Call to Artists: Third Annual Chocolay Bayou Art Walk & Sale

LANDSHAPES: Water carves the land; land surrounds the water; land and water blend into a bayou. The bayou nurtures life, nurtures culture. We walk in the bayou, being shaped by its beauty and abundance. Our joy and gratitude pour out like water into our art.

The Chocolay Bayou Preserve is a 13-acre jewel of upland pines, cedar swamps and still waters tucked between the growing communities of Marquette and Chocolay Township. This small area holds part of the boundary of the 1842 Copper Treaty of La Pointe with the Anishinaabe, and also the site of the area’s first steam sawmill and furnace.  Seven years ago the Upper Peninsula Land Conservancy completed its $165,000 fundraising and officially opened the Preserve.

The UP Land Conservancy invites any artists who have been shaped by the interaction of land and water to apply to participate in the Third Annual Chocolay Bayou Art Walk and Sale.  We are looking for any media which reflect the theme of being shaped by nature. Selected artists will exhibit their art and if desired, sell their work, from sites along the trails of the Bayou on Sunday August 20, 2023 from noon till 5pm, with set up at 11am.  Saturday the 19^th will be a rain date.

Applications are now live, available at https://forms.office.com/r/9tKb8gCy3u. In addition to a completed application form, please also email 3-7 samples of your work to ArtWork@uplandconservancy.org 

The application period will close May 31 and artists will be selected the first week of June. If selected, artists will be offered the chance to have their name printed on all posters for a $10 donation, and printing of their logos for $25. High school students, including graduating seniors, will have names printed free. All artists will have names on the map/flyer of the Art Walk handed to the public at the event. All donations from artists and the public will go to restoration efforts at The Point of the Bayou to protect the banks and the wildlife who live there.

For more information about the UP Land Conservancy, visit uplandconservancy.org.

CHOCOLAY BAYOU ART WALK & SALE:  RULES & INFORMATION FOR ARTISTS

The Art Walk and Sale will take place at the Chocolay Bayou Nature Preserve on Main Street in Harvey, just west of Curran’s Chocolay Shores Apartments, and across from the Lake Superior Smokehouse and Brewery.

EVENT DATE & TIME:

Sunday, August 20, 2023.   Noon till 5:00, set up starts at 11:00am
Rain Date: August 19, 2023.  Same times; decision will be made Friday Aug 18 depending on forecast and all artists will be informed.

APPLICATION:  

https://forms.office.com/r/9tKb8gCy3u
In addition to the application form, please also email 3-7 samples of your work to ArtWork@uplandconservancy.org

GUIDELINES:

1. Artists shall do no damage to plants or animals, including no fasteners on trees. Art may hang from branches or from line strung on trees so long as no damage is done. Art may be tucked onto a branch or propped on a trunk.
2. Artists are encouraged (though not required) to sell their work. Artists are responsible for conducting all sales and handling taxes accordingly. There is no website serving the Bayou but there is cell service.
3. Artists will be placed at pre-designated sites along the trails, in spots where there is adequate clearance for tables and displays. Artists need to bring their own tables, chairs and other display structures.
4. Volunteers will be present to help artists carry in their art and gear from the entrances. You will check in at the Main St entrance and be guided to your site.
5. We suggest you also bring water, snacks, hat, sunscreen, bug dope, etc. We will persist even through a brief shower so bring a tarp to protect your stuff. If it unexpectedly pours, we will all help to quickly break down and bring you out.
6. There will be a porta potty at the Main St. entrance. Volunteers will be available to watch your site if you need a break.
7. The Preserve will appreciate you sticking to the trails and boardwalk at all times, with the exception of your site, to protect the integrity of the land. You may put up easels and small tables on your site.
8. Once artists are selected, UPLC will offer a guided hike through the Preserve for those who wish, to give you a sense of site layout and possibilities. You are, of course, welcome to come and walk the Preserve on your own time.
9. Artists and visitors will be required to strictly abide by current local pandemic guidelines, whatever they are at the time.

PLEASE NOTE: THE CHOCOLAY BAYOU PRESERVE IS LOCATED ON 13 ACRES OF MIXED DRY AND WETLAND, WITH WINDING TRAILS THROUGHOUT. SOME TERRAIN CAN BE DIFFICULT TO NAVIGATE AND THE GROUND AT ARTISTS’ SITES MAY BE UNEVEN.