FEE: Free

Color Improvisations 3

Dates: March 28 – August 23, 2026
Location: William and Anna Jane Schlossman Gallery, Plains Art Museum

Color Improvisations 3 features 42 vibrant, large-scale quilts that explore the expressive possibilities of color in contemporary textile art. Curated by acclaimed artist Nancy Crow, the exhibition includes work by 38 artists from the United States, Canada, and New Zealand.

Each piece was created specifically for this exhibition, highlighting a wide range of artistic voices united by innovation, bold composition, and masterful craftsmanship. Visitors will experience dynamic color palettes and inventive approaches that push the boundaries of quilt-making as an art form.

Following its international tour in Germany and North American debut in Nebraska, the exhibition continues its tour across the continent through 2029.

Exhibition Tour:
Thursday, April 9, 6:00–6:45 PM (Free)
Join a curatorial team-led tour exploring contemporary quilt-making and the ideas behind the exhibition.

FEE: Free

Wiwahokichiyapi: They Promised Things to Each Other

April 25, 2026 – February 7, 2027 | Plains Art Museum, Fargo, ND

Treaties are living documents that continue to serve as legally binding agreements shaping the political relationship between Native Nations and the United States government. These agreements established land boundaries, resource rights, and reservations; they determine Tribal Nation citizenship and outline mutual obligations. The influence of treaties, and the policies surrounding them, has had a profound impact on traditional and contemporary Indigenous life, art, and ways of making and knowing.

By pairing treaties with historical and contemporary images and art objects, this exhibition explores how treaties continue to impact Native people and reverberate through Native creativity and expression.

Wiwahokichiyapi: They Promised Things to Each Other provides an overview of treaties in the United States, with a focus on those connected to our region. The exhibition was developed in collaboration with the National Museum of the American Indian and the Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service. Plains Art Museum partnered with Lakȟóta Archeologist Tyrel Iron Eyes and the Giiwedinong Treaty Rights & Culture Museum team, including Logan Monroe, Don Wedll, and Winona LaDuke, whose research and expertise helped shape the exhibition. Students from Concordia College’s Digital Design class also contributed to the exhibition panel design.

This exhibition, and all exhibitions at Plains Art Museum, are free and open to the public.

FEE: Free

George Pfeifer 60th Anniversary Retrospective

May 22 - August 9, 2026 | On view in the Katherine Kilbourne Burgum and Gustavian Galleries
The Rourke Art Gallery + Museum

George Pfeifer: A 60th Anniversary Retrospective celebrates six decades of work by Fargo-born artist George Pfeifer, marking the 60th anniversary of his first solo exhibition at The Rourke Art Gallery in 1966, when he was just 19 years old.

The exhibition features 60 works spanning Pfeifer’s career, including early hard-edge color field paintings and screen prints influenced by gallery founder James O’Rourke, as well as later realist landscapes known for their vivid color and precision. Works are drawn from The Rourke’s Permanent Collection, Plains Art Museum, private collections, and include both historic and recent pieces.

Pfeifer has presented more than forty-five solo exhibitions across venues including The Rourke, Plains Art Museum, The Fargo Gallery, M State Fergus Falls, Jamestown Art Center, North Dakota State University, and others. His work is also held in numerous public and private collections nationwide.

The exhibition is presented in the Katherine Kilbourne Burgum and Gustavian Galleries, Archive & Reading Room, and 2nd Level Hall at The Rourke Art Gallery + Museum, with support from Rich & Nancy Callender and Darren & Jane Leno.

Public Viewing Hours

3 to 7 p.m. on THU
1 to 5 p.m. on FRI, SAT, & SUN

FEE: Free to Apply

Call for Artists: Fall Into Art Festival Art Competition

Application Deadline: Monday, September 7, 2026 | Prairie Renaissance Cultural Alliance, Morris, MN

The Prairie Renaissance Cultural Alliance (PRCA) is seeking artists to participate in the Fall Into Art Festival Art Competition on Saturday, September 12, 2026, at East Side Park in Morris, Minnesota.

This year’s competition theme is “Celebrating the Prairie,” and artists are invited to submit original three-dimensional artwork inspired by prairie landscapes, nature, flora and fauna, regional history, or culture. Eligible works may include sculpture, ceramics, fiber art, woodworking, metalwork, mosaics, mixed media, furniture, garden art, planters, bird baths, rain barrel art, and other creative three-dimensional forms.

All submitted works must be original, viewable in three dimensions, and have a minimum value of $100. Contest entries will be considered donations to the Prairie Renaissance Cultural Alliance and will be auctioned during a live auction following the competition, with proceeds supporting PRCA programming and community arts initiatives.

