Wintertide Bienneial: An Interview with Tricia Khutoretsky of Public Functionary

It's just over a month until the Wintertide Biennial Juried Art Exhibition opens, this January 24th at Public Functionary. We've received lots of great submissions from NEMAA artists and are excited to have our jury start the competition.

The show dates are: January 24 through February 7, 2015.

Mark your calendar today!

What is Public Functionary?

Public Functionary is a two year old art gallery right on the edge of the Northeast Minneapolis arts district. They've been making waves for some time, trying to push the local art scene in some intriguing new directions. (For example, check out the recent story on the gallery in the Star Tribune.) NEMAA is thrilled to be partnering with them for the Wintertide Biennial.

If you haven't visited the gallery space and are not familiar with Public Functionary, here are excerpts from our chat with Tricia Khutoretsky, the co-director and curator.

NEMAA: Tell me about Public Functionary. You call yourselves a "contemporary art exhibition and social space." What is that all about?

[The Public Functionary team.]

Tricia Khutoretsky: Well the main thing is just that we’re looking at encouraging art buying in the Twin Cities. There's been a lot of controversy over the past few years about how much artists rely on grant funding, and how people feel about government and grant funding for the arts.

Well, one way to supplement that is to have a better art market. Everything that we do at PF is an effort to make people comfortable with art, and to try to encourage new people to get into art buying.

NEMAA: How does the Wintertide Bienneial fit into that mission?

TK: Well the Cedarwoods Foundation generously donated sponsorship money to put toward prizes, which means the jury exhibit will be highly competitive. That  hopefully encouraged artists to put their best work forward. Basically it all comes back to the fact that we're trying to support the idea to try to help people find purchasable art in the area

NEMAA: That's interesting. For someone like me, new to the Twin Cities art market, what do you mean by "purchasable art?"

[The opening of a Buy Now Cry Later Takeover show. Img Public Functionary.]

TK: Some people don’t buy art because they're not comfortable with the purchase. My theory at least, is they feel like if they buy a piece of art…and can’t explain why they bought it, it’s questionable. You have questions like, "Where’d you get it?" or "Why would you do that?" Some people have difficulty talking about it because they might feel intimidated about their purchase being validated.

That might be one theory. Sure a lot of the problem is that people can’t afford art, and there might be a million reasons. But one barrier I’m working on is to eliminate that feeling of intimidation.

Why is it so easy to buy something that is mass produced? For example, pieces from Ikea that are just printed; there's something about buying at Ikea that is not intimidating. So we have these really great jurors that are known for understanding the art market. For example, Peter Remes puts collections in all the buildings that he's developed…and Leslie Hammons from the Weinsetin Gallery of Fine Art Photography. And we have professors that are respected in the academic art world who understand a lot about art history.

Knowing that these art works have been vetted and suggested by these really great minds in the art world, it’s kind of a little bit of a suggestion by people that know what they’re talking about.

NEMAA: So it'll be a different experience coming in than many of the other shows in Northeast.

TK: Right.  There’s no juried show in Northeast Minneapolis. The Wintertide Biennial will filter…and find a way to showcase the best of the best. Not every single artist in NE is applying, but there were a lot submissions and they were good so far!

NEMAA: Best of luck with the show and all your other work at the gallery.

TK: Thanks.

[The gallery space awaits.]

The Digging, LLC

The Digging, LLC is one of the newest additions to the Northeast neighborhood and is the latest venture of entrepreneurial powerhouse Kieran Folliard. The Digging is a unique business that provides commercial workspace to local businesses, as well as management, legal counsel, human resources, finance and marketing services.

Never known to rest, Folliard founded The Digging shortly after selling 2Gingers Whiskey to Beam, Inc. in 2012. After purchasing a 31,000 square-foot warehouse space at 1401 Marshall St. NE, Folliard and his team forged ahead, building a unique space where consumers can make a connection with the individuals who prepare local craft food by visiting the space.

As with all start-ups, they faced several challenges. Having a shortage of necessary resources and knowledge on staff is rather common, but Folliard’s team feels that the lack of expertise and infrastructure they faced has been both a blessing and a curse.

“We are flexible, nimble, and we can adjust quickly,” says the company’s President Carrie Nicklow.
Progress has been constant and the staff is excited to be moving forward. Construction of the Lone Grazer Creamery is underway, Chowgirls Killer Catering will move in as soon as this winter.  Red Table Meat products, produced at the Marshall St. facility, are already on the shelves in stores around the city of Minneapolis including Lund’s and Surdyk’s.

“We are very thankful for the support of the Minneapolis community,” says Director of Marketing Liz Hancock. “It is a great place to be a small business.”

