July 2019 Posts

The True Story of My High Seas Encounter with the Sheriff

The lake was calm and warm with a mild breeze blowing inland. I put out in Floyd, my patrol flamingo, and went upshore via flipper power. Then I drifted back toward town on the prevailing breeze.

Selective Focus: Tom Moriarty

This week in Selective Focus, artist Tom Moriarty shows some of the wide spectrum of work he’s done, and discusses how drawing, DIY, and demolition derby have formed his way of working.

T.M.: I always love experimenting with different mediums and workflows, and I try and keep the creative juices flowing in a lot of different directions. Right now I’m focusing a lot on muraling. Sometimes I’m existential ramblings in smears and splats of acrylic paint and sometimes I’m drawing portraits tight and trim on a tablet with a stylus. I love making collages and then illustrating over them (I call em collagistrations). I do this a lot for gig posters and event flyers. Black and white illustrations for letterpress. I do graphic design, typography and branding a bit too. For a few years now I’ve been messing around with interactive art in my spare time. Connecting paintings and sculptures to microcontrollers with conductive inks and alligator clips. They output sound when you physically interact with the art… like a musical instrument. I haven’t found that sweet spot with tangible application so for now that’s just for fun.

Got Pulled Over Today

I can’t drive 55

Selective Focus: Fireworks

Select Instagram images of Fourth of July fireworks.

Rich Mattson and the Northstars – “What’s Your Story?”

The latest music video from Rich Mattson and the Northstars features home-movie travel footage, edited by Reggie Pype. The track is from the album Totem, released in January.

The band plays a street show in Virginia on July 11 with Horse Fzce and Charlie Parr.

Monthly Grovel: July 2019 Edition

(Enter the amount of your choice.)

In the past year — from July 2018 through June 2019 — the PDD Calendar published 8,045 Duluth-area events. Each one was edited by a human being before the “publish” button was pushed.

It’s a tremendous amount of work to keep up with all the submissions from the more than 1,000 organizations that have sent us info about their concerts, plays, seminars and cornhole tournaments. That’s why once a month we set our dignity aside and remind readers how much we appreciate their financial support.

Bethany Lutheran Church could become restaurant

Fox 21 is reporting that brothers Chuck and Robert Bagley are working on turning the former Bethany Lutheran Church at 2302-2308 W. Third St. into a restaurant.

A People’s Free Skate gem by Johnny of the Northwoods

Recorded at this past winter’s #peoplesfreeskate, in response to DNT reporters prompting him. Just getting this off my phone now. Cast your mind back to blessed February.

The Slice: Harbor Symphony #2

Ships and foghorns create a misfit symphony in the Duluth-Superior Harbor.

In its series The Slice, WDSE-TV presents short “slices of life” that capture the events and experiences that bring people together and speak to what it means to live up north. Composer credit for this clip goes to photographer Ted Pellman.

Duluth View from Cascade Park in 1899

This photo from Detroit Publishing Company shows the view looking out from Duluth’s hillside at Cascade Park toward the Downtown area and Minnesota Point. William Henry Jackson is credited as the photographer.

The Library of Congress dates the image as circa 1902, but research by Mark Ryan for the story “W. H. Jackson’s Photographs of Duluth” for Zenith City Press puts the time of Jackson’s visit to Duluth as the summer of 1899.

Wallace W. Abbey: A Life in Railroad Photography

Ashland Ore Dock – Ashland
Loading iron ore into the steamer Denmark.

Bridge over the St. Croix – Summerset
Soo Line train crossing the High Bridge.

The Lake Superior Railroad Museum at the St. Louis County Heritage & Arts Center has opened a new photo exhibition based on the work of American railroad photographer Wallace W. Abbey. Located in the museum’s Gallery Car, the collection follows Abbey’s life work as he traveled around the country capturing historic images of railroads and the people who worked on all levels to keep the trains running.

The Felice Brothers – “Aerosol Ball”

The Felice Brothers note that “every tooth in Duluth is Baby Ruth-proof,” in this track from their 2016 album Life in the Dark.

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