Cash prizes will be awarded through public voting during the festival:
• First Place — $300
• Second Place — $200
• Third Place — $100

Artists donating a contest piece will also receive a free vendor booth space during the festival to display or sell additional artwork.

The Fall Into Art Festival takes place from 11:00 AM – 5:30 PM and features live music, food trucks, art vendors, beverages, and free family-friendly art activities throughout the day.

To participate, artists should email prca@prairierenaissance.org by September 7 with their name, address, phone number, artwork value, and — if possible — a photo of the work. Artists should also indicate whether they would like a free vendor booth space.

For additional information, contact Diane Trew at 320-314-2262 or prca@prairierenaissance.org.

FEE: Preview: $15 Members / $30 Non-Members | Anniversary Dinner: $50 plus tax, tip & beverages | Luncheon: $45

The 67th Midwestern: The Pursuit of Happiness

Exhibition on View: June 18–September 6, 2026 | The Rourke Art Gallery + Museum, Moorhead, MN

The Rourke Art Gallery + Museum presents the 67th Midwestern, The Pursuit of Happiness, one of the region's longest-running and most respected juried exhibitions of contemporary art. Featuring work by artists from across the Midwest, the exhibition explores interpretations of happiness, fulfillment, and the human experience through a wide range of artistic media and perspectives. The exhibition will remain on view through September 6, 2026.

Thursday, June 18, 2026

The 67th Midwestern Preview
The Rourke Art Gallery + Museum

• Doors Open: 5:00 PM

• Celebration in the M. Dorian Clemedtson Sculpture Court with music by The Cropdusters: 5:30–6:30 PM

• Awards Ceremony: 6:30 PM

Admission:
$15 Members | $30 Non-Members

Tickets available for pre-purchase at the museum and at the door.

The 66th Anniversary Dinner
Rustica Eatery & Tavern

• Social Hour: 7:00 PM

• Dinner Served: 7:30 PM

Limited seating. Reservations required.

Cost: $50 per person plus tax, tip, and beverages, paid at Rustica Eatery & Tavern.

Friday, June 19, 2026

The Midwestern Luncheon (at The Rourke Tavern)
The Rourke Art Gallery + Museum

• Social Hour: 11:00 AM

• Luncheon Served: 11:30 AM

Very limited seating. Reservations required.

Cost: $45 per person, prepaid through the reservation form.

For reservations and additional information, contact The Rourke Art Gallery + Museum.

FEE: Free

Threads of Offering | Thương Hoài Trần

June 27, 2026 – January 24, 2027 | The Ruth and Seymour Landfield Atrium & Xcel Energy Gallery at Plains Art Museum, Fargo, ND

Threads of Offering presents the work of interdisciplinary Vietnamese American artist Thương Hoài Trần, whose creative practice explores identity, family history, displacement, memory, and diasporic connection through processes of weaving and unweaving.

Bringing together two major bodies of work — Ông Bà and Made in Vietnam — the exhibition examines the emotional and cultural complexities of immigration, generational disconnect, and labor. In Ông Bà, Vietnamese for “grandparents,” Hoài Trần creates monumental woven portraits honoring their family members. Each strand of yarn is hand dyed before being woven into large-scale portraits and partially unraveled, symbolizing fragmented memories, unspoken histories, and complicated familial relationships. Standing between seven and eight feet tall, the works evoke the presence of ancestors towering over viewers in the Ruth and Seymour Landfield Atrium.

Displayed in the Xcel Energy Gallery, Made in Vietnam features garments labeled “Made in Vietnam” that the artist collected, altered, and investigated through various material interventions. One featured work documents Hoài Trần painstakingly disassembling garments thread by thread over more than 24 hours, condensed into a one-minute video critiquing the hidden labor and exploitation embedded within fast fashion production. The work also functions as a self-portrait reflecting on diasporic identity and cultural inheritance.

Born in Tây Ninh, Vietnam and raised in Emporia, Kansas, Thương Hoài Trần holds degrees from Emporia State University and the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. Their work has been exhibited nationally at institutions including the Westmoreland Museum of American Art, The Center for Craft, and the Studios at MASS MoCA.

Gallery admission is free every day of the week.

Generous support is provided by Art Bridges Foundation’s Access for All program; the North Dakota Council on the Arts; the Arts Partnership; the McKnight Foundation; The FUNd at Plains Art Museum; Giving Hearts Day donors; Spring Gala sponsors; and Plains Art Museum members.

