855 Stanley Rd., Two Harbors | Minnesota
Jennifer Murphy, Host Artist
With my artwork I aim to impart the same tranquility I enjoy while exploring the north woods and the shores of Lake Superior, as well as the quietude I feel while sculpting. The malleable, soothing, and tactile nature of the clay are what attracted me to ceramics. I use hand building techniques to sculpt original organic forms, which are inspired by the biodiversity of the forest floor.
Some images are cropped. Please click on each photo to see the entire artwork. All images copyrighted & may not be reproduced without permission.
Sam Zimmerman, Guest Artist
His work explores his Ojibwe heritage, his learnings and experiences in nature upon his return to the Grand Portage reservation, while preserving shared oral histories. He shares his experiences with animal, bird, fish and plant relatives while incorporating the natural landscape of Lake Superior’s North Shore. Sam focuses on continuing the Anishinaabe tradition of storytelling embedding the themes of environmental stewardship and conservation of the North Shore through his studio and public art commissions. He has completed public art pieces for the Grand Portage Tribal Nation, Chik-Wauk Museum and Nature Center, Voyageur National Park, the University of Wisconsin – Milwaukee, Minnesota Twins, and the Duluth and Grand Marais communities as a means to celebrate and share Ojibwe culture and language. He recently was selected, along with 11 other artists and makers, to participate in a statewide pilot program, (MNPAiR), Minnesota Parks Artists in Residence. Sam was the artist in residence at Tettegouche State Park in Silver Bay, Minnesota from fall 2024 to fall 2025.
He has been the recipient of grant awards from the Minnesota State Arts Board, Arrowhead Regional Arts Council, Northland Foundation Maada’ookiing, and Duluth Superior Community Foundation. His most recent art, a bilingual coffee table book, is a collection of paintings and stories from his first year of creating along the northern shore of Lake Superior, Following My Spirit Home, published by Blackbear and Blueberries Publishing (April 2022). Following My Spirit Home was a silver finalist for a Midwest Book Award in June 2023. His newest illustration project is a bilingual Ojibwe / English children’s book, How the Birds Got Their Songs was published by Minnesota Historical Society Press and was awarded the 2025 Heartland Booksellers Award in Picture book category.
Some images are cropped. Please click on each photo to see the entire artwork. All images copyrighted & may not be reproduced without permission.
Sarah Riley, Guest Artist
Sarah Riley’s paintings are inspired by nature, folklore, and dreams. Riley has a deep and sincere reverence for nature and the creatures that dwell there. The tradition of storytelling and making sense of the world through legends, lore, and creativity are an important part of every culture, and Riley strives to capture this narrative, story-like quality in her art.
Riley’s background in Art Therapy and Ecopsychology has honed her lifelong belief that art IS therapy, and it is her ongoing goal to make art which elicits catharsis and serenity for its viewers.
Wade Jeske Pharr, Guest Artist
I have been playing with some new glaze combos and getting ready to fire more gas firing.
Some images are cropped. Please click on each photo to see the entire artwork. All images copyrighted & may not be reproduced without permission.
September 25, 26, & 27 