Keeping art in the heart of Port

There’s a new player in Port Washington’s arts scene, joining Gallery 224 and Studio 224 in downtown.

The Arts Council is expected to open at 303 N. Franklin St. — the former Shirley Schanen Gruen art studio — on Wednesday, May 1.

“What better way to honor Shirley’s legacy than to open the Arts Center in that space?” Executive Director Jane Suddendorf asked.

The Franklin Street location, freshly renovated by Fine Line Carpentry, is in the heart of downtown, giving Gallery and Studio 224 visibility while providing a business office for the groups, she said.

“Our product is art, and this location allows us to be a visible business in the community,” Suddendorf said. “This feels like a unique opportunity to link what’s happening at all three places.

“We feel like there’s a lot of untapped potential. This feels like the missing link for us.”

The Arts Council will also help direct people to Gallery 224 and Studio 224, Suddendorf said.

The gallery is only a block off the main street in downtown, but it’s difficult to get people there, she said, and the studio is in a location that’s largely hidden from view in the lower level of the Boerner Mercantile Building.

As the headquarters for the studio and gallery, the Arts Center will provide a place to purchase the art at those facilities, Suddendorf said, noting there really isn’t room at those facilities to handle such transactions.

The Arts Council will also have gallery space that will feature the work of the artists at Studio 224, Suddendorf said.

“It gives the work being created in the studio more visibility,” she said. “And if you see something at the Arts Council you like, you could go to meet the artist at the studio.”

The Arts Council will also be a place to handle administrative duties for the gallery and studio, Suddendorf said.

“It’s outgrown what I can do on my home computer,” she said.  

It will also be a place where people can do an art project on their own, Suddendorf said.

The first make-and-take project will be postcards, she said, adding, “We hope to expand from there.”

Artists’ postcards will be part of the regular inventory, Suddendorf said, and those visiting can also use printmaking supplies, watercolors and other mediums to create their own unique postcards.

“This is a visitor-friendly thing to offer,” she said. “We want this to be family-friendly. We want people to want to come in and see what’s there.”  

Pam Hugdahl, who has been director of the Cedarburg Art Museum since 2016, will be administrative director for the Arts Council.

“With her skill set, we’re very lucky and excited to have her,” Suddendorf said.

The Arts Council will be open from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Tuesdays through Fridays, with varied hours on Saturdays.

A grand opening celebration will be held during the Community Street Festival on Sunday, May 26.