Event Link: https://www.gizhiigin.org

FEE: FREE to attend gallery space.

Ceremony Blankets

An Exhibition by Rick Kagigebi
2024 McKnight Fiber Artist Fellowship Exhibition

February 21 – August 21, 2025
Opening Reception: March 18, 2025
Gizhiigin Arts Incubator
701 E Jefferson Ave
Mahnomen, MN 56557

Rick Kagigebi (Lac Courte Oreilles Ojibwe) is a blanket maker whose appliquéd mural blankets are created as ceremonial gifts. Every aspect of his process—from sketching to fabric selection, sewing, and tying—carries deep storytelling significance.

Event Link: https://www.therourke.org

FEE: Tickets required for Opening Reception for June 18th and other museums day free to public.

Wednesday 18 June 2025

The 66th Midwestern Preview
at The Rourke Art Gallery + Museum
Tickets | Members $15, Non-Members $30
TICKETS AVAILABLE FOR PRE-PURCHASE AT THE MUSEUM and AT DOORS

Preview | Doors Open 5 p.m.

Celebration in the
M. Dorian Clemedtson Sculpture Court
with music from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m.

Awards Ceremony 6:30 p.m.

The 65th Anniversary Dinner
at Rustica Eatery & Tavern
Limited Seating: Reservations Required
​Social 7 p.m.
Dinner Served 7:30 p.m.

$57.50 per person plus beverages
paid at Rustica Eatery & Tavern

DINNER MENU & RESERVATION FORM

Thursday 19 June 2025

The Midwestern Luncheon with Emily Dickinson
at The Rourke Art Gallery + Museum
Very Limited Seating: Reservations Required
Social Hour 11 a.m.
Luncheon Served 11:30 a.m.

$47.50 per person pre-paid within Reservation Form

LUNCHEON MENU & RESERVATION FORM

Event Link: https://www.kaddatzgalleries.org/current-exhibitions.html

FEE: Free to Attend the Gallery and reception on July 10th.

NAOMI RAMONA SCHLIESMAN:
HEILUNG SAAÁM (HEALING MEDICINE)

On View at in the Charles Beck Gallery July 8 - August 16, 2025

Opening Reception: 5-7PM Thursday, July 10, 2025
This event is free to attend and open to the public.

​Exhibition Statement (in her own words):This new body of work reflects a deeply personal journey—one of healing, connection, and transformation through art. It tells the story of how I have used creative practice as a tool for personal healing, both for myself and in relationship with my child. Rooted in the belief that healing is multi-sensory and multifaceted, these works explore how we can use our senses—touch, sound, vibration, color, and spatial awareness—to reestablish a connection with ourselves, our bodies, and our environments.
Drawing from both Western and Eastern understandings of medicine, this installation considers the role of art as a form of care and restoration. I am interested in how we nurture the body—not only through what we consume physically, but through the environments we create and inhabit. In this work, healing becomes a sensory conversation between the self and the space: art is the medium, and the body is both the receiver and the responder.
I create immersive installations that explore the interplay of material, scale, and perception. Using a vibrant palette and a diverse mix of materials—wood, plaster, fiber, and paint—I build tactile environments that play with contrast and contradiction: hard and soft, domestic and institutional, playful and contemplative. These material tensions become metaphors for emotional and physical states, inviting the viewer into a space where meaning shifts depending on perspective and experience.
My goal is to create a space that is both nurturing and provocative—a place where viewers feel compelled to touch, to feel, to pause. Color becomes a bridge between the aesthetic and the emotional; texture becomes a point of entry into deeper contemplation. Through these works, I invite others to consider how they care for their own bodies, how they create spaces of healing in their lives, and how art can act as both a mirror and a balm.
This body of work is not just an installation—it is an offering. A space for curiosity, comfort, reflection, and ultimately, connection.


About the Artist:
Naomi RaMona Schliesman is an award-winning interdisciplinary artist with over 20 years of experience of exhibiting her work in New York, Chicago, Minneapolis/St. Paul, Pittsburgh, Brooklyn, Seattle, and throughout the Midwest. With a deep-rooted passion for sculpture, mixed media, and community engagement, she holds an MFA from the University of Wisconsin-Madison (2009) and a BFA with an emphasis in sculpture from Minnesota State University Moorhead.
Schliesman has been recognized with prestigious fellowships from Ragdale and Kimmel Hardening Nelson Center for the Arts and was awarded 2nd place in the Miami University Young Sculptors Competition for the William and Dorothy Yeck Award. She was also a LEAP finalist for the Society of Contemporary Craft Award. Her commitment to art as a catalyst for community engagement led to her selection by Smart Growth America, Forecast Public Art, and West Central Initiative to develop a reusable community engagement kit, integrating both virtual and physical tools to benefit West Central Minnesota.

A passionate advocate for mentorship and storytelling through art, Schliesman was one of two Artist Organizers leading a youth mentorship project in Otter Tail County. This initiative resulted in Return to Normal? COVID Diaries from Local Youth, a multimedia exhibition funded by the CDC Foundation in partnership with Springboard for the Arts, Otter Tail County Historical Society, and Otter Tail County Public Health Department.

