A Cluster of Artists

Limburger Cheese! I was reminded of having limburger cheese and beer after I gave a talk in March in SW WI. That was the night that I lost my voice and gave my talk in a whisper, so I’m not certain that you could officially call it a ‘talk’. I hope that I don’t do that again.

Marian Macie-Hiner, Director of Continuing Education at the University of Wisconsin at Platteville, reminded me of our meeting and the limburger cheese when she sent me an update on the development of an artists cluster in SW WI. They’ve now got a great website at http://www.uwplatt.edu/cont_ed/artsbuild/directory/. You can browse thru it, seeing the many artists who make their home in the region.

They hope to grow the effort in various ways. They’ve recently completed an impact report which documents, “some great success stories, demonstrating how the Arts Build project has made a difference to individual artists, to local organizations, and to communities in the region,” Marian told me.

I told her of the great book and map that HandMade in America had done in NC, which she thought would be a great addition to their efforts. We can learn so much from different areas of the country. I hope that they continue to build their cluster, as I’ve seen what it has done in NC.