FEE: Museum Admission

Americana: Objects that Reflect Us

July 4, 2026–January 3, 2027

Explore 250 years of American history through the stories told by everyday objects in Americana: Objects that Reflect Us. This exhibition examines how Americans have understood their nation, communities, and identities through themes of democracy, conflict, opportunity, belonging, and culture.

Featuring artifacts that reflect the evolving American experience, the exhibition invites visitors to consider how ordinary people have helped shape the nation's history and culture over the past two and a half centuries.

This exhibition was made possible through a donation from Stenerson Lumber of Moorhead and the generous support of museum members.

Location:
Historical and Cultural Society of Clay County
Hjemkomst Center
202 1st Avenue North
Moorhead, MN 56560

FEE: Free

Kirk Williams: Solo Exhibition – Original Pastels

July 1–September 11, 2026 | WholeHeart Collective, Fergus Falls, MN

WholeHeart Collective presents a special solo exhibition celebrating the life and work of Kirk Williams, one of Fergus Falls' most beloved artists. The exhibition features an exceptional collection of original pastels, drawings, and prints, including many original pastel works that have rarely—if ever—been exhibited publicly.

Curated by Naomi RaMona Schliesman in collaboration with Hattie Tysver, Kirk Williams' stepdaughter, the exhibition highlights the breadth of Williams' artistic vision through works that celebrate beauty, imagination, nature, and storytelling. Original artwork will also be available for purchase.

Join the community for a Public Reception on Wednesday, July 8, from 5:30–7:00 PM, featuring refreshments, music by Kirk Williams, and an opportunity to celebrate the artist's enduring legacy through stories, memories, and his remarkable body of work.

Whether you're familiar with Kirk Williams' art or discovering it for the first time, this exhibition offers a rare opportunity to experience the work of an artist whose creativity continues to inspire the Fergus Falls community.

Location:
WholeHeart Collective
210 W Cavour Avenue
Fergus Falls, MN 56537

FEE: Free

Victoria McWane-Creek and Jared Internet Exhibition

July 1–31, 2026 | Evansville Arts Center, Evansville, MN

Evansville Arts Coalition presents a month-long exhibition featuring the work of Victoria McWane-Creek and Jared Internet.

Victoria McWane-Creek is a spoken word artist and wordcraft practitioner whose work is rooted in lineage, spirituality, and deep reflection. Through intentional language and storytelling, her practice explores memory, healing, and human connection.

Jared Internet is a photographic artist whose work combines photography, collage, and digital manipulation to create evocative visual compositions that blur the boundaries between reality and imagination.

Together, their work offers visitors a thoughtful exploration of identity, narrative, and contemporary artistic expression.

Location:
Evansville Arts Center
111 Main Street
Evansville, MN 56326

Information:
(218) 948-2787

FEE: Free

Made in Mills: The Lund Legacy + Fish Decoys by the Beighley Family

July 7–August 1, 2026

Explore the history, craftsmanship, and innovation behind one of Minnesota's most recognizable brands in Made in Mills: The Lund Legacy, a summer exhibition at the New York Mills Regional Cultural Center.

The exhibition traces the story of Lund Boats, from its origins in New York Mills to its lasting impact on recreational boating, through vintage catalogs, original hand-rendered advertising artwork, historic watercraft, and educational displays. Also featured is a remarkable collection of hand-painted fish decoys created by six generations of the Beighley family, highlighting the artistry and tradition of darkhouse spearfishing.

The gallery is free and open to the public during regular gallery hours.

Gallery Hours:

• Tuesday: 10:00 AM–5:00 PM

• Wednesday–Thursday: 10:00 AM–7:00 PM

• Friday: 10:00 AM–5:00 PM

• Saturday: 10:00 AM–3:00 PM

Location:
New York Mills Regional Cultural Center
24 North Main Avenue
New York Mills, MN 56567

FEE: Free

Kaddatz Galleries Summer Exhibitions

Beck Invitational | Charles Beck Gallery
Mary Guttormson Erickson: 40 Acres for 40 Years | Studio K

July 7–August 15, 2026 | Kaddatz Galleries, Fergus Falls, MN

Kaddatz Galleries presents two compelling exhibitions celebrating the work of regional artists and the artistic legacy of west central Minnesota.

In the Charles Beck Gallery, the inaugural Beck Invitational brings together a group of regional artists in honor of the enduring legacy of Charles Beck, one of the region's most influential artists. This biennial exhibition celebrates Beck's lasting impact while showcasing contemporary work inspired by the creativity, craftsmanship, and spirit of the area.