For more information about The Digging, visit:
www.thedigging.com

For a short video clip around the building, visit:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yezTYc02cm0

Recovery Bike Shop

According to owner and founder Brent Fuqua, Recovery Bike Shop started somewhat by accident. While operating a successful photography business, performing as a musician and working several other side jobs, Fuqua found himself struggling with addiction. After moving into a treatment facility, he spent a great deal of time focusing on his recovery while fixing up old bikes in the garage. This hobby soon turned into a business when referrals continued to pour in, and on January 1, 2011 Recovery Bike Shop moved into its first storefront on Central Ave. in the Eastside Food Cooperative rental space.

“It was pretty clear the universe was at work, it was a perfect fit,” says Fuqua.

Fuqua eventually partnered with friend Seth Stattmiller, owner of Re-Cyle which is the main supplier of parts for Recovery. In the summer of 2013, the business continued to expand. When the Northeast Investment Cooperative (NEIC) purchased a 15,000 square-foot space at 2504 Central Ave. NE, Recovery moved in.

“I believe the biggest factor to our growth comes from the fact that Northeasters tend to stick together,” says Fuqua. “They are hardworking, honest, and fair people, and since we’ve opened that has been our goal – to be honest, fair and hardworking.”

The annual impact of Recovery Bike Shop goes beyond just the Northeast neighborhood and is felt on a global scale. Every year, the company processes nearly 5,000 used bicycles, puts 1,000 new cyclists on Minneapolis roads, ships 1,000 bicycles to Africa, and reduces carbon dioxide pollution by one million pounds.

As with any other small business, Recovery Bike Shop faces its share of future challenges and opportunities. “We’ve grown very fast, but we call that a good problem,” says Fuqua. “In some ways, the opportunities are the same as they always have been, to restore and recycle thousands of bikes each year and be a top notch shop for the Northeast area.”

Recovery hosts four open shops every month, two of which are called “Grease Rag” and are exclusively for women, transgender and femme identified individuals. The staff also hosts an open shop every other week with techs on hand to help the public work on their bikes and teach basic skills.

“We attend some 50 events a year all over the city where we fix bikes for free, and we also donate a lot of items to charity events,” says Fuqua. “We feel strongly that this is a lot more fulfilling and productive than conventional marketing.”

As the company grows, Fuqua and Stattmiller remain committed to the company’s original mission, continue to reach out to new market areas to the north, and constantly look for additional ways to get the word out about their business.

“The main thing that we always like to say in our staff meetings is just to ‘keep getting gooder.’”

For more information on Recovery Bike Shop, visit:
http://morethanabicycle.com/recoverybikeshop.html
https://www.facebook.com/RecoveryBikeShop

Brickmania Toyworks

Brickmania Toyworks, founded in 1999 by independent designer Daniel Siskind, creates and markets custom Lego sets and parts. After 15 years in the business and exponential sales growth, Siskind has established a company that is well-known for its high-quality Lego building kits with subjects ranging from renaissance castles to military models of World War I and World War II.

What began as a hobby to “kill time” has now exploded into a global business. Siskind’s first kit, a medieval blacksmith shop, was met with instant success on the market and was the catalyst for the creation of an entire collection of medieval village building kits. Having attracted an impressive internet and social media following, Brickmania is now an international leader in custom design kits.

Since 2010, Brickmania has been located in the Thorp Building, a repurposed World War II armaments factory at 1620 Central Ave. NE. “You really can’t get anything like this anywhere else,” says Siskind of Brickmania’s unique industrial complex.

This multi-purpose space serves as a retail store where customers can purchase a complete line of Brickmania custom kits and figures, BrickArms accessories and a large selection of new and vintage Lego sets. A portion of the space is dedicated to hosting open houses (shown above), birthday parties, and community events such as First Thursdays and Art-A-Whirl.  Also within Brickmania is the “Train Room,” home to massive operating LEGO train displays created by the Greater Midwest Lego Train Club and the Twin Cities Lego Train Club.

As Brickmania continues to grow, the company is still a small scale operation and is often presented with more opportunities than it is financially able to complete. “We don’t try to plan too far ahead,” says Siskind. “We just want to focus on the things we do well, and do them better.”

For more information on Brickmania Toyworks, visit:
http://brickmaniatoys.com/
https://www.facebook.com/brickmaniac
http://www.flickr.com/groups/brickmania/
https://www.youtube.com/user/brickmaniatoys

For a short video clip around the space, visit:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i4W9oIkR9Xc&feature=youtu.be

Central Ave. Liquor

Central Ave. Liquor is a local, family-owned business committed to “Living Northeast, Loving Northeast, and Buying Northeast.”

