Tracker Pixel for Entry

​F-M Studio Crawl sampler

Arts | September 28th, 2017

Since 2004, the Fargo-Moorhead Visual Artists have been opening studios and encouraging the public to get a more intimate glimpse into the creative process as part of Studio Crawl.

Encompassing Fargo, Moorhead, Harwood and Felton, the Studio Crawl includes a total of 75 artists opening their studio doors to the public for one weekend. This gives the public a chance to glimpse into the working spaces and minds of a variety of artists. From potters to painters, glassblowers to printmakers, even tattoo artists, the Studio Crawl gives a taste of the variety of art makers in the area.

High Plains Reader sat down and talked to the director of the Studio Crawl, member of FMVA and participating artist Jon Offutt, about what the Studio Crawl does for the community, how it impacts artists and where he hopes the event will grow into the future.

High Plains Reader: What does the Studio Crawl mean for the Fargo-Moorhead area? For the arts in F-M?

Jon Offutt: Fargo likes to think of itself as an arts community. And it’s the one time of year that the visual artists allow the public to come inside their studios. They get a deeper understanding of what it means to be a working artist in the community. What it means to rent space, acquire materials and rub your special magic on materials to make art.

HPR: As not only the manager of, but also an artist in the Studio Crawl, how does the Studio Crawl affect you as an artist?

JO: As director, my greatest contribution to the arts community is getting everybody who participates to clean their studios. I’ve been cleaning for the last couple of weeks. I think that’s my greatest contribution to the artists of the area.

HPR: The Crawl involves artists from not only the F-M area proper, but also Harwood and Felton. Why do you think it's important to include these areas in the Crawl?

JO: They’re part of our area. They’re part of our arts community. We’re not limited by the city boundaries, by the quad cities. We’re a little bigger than that. We reach out into the outlying areas. There are artists in the country who are looking to do their thing.

HPR: What's the most challenging part about managing an event this large? 

JO: Making it interesting for the public. Getting all of those artists together to work as a team, to be ready on that one weekend. Every artist’s place is pretty – but it is 40 locations and over 75 artists. It’s a lot of people to try and get them all pointing in the same direction.

HPR: What’s the best part?

JO: Getting to know all of the artists in the community. Getting to see their images and know who they are. I do a studio visit to most places that are new participants to the Crawl. Participants come and go each year. There are couple that go, a couple that stay. There’s always something new to do.

HPR: When did Studio Crawl start? How did it start?

JO: The first studio crawl was 2004ç this is the 14th annual Studio Crawl. The FMVA has always put it on. It’s kind of the reason that the FMVA exists, is to put on this event. And the FMVA has grown as an organization and this has certainly grown as an event.

HPR: Where do you hope the Studio Crawl grows in the coming years?

JO: I hope it becomes more of a destination event. It already has become that. People already do that. They travel long distances for the Crawl weekend. It’s become its own thing to come to. Other events are planned because they are going to be on Crawl weekend. Plains is holding one of their receptions this year. They’ve done it in the past, on the Crawl weekend. I hope more people will become aware of it. I hope locals will start to utilize it, other than just the arts community from the greater area.

HPR: How do artists become involved in the Studio Crawl?

JO: We put out a prospectus for participants each spring. The juror looks at not only their work but where they’re making it. That’s our biggest factor, is do they have a studio? Is there some place they can leave their mess? It’s not your kitchen counter that you have to clean off. It’s not your garage where you have to park your car. It’s your studio. It’s your own making-space, your designated space.

HPR: Why do you think it’s important to have many different types of art in the Studio Crawl?

JO: So that the public can get an awareness of all the different ways there are for making. How many different outlets there are. You may be a painter, but are you a watercolor painter, an oil painter, an acrylic painter? You may be a printer, but are you a screen printer or an intaglio printer? There’s lots of different ways of working.

HPR: What's the most exciting part of the Studio Crawl, in your opinion?

JO: The richness of the experience. There are so many different things to see and do that weekend. You might not know anything about printmaking, but you can go see a couple of printmakers. That was one thing for the tattoo parlors. Not a lot of people had ever been into a tattoo shop. It’s a chance to step outside your comfort zone.