In the Studio K Gallery, Mary Guttormson Erickson: 40 Acres for 40 Years highlights four decades of artistic exploration inspired by the landscape, rhythms, and enduring beauty of the artist's forty-acre homestead. Through richly layered paintings, Erickson reflects on the deep connection between place, nature, and the passage of time.

An Opening Reception for both exhibitions will be held on Thursday, July 16, from 5:00–7:00 PM, offering visitors an opportunity to meet the artists and celebrate the opening of these summer exhibitions.

Location:
Kaddatz Galleries
111 West Lincoln Avenue
Fergus Falls, MN 56537

Reception:
Thursday, July 16, 2026
5:00–7:00 PM

Exhibitions are sponsored by The Charles & Joyce Beck Family. This activity is made possible by the voters of Minnesota through a Minnesota State Arts Board Operating Support grant, thanks to a legislative appropriation from the Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund.

FEE: Booth Fee Required

Call for Artist Vendors – Wahpeton Fine Arts Festival

Registration Deadline: Saturday, August 1, 2026

Artists are invited to apply for booth space at the 2026 Wahpeton Fine Arts Festival, taking place on Saturday, September 12, 2026, from 10:00 AM–2:00 PM at Red Door Art Gallery and Heritage Square in downtown Wahpeton.

The festival welcomes artists working in a variety of media to exhibit and sell their work during this annual celebration of the arts. Booths are available on a first-come, first-served basis, and artist demonstrations are strongly encouraged. Each artist will receive a 12' × 12' booth space and should provide their own tent, tables, display equipment, and other booth furnishings. Booths must remain open for the duration of the festival.

Booth Options:

• Preferred Booth (inside Heritage Square): $50

• Participating Booth (outside Heritage Square): $25

Participating artists may also display up to 10 additional original works priced at $25 or less in the festival's $25 & Under Art Booth at no additional charge. Artwork in this shared sales area will be displayed by Red Door Art Gallery staff.

Festival Date:
Saturday, September 12, 2026
10:00 AM–2:00 PM

Location:
Red Door Art Gallery & Heritage Square
418 Dakota Avenue
Wahpeton, ND 58075

Registration fees are due by August 1, 2026, and are refundable before September 1, 2026. For registration information, contact Red Door Art Gallery.

FEE: Free

The Naturalist

July 10–30, 2026 | Art Project 605, Detroit Lakes, MN

Art Project 605 presents The Naturalist, a group exhibition that positions the contemporary artist as naturalist—an attentive observer, witness, and defender of the natural world. Through painting, photography, sculpture, and woodworking, the exhibition explores the interconnected relationships among wildlife, landscape, and human culture.

Featuring work by Sara Jones, Eliza Klarer, Robert Larson, Pamela Sherlock, and Talon Stammen, The Naturalistexamines nature not only as subject matter, but as a source of inquiry, memory, reverence, and celebration. Together, the artists invite viewers to consider their own relationship to the environments that shape and sustain us.

Location:
Art Project 605
605 Washington Avenue
Detroit Lakes, MN 56501

Information:
(917) 971-7712

FEE: Free

LRAC Guest Juror Exhibition – Anne Meyer

July 13 – September 15, 2026 | Lake Region Arts Council, Fergus Falls, MN

Lake Region Arts Council is pleased to present the 2026 Guest Juror Exhibition featuring the work of multidisciplinary artist Anne Meyer of St. Joseph, Minnesota.

Meyer's practice bridges studio work, public art, and community engagement. A graduate of the University of Minnesota–Morris with a B.A. in Studio Art, she completed an apprenticeship at Saint John’s Pottery under master ceramicist Richard Bresnahan. Her career has included public murals, outdoor sculpture commissions, artist residencies, educational programming, and collaborative community-based projects throughout Minnesota and beyond.

As Guest Juror for the 2026 LRAC Guest Juror Exhibition, Meyer brings a thoughtful and inclusive perspective rooted in artistic excellence, mentorship, and the transformative power of community-centered art.

Closing Reception & Guest Juror Talk:
Tuesday, September 15, 2026
Reception: 5:00–6:30 PM
Guest Juror Talk: 5:30 PM

Location:
Lake Region Arts Council
133 South Mill Street
Fergus Falls, MN 56537

FEE: Free to Apply

Call for Artists:
Exhibition Proposals – Carnegie Art Center

Application Deadline: October 25, 2026

The Carnegie Art Center in Mankato is accepting exhibition proposals from Minnesota-based individual artists and collaborative artist groups working in all visual art media.