Owners Scott and Cindy McCleary acquired the company in October 2008. Scott worked as a part-time employee at the store for more than 12 years prior to purchasing it, so he was familiar with the neighborhood, the customers, and recognized the potential that the store offered. The business has since increased its sales and underwent a large expansion in 2011, adding a new local brew pub room and 15 door micro beer cooler.

Central Ave. Liquor is located at 2538 Central Ave. NE in a node of successful Northeast businesses such as Eastside Food Cooperative, Sen Yai Sen Lek and Tom’s Style & Tanning.

“At a primary Central Ave. address, the location and the energy offered by our local main street partners is an enormous benefit to our business,” says Cindy regarding the community support of the store’s business growth and proactive outreach. “We have a history of cross marketing and co-organizing events, which brings people to the many diverse retailers on the avenue.”

Scott and Cindy’s vision for Central Ave. is increased energy, economic vitality and retail density to provide an eclectic, rich experience for Northeast. They create opportunities for people to experience the store and get acquainted with the community by hosting wine and beer tastings 2-3 times a week. They also actively donate to community events and local organizations and partner with the Northeast Minneapolis Lions Club each year to host a beer garden fundraiser in the store’s parking lot.

“These activities not only introduce others to our business, but we hope they also draw a broader crowd to Central Ave.”

For more information on Central Ave. Liquor, visit:
www.central-liquor.com

Siwek Lumber & Millwork

Siwek Lumber & Millwork has roots that stem all the way back to 1933. In the depths of the Great Depression, the young Siwek family struggled to keep their burgeoning business alive as unemployment soared and jobs became increasingly scarce. Fast forward more than 80 years, and Siwek Lumber is now run by the founders’ grandson, Tom Siwek, and has expanded its millwork and hardware offerings to serve not only Northeast Minneapolis, but the entire state of Minnesota as well.

Tom is the company’s Vice President, Chief Financial Officer and General Manager and has worked for Siwek Lumber since 1985. The company is now known for their expert remodeling, pole buildings, millwork, hardwood, crating and packaging of lumber, and their unique selection of closeout and surplus items.

Siwek Lumber is headquarted at 2536 Marshall St. NE with a second location at 350 Valley View Dr. in Jordan, MN. “Our location is the heart of our customer base,” says Tom. “It is representative of our business model – creative, vibrant, unique, hardworking, progressive, modern and yet historic.”

Siwek Lumber actively participates in community service through the East Minneapolis Exchange Club, and Tom is a longtime Northeast resident and activist. When he’s not at the lumberyard, Tom can be found at some of his favorite Northeast establishments including Jax Café, The Mill Northeast, Stanley’s Northeast Bar Room, Elsie’s Restaurant, Bar and Bowling Center, and The Anchor Fish and Chips.

For more information on Siwek Lumber & Millwork, visit:
http://siweklumber.com/
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Siwek-Lumber-Millwork-Inc/165338080170817

Carmen Gutierrez-Bolger

Carmen Gutierrez-Bolger is one of those uniquely talented individuals who can tell a story through her art. Born in Havana, Gutierrez-Bolger’s recent work draws inspiration from her Cuban heritage and features unconventional objects serving as symbols of her roots.

 “I fashion narratives that I call memory mash-ups,” says Gutierrez-Bolger in her artist statement. “I use found objects and materials and think of them as artifacts or placeholders for memory.”

 Gutierrez-Bolger grew up drawing and painting and has vast experience in the graphic arts, specifically printing and typography. She currently describes herself as a mixed media artist known for creating pieces that blend her personality with Cuban iconography.

 Gutierrez-Bolger’s first studio was located in what is now the North Loop of downtown Minneapolis in the late ‘90’s. She then found a studio in The Keg House and formed The Keg House Collective before ultimately moving to her current space in the Casket Arts Building at 681 17th Ave. NE. Her studio space, which she describes as a “fabulous Northeast artist sanctuary,” is shared with fellow artists Marjorie Fedyszyn and Suzanne Skon.

 In addition to her aspirations as an artist, Gutierrez-Bolger has taken on a number of initiatives within the Northeast neighborhood. She is involved with Women’s Arts Resources of Minnesota and has served on several arts, business and community boards including her current role as president of the Northeast Minneapolis Arts Association (NEMAA).

During her tenure as president, Gutierrez-Bolger’s goals for NEMAA are to provide more of the resources and opportunities needed by member artists, extend awareness of the local arts scene to a larger audience, and continue to work with City Council Members Kevin Reich and Jacob Frey on critical matters impacting Northeast.

 “We want to protect this area as a community of artists and continue to maintain its art-centric focus.”

 For more information about Carmen Gutierrez-Bolger, visit:
http://www.carmengb.com/index.html
https://nemaa.org/directory/410

For a short video clip around her studio, visit:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_FhamReDY-M