See You in Spring 2021!

As part of our continued effort to prioritize the health of our community, employees, and visitors in the coming months, the Washburn Cultural Center building will remain closed to visitors until April 2021. During our hiatus, we will continue to update our eBay store with new listings for antiques and collectible gifts as well as vintage vinyls from our Vault.

We appreciate all of the visitors who came to browse our shops, view our monthly art exhibitions, and explore our museum in this challenging and unprecedented year, as well as the efforts of the artist groups who organized exhibitions and contributed works for display this year.

As April approaches, we will keep you updated on an official re-opening date. Until then, we continue to appreciate your understanding as we do our part to keep each other healthy and safe over the winter months.

We are excited to see you all again Spring 2021!

Temporary Closure (COVID-19 Update from November 25)

Regretfully, due to the rising number of COVID-19 cases in our area and throughout the state, the Cultural Center has decided to close temporarily to visitors until at least Tuesday, December 1. We will not be scheduling any post-closure appointments until we officially announce our reopening date here on our website or on our social media platforms.

We appreciate your understanding as we work to prioritize and take seriously the health of our visitors and our employees. We hope that you—our friends and community members—stay safe in the coming days.

We will update you all about the possibility of reopening by appointment again in the near future. We hope that upon reopening, you will continue to help us (safely) support local artists and the Cultural Center.

UN-GATHERING (November 4–28) – Virtual Exhibition

UN-GATHERING (Nov. 4– Dec. 26)

From The CHEQUAMEGON BAY ARTS COUNCIL

The Chequamegon Bay Arts Council (CBAC) invites you to Un-Gathering at the Washburn Cultural Center, running from November 4–December 26. Held in lieu of CBAC’s annual autumn exhibition/reception, their small works show, and the Cultural Center’s Holiday Bazaar, Un-Gathering features more than 70 affordably priced works—including paintings, sculptures, jewelry, collages, drawings, and textile pieces—from 28 regional artists. Un-Gathering is this area’s premiere location for holiday gifts, especially for the art lovers in your life!

The virtual exhibition below features shots of this year’s show and detailed photographs of every individual work on display in our galleries this month. To see any artwork in detail:

  • On mobile devices: Tap on any image below to see an enlarged image. Tap the small white dot in the lower right-hand corner of your screen to see detailed information about that artwork. Swipe left/right to see nearby works, or click the X in the upper right-hand corner to return to this screen.

  • On computers: Click on any image below to see an enlarged image. Hover your cursor over the enlarged image to see detailed information about that artwork. Click the left/right arrows to see nearby works, or click the X in the upper right-hand corner to return to this screen.

We encourage viewers to visit the Washburn Cultural Center to see these works in person and browse the Cultural Center’s reorganized antiques shop and Vinyl Vault. For the health of our community, Un-Gathering and the Washburn Cultural Center are open by appointment only, daily from 1–5pm. Making an appointment is easy! Contact us at (715) 373-5591 or WashburnCulturalCenter@gmail.com, and let us know of your desired appointment date and time. Masks will be required for entry.

  • For weekday appointments, we are often able to accommodate last minute requests but ask that you try to schedule with us at least 24 hours in advance of your desired appointment date/time.

  • For Saturday/Sunday appointments, we ask that you schedule with us by Friday at 4pm.

  • If you are unable to attend Un-Gathering in person but would like to purchase any work(s) you see in the virtual exhibition, simply call or email us, and we will work with you and the artist(s) to get your selected work(s) to you!

Note for Participating Artists:

If you notice any inaccurate information regarding your artwork, please notify the Washburn Cultural Center at (715) 373-5591 or WashburnCulturalCenter@gmail.com so that we can quickly correct it.

SELECTIONS FROM THE PERMANENT COLLECTION (Oct. 14–31) — Virtual Exhibition

The virtual slideshow above displays the talents of this month’s artists and includes images of the installed exhibition and details of some these works. To view the virtual exhibition in detail, simply click any image above, and then swipe or use the left/right arrows to see the works around it.