Outside of the Studio Crawl, other art-related events happening in the area include Fritz Fest at the Plains Art Museum and Rourke Art Museum, a three-day celebration of the works of Fritz Scholder.

There’s also the Studio Crawl Preview Exhibition, currently on display at the Plains Art Museum through Oct. 21, and the St. John’s Bible exhibition at the History and Cultural Society of Clay County, which opens Oct. 1 and ends Dec. 31. 

Recently in:

By Maddie Robinson  maddierobi.mr@gmail.comIn order to get affordable child care for her son, Paulina Erbele has to drive from her work in Gackle,…

By John Showalter  john.d.showalter@gmail.comphoto by Logan MacraeAnyone who lives in the Fargo-Moorhead area knows that its yearly weather is a sequence of…

Saturday, December 2, 20231st seating: 3:30pm, 2nd seating: 6pmSons of Norway, 722 2nd Ave N, FargoCelebrate the holidays with a four-course plated sit-down dinner and hosted by the one and only Frode Tilden. “If you love…

By Sabrina Hornungsabrina@hpr1.comRemember the legacy of the NPL.Last Saturday I had the opportunity to attend the annual meeting and dinner hosted by the Dakota Resource Council in Bismarck. I came in feeling a little defeated,…

By Ed Raymondfargogadfly@gmail.comHow Many of Napoleon’s Hats Will Save Planet Earth for Homo Sapiens?Before I get into this week’s subject of why we need to double the number of college majors in English and Humanities if we…

We are looking for 55-gallon plastic food grade barrels, do you have ideas or connections?We use these barrels to teach our resilient yard workshop series including Make Your Own Rain Barrel and Make Your Own Compost Tumbler. If…

By Rick Gionrickgion@gmail.comThe temperatures have dropped and so have the leaves in the Upper Midwest. That means it's now the holiday season. Part of the joy of this special season for me is eating. But first things first.…

Dropkick Murphys Put Music to the Words of Woody GuthrieBy Sabrina Hornungsabrina@hpr1.comPhoto by Dave StaubleWith the release of 2022’s “This Machine Still Kills Fascists” and 2023’s “Okemah Rising.” The Dropkick…

By Greg Carlsongregcarlson1@gmail.com“Saltburn,” the highly anticipated follow-up to “Promising Young Woman” – which earned Oscar gold for Best Original Screenplay – doesn’t quite equal the bite and sting of…

By Sabrina Hornungsabrina@hpr1.comA trio of Burleigh County artists are making their mark in Wing, North Dakota, to promote local foods and are quite literally painting the town, or at least the newly acquired Wing City Government…

By Eric Dallmanericd@hpr1.comWe recently watched “The PROM” at Chanhassen Dinner Theatre, and it was an experience that left a lasting impact on us. The story, a heartwarming yet familiar one, follows a group of Broadway stars…

By Annie Prafckeannieprafcke@gmail.com AUSTIN, Texas – As a Chinese-American, connecting to my culture through food is essential, and no dish brings me back to my mother’s kitchen quite like hotdish. Yes, you heard me right –…

By Sabrina Hornungsabrina@hpr1.comNew Jamestown Brewery Serves up Local FlavorThere’s something delicious brewing out here on the prairie and it just so happens to be the newest brewery west of the Red River and east of the…

By John Showalter  john.d.showalter@gmail.comThey sell fentanyl test strips and kits to harm-reduction organizations and…

JANUARY 19, 1967– MARCH 8, 2023 Brittney Leigh Goodman, 56, of Fargo, N.D., passed away unexpectedly at her home on March 8, 2023. Brittney was born January 19, 1967, to Ruth Wilson Pollock and Donald Ray Goodman, in Hardinsburg,…

By Faye Seidlerfayeseidler@gmail.com On the first day of the month I ask people to thank a journalist they know or someone who contributes to papers in some meaningful way. When I grew up, my best friend's father was a journalist…