Her artistic journey extends internationally, having traveled to Italy, Scotland, Ireland, France, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, and Belize to study art movements and participate in prestigious residencies, including Vermont Studio Center, Kimmel Hardening Nelson Center for the Arts, Ragdale, The Traveling Museum, and Hospitalfield Arts.
In addition to her own practice, Schliesman is deeply committed to arts education and professional development. She taught 2D and 3D Design and served as Gallery Director for the School of Arts at Minnesota State University Moorhead (2011–2013). From 2013 to 2020, she was the Artist Development Director for rural programming at Springboard for the Arts in Fergus Falls, MN, where she managed the Hinge Arts at the Kirkbride residency program, led Work of Art: Business Skills for Artists workshops, facilitated artist development panels, and provided career consultations for artists across the United States.

Currently, Schliesman resides in rural Minnesota, where she maintains an active studio practice and continues her freelance work. She is a contracted Artist Career Consultant and Work of Art: Business Skills for Artists facilitator for Springboard for the Arts, a teaching artist for Kaddatz Galleries, and the Gallery Curator at Lake Region Legion Arts Council.

Through her extensive collaborations with artists and organizations nationwide, Schliesman remains dedicated to fostering creative storytelling, community engagement, and producing her work in her studio practice.

Naomi RaMona Schliesman is a fiscal year 2025 recipient of a Creative Individuals grant from the Minnesota State Arts Board. This activity is made possible by the voters of Minnesota through a grant from the Minnesota State Arts Board, thanks to a legislative appropriation from the arts and cultural heritage fund.​​

Event Link: https://www.facebook.com/share/16j2gDJfkj/

FEE: FREE and Open to the Public

Lake Region Arts Council (LRAC) is pleased to announce the opening of the 2025 Guest Juror Exhibition, juried by esteemed artist and cultural organizer Nancy Ariza. The exhibition will be on view at the LRAC Main Gallery from July 14 through September 16, 2025, with a closing reception on Tuesday, September 16, from 5:30 to 7:00 PM. This event is free and open to the public.

This annual exhibition is a highlight of LRAC’s gallery season, showcasing the creative breadth and talent of regional artists. Each year, a guest juror is invited to review submissions from artists working in all disciplines. For the 2025 exhibition, Ariza selected 28 works from a competitive pool of 102 entries, resulting in a vibrant and compelling mixed media show that includes two-dimensional and three-dimensional work, as well as bold explorations of color, texture, and form.

Naomi RaMona Schliesman, LRAC Gallery Curator, shares:

“The Guest Juror Exhibition is always very popular with regional artists, and we receive over 100 submissions each year. Every Guest Juror brings their own talent, aesthetic, and professional eye when jurying the work. It transforms our gallery space and creates a buzz with our visitors. We invite established artists to select the very best from our regional talent, and it’s consistently one of the strongest mixed media exhibitions we present.”

About the Guest Juror – Nancy Ariza

Nancy Ariza is a printmaker, educator, and arts and cultural organizer with over a decade of experience designing and leading arts programming in museums and nonprofit organizations across Minnesota. In 2024, she founded Amilado Press, a collaborative print studio based in Richfield, MN, focused on publishing, artist residencies, and arts education.

In addition to her work at Amilado Press, Ariza serves on the Leadership Council of Serpentina Arts, supporting Latinx artists across Minnesota, and is a board member of the Chicago Avenue Fire Arts Center. She holds an MA in Education from Saint Mary’s University of Minnesota, specializing in culturally responsive teaching, and earned a BA in Art History and a BFA in Printmaking from Minnesota State University, Mankato.

Exhibiting Artists:

Katie Muzquiz (Detroit Lakes, MN), Thom Tammaro (Moorhead, MN), Marie Merten (Alexandria, MN), Mary Erickson (Menahga, MN), Loretta Cantieri (Moorhead, MN), Kim Baird (Moorhead, MN), Tricia Coulson (Rochert, MN), Annette DuBord (Moorhead, MN), Laura VonBank (Moorhead, MN), Linda Beilke (Detroit Lakes, MN), Alyssa Christoffers (Moorhead, MN), John Shaw (Battle Lake, MN), Carmen Bruhn (Detroit Lakes, MN), Lrez (Perham, MN), John Beaudine (Moorhead, MN), Nancy X. Valentine (Battle Lake, MN), Katy J. Olson (Underwood, MN), Dennis Krull (Moorhead, MN), Torri Hanna (Fergus Falls, MN), and Maggie Peterson (Detroit Lakes, MN).

Gallery Hours:
Monday – Thursday | 9:00 AM – 3:00 PM
Closed Friday – Sunday
Please call or email in advance to ensure the gallery is open on the day of your visit.
Contact: 1-800-262-2787 or 218-739-5780 | Email: LRAC4@LRACgrants.org

“This activity is made possible by the voters of Minnesota through grants from the Lake Region Arts Council, thanks to a legislative appropriation from the Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund, with additional support from the McKnight Foundation.”