The Hidden World of Words at WBCA

Walking into an art center, you might expect to find students crafting clay pots and dipping paint brushes into watercolor palettes. But what about a group of writers studiously scribbling away? More and more over the past two years, the classrooms at White Bear Center for the Arts have been home to groups of writers…

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When the Earth Sings

Local artist Brianna Harrington spends a lot of time outdoors as an avid hiker, wellness coach, and master gardener, connecting to the earth and listening to the ground beneath her feet. Brianna’s new series, “Soil Song: Exploring the Decaying Vibrancy of the World’s Soil,” now on display at White Bear Center for the Arts, uses…

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First Person Plural: Honoring Immigrant Stories in White Bear Lake

You might see new—even familiar faces on the grounds of White Bear Center for the Arts. In the form of huge black and white mural portraits, local artist and White Bear Lake resident Cadex Herrera’s latest project, “First Person Plural,” shares the journeys of immigrants who now call White Bear Lake home. Through in-depth conversations…

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Q&A with Into Nature Judge Michele Combs

When Michele Combs took her first painting class at 38 years old, she couldn’t have guessed she’d become a renowned, award-winning plein air painter. She began her painting journey in an acrylic painting class at the Minnetonka Center for the Arts, the art center where she ended up teaching. When she entered her first painting…

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An Abundance of Love: Artist Highlight with Genie Hien Tran

Genie Hien Tran (Trần Phan Minh Hiền) is an interdisciplinary artist and designer based in Minneapolis, MN. She was born in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam and recently received her MFA degree in Visual Arts at Minneapolis College of Art and Design. Her work takes the form of collage, painting, installation, and writing in order…

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Q&A with Joshua Cunningham

This interview with plein air artist Joshua Cunningham was originally published in 2020 as part of WBCA’s digital “care packages” that were sent out during the pandemic. Joshua went on to judge the 2023 Into Nature Plein Air Exhibition. You can read the full interview here: I was an outside kid. I grew up the…

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A Creative Streak: The Artistic Journey of Ken Baltes

Ken Baltes was a familiar face around White Bear Center for the Arts for many years. He began taking art classes with teaching artist Lisa Fertig in 2013, but his interest in art started long before then. Ken Baltes always had a creative streak, which might seem in contrast to his 50-year career in computer…

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Storytelling through Photography

Awa Mally Artist Highlight Photographer and artist Awa Mally grew up in north Minneapolis, in a neighborhood composed mainly of immigrant families. As an immigrant herself, having moved from Togo at the age of seven, she felt a strong sense of community with her neighbors. “I feel like my identity as an immigrant influences my…

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