Let's weave our collective roots together this year.
Our 2022 theme of Growth concludes as we prepare to dig in deeper and find out what it means to be Rooted.
Our exhibitions, programs, and featured artists will explore the theme of rootedness in its different forms… from rich personal experiences, to our local community, and traditions surrounding family and culture.
Like creativity, roots are widespread, regenerating, and life-giving. They ground us and perform vital roles, providing anchors and connections that allow us to thrive.
Whitney Valentine, Director of Education & Exhibitions
Let's dig in, shall we?
We’re excited to explore the tastes of West Michigan with our 2023 Creative Fellow Chef Mindy Trafman.
Every year, the SCA welcomes a non-traditional artist to the campus for a year-long experience in our Creative Fellow program. This program provides unique opportunities for the Fellow to collaborate with visual artists and performers, lead events for children and adults, and amplify SCA programming in unexpected ways.
Mindy, born and raised in Chicago, brings a wide array of culinary and life experience to the SCA; from shaping young minds in elementary education to opening high-end restaurants around the country. Mindy is also one of the few Level III Sommeliers in West Michigan, owner of catering and consulting company Somm + Seeds, a staple in the Saugatuck/Douglas community, and so much more.
Explore exhibitions at the SCA
We’re still celebrating our interconnectedness with the last few weeks of Molly Costello’s exhibition Fertile Futures.
Rooted in an understanding of our interconnectedness as well as the individual value of our lives, Molly Costello seeks to anchor us in this truth in the Fertile Futures exhibit.
Molly calls us to dig deep while reflecting upon their work which utilizes the symbology of stars, growth, bold colors, and imagination. They invite us to see that our unique attributes are a vital light in the dense constellation that makes up this world. Together, let’s dream of new possibilities.
Bring a piece of the stars home with you — Molly’s work is for sale at the box office at the SCA or virtually right here. You can visit Molly’s exhibition in person until January 27.
Next, join Michigan-based mixed media artist Ruth Crowe in a debut exhibition The Journal Project, featuring more than 40 years of personal journal entries. Ruth’s stories, though deeply hers, are also all of ours.
Ruth has worn many hats throughout her life – but none have given her a greater pleasure than the hat of an artist. From coaching collegiate softball, to serving in the US Army, to policing with the LAPD – her life has been nothing but unique. Now residing in Michigan, Ruth has been creating art to share her stories as a powerful and tender example of how art and storytelling can catalyze communal healing.
This new body of over 30 works celebrates and reflects the essence of what it means to be a human; a visual culmination of the bad to the good, the mundane and the monumental events – they all shape us into the person we are. The Journal Project is a powerful and tender example of how art and storytelling can allow for communal healing.
The Journal Project will be the featured exhibition in the gallery from February 10 – May 12.
In the corridor, you’ll find the intimate watercolor works by Michigan-based painter, poet, and educator Megan Klco Kellner.
Home Body is a long, deep breath. Through images of her home and children, Megan Klco Kellner explores the intimacy of motherhood and the difficulty of finding clarity and stillness in an increasingly overwhelming world. These watercolors, collages, and hand-written poems grab hold of the numinous moments that slip through the fog of daily routine and lift them up into the light.
Megan is a Visiting Professor of Art at Grand Valley State University where she works at cultivating equitable learning environments that grow her students’ creativity.
Home Body will be the featured exhibition in the corridor from February 10 – May 12.
Want to join the creative fun?
There are opportunities for all ages and all levels of artistic experience to join the creative programming.
Life-long learners can join Scotty Jacobs in an immersive forest walk, indulge with Chef Mindy Trafman at intimate 5-course meals in the gallery, dive into mental health and creativity with Ruth Crowe at journal workshops, or explore water color work with Megan Klco Kellner. Weave your roots together with us.
Dig into adult programming below.