If you keep up with me in any capacity, you probably know that last month, I got to experience my first artist residency. It was close to the best personal experience I’ve ever had, and very likely the best art experience. I’m breaking down the whole thing into two posts: today is all about the experience, and in September, I’ll share about the art.
Stick with me! P.S. Your email may clip this post short because there are so many photos. Read it on Substack or click “View Entire Message” at the bottom of the page to ensure you’re seeing the whole thing. (And reminder that you can click on images to full-screen them!)
Tofte Lake Center
There are thousands of artist residency programs across the country and the world. They all look very different. My residency was awarded by Tofte Lake Center, outside Ely, MN and just south of the Boundary Waters. I applied for the program at the start of the year, and found out I was chosen in May. The terms of this particular program are simple as can be: show up, spend 12 days however you want, go home.
I’m hoping to give you a full sense of place here first. Let’s start with my cabin.
I stayed in Frog, the smallest of the cabins, but with everything I needed in one lovely package.
Each morning I woke up to a sun-soaked kitchen, and each evening I sat wrapped in a blanket at my desk and wrote. The Minnesota summer was much milder than I’m used to, but I actually really enjoyed the range of temperatures, and the ability to curl up at the end of the day after swimming in the afternoon. My favorite frog decoration in the cabin is pictured below.
But the TLC campus is full of lovely spaces. I spent just as much time in the Doodle—the visual arts space. I immediately fell in love with this studio. I loved the desk set-up—just the right amount of space for me to work in one compact area. I loved the windows and the open air feeling—it was so constantly gentle to look out the window at quaking and shimmering leaves. I loved the wood; it made the room feel warm and free. I shared this space with the other visual artist in residence that week, and we found an easy rhythm in being there to work.
But I’m not done yet! I also spent a lot of time in the Osprey—a bird’s nest of a wall-less room at the highest point on the campus. In between writing sentences, I peeked out at flittering groups of birds and ground creatures feasting from branches laden with Juneberries (thanks for ripening those in July, cold MN summers). The lake view didn’t hurt either.
I also must mention the library. Tucked away near the lake’s edge and full of books that covered every subject of the arts, the library was stuffy as a library should be: nice for writing when the screened walls of the Osprey were a little too porous in the rain. I also found two special books here: a tome on the work of Maurice Sendak and The Overstory, which I read over my time there.
The Wild
I’d be remiss, of course, not to mention the larger landscape of the place we were: Superior National Forest and the land of ten thousand lakes. The place I stayed was not truly wild in the way that the Boundary Waters are, or in the way that much of Alaska is, but I did feel a scope of wildness that was new to me in many ways. Just more space than people, but not a destination either, like the National Parks are.
The campus itself is situated on the shore of Tofte Lake. I spent most of my time with my work, but I spent the rest of it watching the sunset in my hammock, paddle boarding and kayaking, swimming and sunning, or otherwise marveling at creatures who lived around the water. One day, while I was floating out in the water, a loon swam up from underwater only about ten feet from me. We spent some time looking at one another.
Minnesota, rich with a bounty of lakes, also provided past Tofte. In walking distance were a few other small lakes with no development and usually, no people. In general, it was beautiful everywhere you looked. I loved every second of my drive from Duluth to Ely, the last couple hours of my nine hour trek. I spotted wildlife all over, from the camp dog Jai, to tiny emerald bugs crawling across my work and snakes slithering across the rocks I jumped into the water from. We also even got a tree tour from a couple rangers from the Forest Service!
Berries
Wild berries were one of the first things I noticed on my first walk around campus— bushes and brambles overflowing with raspberries. On our introductory tour, I was introduced to Juneberries—a magnificently flavorful and plentiful berry weighing down trees all around us. Every day I spent time popping berries off their stems and into my mouth.
About halfway through the stay, I picked a jar of them (I did bring foraging jars, in hopes of natural dye materials or, yes, berries). I whipped a mix of juneberries and raspberries into a jam cake—one of my absolute favorite things to make for its simplicity and always deliciousness.
But, I owe much of my berry abundance to one of the other artists—Sarina Partridge, a singer, among many other things, and all around lovely person to spend time with. She found a glut of blueberries on one of the nearby lakes and invited me to pick with her. She generously took this photo of me with the berries before I dove into the water.
I still have two jars of frozen berries in my fridge, and I used a third to make a blueberry-basil tart (with basil grown on my deck) with Emilio last week. It was really, really good.
Community
All of us artists spent time together, and with Liz and Karina, the magical people hosting us. Alongside Sarina, check out the work of John Stumme and four members of DanceTactics Company—Keith Thompson, Shawn Brush, Aidan Feldman, and Clarence Brooks.
At the end of the time, we did an art crawl, and it felt very special to witness what we’d all spent time working on, and to share everything that I spent my time on. We did tarot-style readings on the dock and around the campfire. It had been a long time since I really met true strangers—how nice.
Abundance
There is just so much more I did and could and want to say. I went into town and got a luxurious spa treatment. I went to the local market and bought incredible handwoven placemats and a spoon carved by “two grey-haired old ladies.” I did yoga twice a week with local Ely residents and teachers. I spent time cooking for myself, which felt so amazing and nourishing. I was completely offline, and unbothered by (what I came to realize are) the unreasonable number of notifications I’m used to. I was at peace in all the ways I could ask for.
And this is only half the story! Talk again soon.
I devoured this lol. Thanks for sharing!! Loved the pictures and description of spacez. Can't wait for pt 2!
OMG!!! It sounds amazing and wonderful. So happy you got this opportunity ♥️