Sidewalk Stories
CREATE HISTORY!
Explore the personal history of Sheboygan with the John Michael Kohler Arts Center
Calling all storytellers and creative types! Be a part of the Arts Center’s unique public art project, Sidewalk Stories. In February and March, work with acclaimed Texas artist Anne Wallace and folklorist Norma Cantú to seek out the personal stories that form Sheboygan's history and create art inspired by them. This summer, help stamp those stories into Sheboygan city sidewalks and perhaps even prepare the art for casting in brass—paving the way for a walk through local history. Check out the four phases of Sidewalk Stories, and get in step with one or all four. Whether you are the family storyteller or a History PhD, a doodler or a professional artist, this project is for you. All ages and experience levels are welcome. Follow these directions for a journey through history:
1. Become a history detective.
Sign up for a workshop and learn to conduct oral history interviews, then sleuth out the personal histories and memories that make Sheboygan unique.
ORAL HISTORY/CREATIVE NONFICTION WRITING WORKSHOPS
After School Workshop
Ages 9–17
Mondays, February 4 and 11, 3:30–5:00 p.m. $5 ($4 members)
Evening Workshop
(All Ages–13 and younger must be accompanied by an adult)
Tuesdays, February 5 and 12, 5:30–8:00 p.m. $10 ($8 members)
Saturday Intensive Workshop
(Ages 18 and older)
at the Tellen Woodland Sculpture Garden
Saturday, February 9, 10:00 a.m.–3:00 p.m.
$50 ($45 members) Box lunch provided.
2. Tell us your story.
You can participate now by sharing your memories of moving to or growing up in Sheboygan. Your words might end up on a sidewalk or in an Arts Center exhibition. Look at the statement below, and mail or e-mail your story to
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or drop it off at the ARTery. FREE!
• Each person in our community has a unique personal experience that combines with others' experiences to create our local history. Tell us a story from the past–your own story or one you heard from your parents or grandparents–that captures your family's experience in Sheboygan.
3. Show your artistic side.
Attend an open-studio session and work with artist Anne Wallace to create images that illustrate our community’s past. Use old photos or oral histories for inspiration.
OPEN-STUDIO SESSIONS
All ages are welcome; students age 13 and younger must participate with an adult. Tuesdays and Thursdays, March 11–20, 5:30–7:30 p.m. FREE!
4. Get your hands dirty.
Join the crew installing art and history in city sidewalks. You can even help pour the concrete! Sidewalk Stories will be stamped into wet sidewalk concrete in early August. FREE! Watch for details coming soon.
For more information on Sidewalk Stories or to sign up for any of the workshops, please visit www.jmkac.org/sidewalk or phone 920-458-6144.
This project is made possible by funding from an anonymous donor and the Robert W. Baird Co. Foundation, Inc., and through a partnership with the City of Sheboygan and Quasius Construction.
It is also supported in part by an award from the National Endowment for the Arts, which believes that a great nation deserves great art.
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