Greg chatted with other plein art practitioners at the show – our friends and neighbors in the Mill District. Pat Gannon, a Stonebridge Lofts resident and OPM member,  enjoyed speaking with the artist.  She remarked “Greg Preslicka’s plein art pieces are wonderful, thoughtful interpretations of outdoor wilderness landscapes - the colors and value shifts are perceptive and well-chosen to evoke the feeling of each setting”.

Greg’s studio is in Savage and he also welcomes you to like his Facebook page. He often paints with his son, who is learning the plein air style. Naked Tree, acrylic on canvas, was painted on location in Hyland Park Reserve in Bloomington. Greg explained that it was a grey winter day during a winter that with little or no snow. Though it was overcast, he was struck by variations of greys in the landscape and thought the old tree had a lot of character. 

This Place No Longer Belongs To Me by Mary MeuwissenMary Meuwissen is an abstract painter, influenced by all the people she has met in her life (family, friends, students, teachers) and her world travels. Her studio is in the Northrup King Building in Northeast Minneapolis, where the public is always welcome to visit.

Mary appreciates how the Mill Yard show allows her to bring her art to the community. She thinks the Stonebridge lobby is a beautiful venue for an art exhibit and welcomes feedback as people continue to view her works for the next three months. Mary sold several pieces during the show and is grateful for those who attended, shopped and engaged with her during the opening event.

The show runs through February 5, 2020. To gain entrance to The Mill Yard, text art committee volunteer Sharon Teska at 612.940.2654.