Open to both emerging and established artists, the Carnegie Art Center welcomes proposals for exhibitions in its three galleries within the historic Carnegie building, as well as satellite exhibition spaces throughout the Mankato community.

As part of its mission to support living, working artists, the Carnegie Art Center is especially interested in proposals from artists representing a broad range of ethnicities, cultural perspectives, and underrepresented communities.

Exhibition proposals are reviewed on a rolling basis by the Carnegie Art Center Gallery Committee, with exhibition schedules typically finalized each November. Selected artists will be contacted directly to discuss exhibition opportunities.

FEE: Free

Clear as Mud | Annie Lee-Zimerle and Brian Zimerle

August 1 – November 29, 2026 | Starion Bank Gallery at Plains Art Museum, Fargo, ND

Clear as Mud brings together the work of Annie Lee-Zimerle and Brian Zimerle, two artists whose practices explore memory, materiality, and the quiet complexities of everyday life while reconsidering the promises and contradictions of the American Dream.

Drawing from backgrounds in printmaking, book arts, painting, drawing, and ceramics, the artists create works that reflect on domesticity, cultural mundanity, memory, and transformation. Annie Lee-Zimerle’s narrative-driven pieces examine her experiences growing up between South Korea and the American Midwest, while Brian Zimerle’s sculptural ceramics investigate the fragility of meaning through replicated objects shaped by history and material change. Together, their work invites viewers to consider what is preserved, altered, or lost over time, offering a layered meditation on belonging, cultural inheritance, and collective identity.

Annie Lee-Zimerle received her BFA and MFA from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. Her work has been exhibited nationally and internationally and is held in numerous public and private collections. Brian Zimerle holds an MFA in Ceramics from Cranbrook Academy of Art and has exhibited nationally while collaborating with archaeologists and institutions on historically informed ceramic recreations.

Gallery admission is free every day of the week.

Generous support is provided by Art Bridges Foundation’s Access for All program; the North Dakota Council on the Arts; the Arts Partnership; the McKnight Foundation; The FUNd at Plains Art Museum; Giving Hearts Day donors; Spring Gala sponsors; and Plains Art Museum members.

FEE: Free

Rural Art Juried Exhibition

August 4–September 26, 2026

The Red Door Art Gallery presents the 2026 Rural Art Juried Exhibition, a regional exhibition celebrating the beauty, history, and culture of rural and agricultural life. Featuring work by artists from across the region, the exhibition showcases a wide variety of media, including painting, photography, mixed media, sculpture, wood carving, pottery, and fiber art inspired by rural landscapes, farms, wildlife, agriculture, and country living.

This year's exhibition is juried by Kent Estey, with awards recognizing outstanding artistic achievement, including Best of Show, category awards, Merit Award, and Viewer's Choice.

Visitors are invited to attend the Artists' Reception & Awards Ceremony on Thursday, September 10, from 5:00–7:00 PM, where they can meet participating artists, view the exhibition, and celebrate this year's award recipients.

Location:
Red Door Art Gallery & Museum
418 Dakota Avenue
Wahpeton, ND 58075

More Information:
(701) 591-1010
director@reddoorgallerywahpeton.com
www.reddoorgallerywahpeton.com

FEE: Free

Wahpeton Fine Arts Festival

Thursday, September 10 – Saturday, September 12, 2026
Red Door Art Gallery & Heritage Square | Wahpeton, ND

Celebrate three days of art, artists, and community during the Wahpeton Fine Arts Festival, presented by Red Door Art Gallery. The festival features the Rural Art Juried Exhibition, artist demonstrations, educational programs, local artists, food vendors, entertainment, and family-friendly activities throughout the weekend.

Festival Schedule

Thursday, September 10

• 5:00–7:00 PM – Rural Art Juried Exhibition Reception & Awards

• Meet participating artists and celebrate the opening of the exhibition, juried by Kent Estey.

Friday, September 11

• 2:00–4:40 PM – Ellen Diederich Painting Demonstration

• 5:30 PM – ART21 Screening Society presents Human Nature

Saturday, September 12

• 10:00 AM–2:00 PM – Wahpeton Fine Arts Festival

• Artist booths in the gallery and Heritage Square

• Artist demonstrations

• Art classes

• Food vendors

• Entertainment

• $25 & Under Art Booth, featuring affordable original artwork by participating artists.

Location:
Red Door Art Gallery & Museum
418 Dakota Avenue
Wahpeton, ND 58075

More Information:
www.reddoorgallerywahpeton.com