Our new exhibition, a selection of 50 works from our always expanding permanent collection, is currently on view until Saturday, October 31. Our last permanent collection show was in February 2018, and since then, we’ve added more than 30 innovative and regionally relevant new works to our collection, and we have also reframed others to make them glorious and exhibition-quality again! Come view your favorite works from our collection recontextualized alongside our new acquisitions until the end of the month.

We invite you to visit the Cultural Center from Wednesday, Oct. 14, to Saturday, Oct. 31, to view Selections from the Permanent Collection in person! Appointment slots are available every Wednesday through Saturday between the hours of 1 PM and 5 PM. Please contact us at (715) 373-5591 or WashburnCulturalCenter@gmail.com to set up an appointment. Please note that this exhibition, our antiques shop and Vinyl Vault, and museum are all currently open to the public by appointment only, and for the continued safety of all, masks are required of all visitors for entry.

BACKWOODS ARTISTS (Sept. 16–Oct. 10) – Virtual Exhibition

This virtual slideshow above displays the talents of this month’s artists and includes images of the installed show and details of selections of some these works. To view the virtual exhibition in detail, simply click any image above, and then swipe or use the left/right arrows to see the works around it.

The Washburn Cultural Center is proud to announce the opening of Backwoods Artists, consisting of more than 80 works from 11 artists who have taken classes from local watercolorist Wei Lan Lorber. This group of self-described “backwoods artists” include: Ann Christensen, Donn Christensen, Cheryl Drevlow, Tanya Eitzenhoefer, Jan Enfelt, Aaron Folsom, Margaret Motiff, Marilyn B. Nourse, Merry Nuutinen, Linda Saetre, Nancy Schryer, and Wei Lan Lorber.

Backwoods Artists includes works ranging from watercolor and pastel paintings to collages and mixed media works. The title of this exhibition chosen by these artists is both a proud reference to our region and a tongue-in-cheek nod to most of these artists’ relatively short time creating art. However, "backwoods" is by no means the only way to describe the breadth, creativity, and expressiveness on display in our galleries. Many of these exhibited works were executed in Lorber’s classes, where some artists completed their first paintings and others expanded upon their already existing art practices. Other works created outside of the classroom show how these artists have independently explored and honed their artistic talents. From regional flora to personal portraits, abstracts to architecture, and local birds to exotic sea creatures, these works fill the Cultural Center’s walls with an array of genres, mediums, styles, and color palettes. And when exhibited beside each other, they reveal shared sensibilities, complementary motifs, and interconnected subject matter.

We invite you to visit the Cultural Center from Wednesday, Sept. 16, to Saturday, Oct. 10., to view Backwoods Artists and celebrate this region’s newer local talents! Appointment slots are available every Wednesday through Saturday between the hours of 1 PM and 5 PM. Please contact us at (715) 373-5591 or WashburnCulturalCenter@gmail.com to set up an appointment. Please note that this exhibition, our antiques shop and Vinyl Vault, and museum are all currently open to the public by appointment only, and for the continued safety of all, masks are required of all visitors for entry.

Now Available - Posters By Rabbett Strickland

UPDATE: Interested buyers can now purchase Rabbett Before Horses Strickland’s posters and cards from our Rabbett Strickland online store, which is available here.

Just in to our shop, five new posters by Ojibwe painter Rabbett Strickland. These beautiful images have been printed on heavy poster paper in a very limited number and are priced to sell, so get them while they last. “Voyage of the New World,” 18 x 20 - $30; “Nanabozhoo Lamenting the Wolf,” 18 x 24 - $40; “Creation of the First Butterflies,” 18 x 24 - $40; “Nokomis and Nanabozhoo,” 22 x 24 - $45; and “The Shut Eye Dance,” 24 x 24 - $50. For inquiries, call the Center at 715-373-5591, e-mail us at washburnculturalcenter@gmail.com, or make an appointment to see them in person (via phone or e-mail).