I am Jeff Rea, your host for Economic Outlook.

Thanks for joining us.

We hope you make plans each week to tune in at WNIT, WNIT2 or at WNIT.org, or listen to a podcast of the show on most major podcast platforms.

The Krasl Art Center has been providing residents of Southwest Michigan the opportunity to experience high quality art exhibitions since the 1960s.

And each year, their work is having a big impact on the regional economy.

We'll take a closer look at that impact coming up on Economic Outlook.

Before we get started here at night, we're respecting social distancing and as such have both our hosts and our guests joining us today virtually instead of in person.

The Krasl Art Center is a key economic driver in the Saint Joseph, Benton Harbor area, as well as a critical influencer of quality life in the area.

The center and the annual Krasl Art Fair are having a big economic impact on the area, last yea, measuring $3.6 million.

We're taking a closer look at the center and the art fair and what they mean to the community with our guests, Julia Gourley-Donohoe, the executive director of the Krasl Art Center, and Jamie Balkan, the director of events at the Krasl Art Center.

Welcome today.

Thank you, ladies, for joining me today.

Thanks for having us.

Yeah, well, we're really excited to talk about this topic.

You guys have been doing some amazing work going back several decades at the center.

And for those who aren't familiar, we thought this is a great opportunity to talk a little bit about, kind of, what you do and talk about how you're impacting the community and stuff like that.

So, Julie, you've been involved for--for seven years.

Let me come your way first.

So, for somebody who--who is hearing about the art center for the first time, tell us a little bit about what it is and what it does.

Krasl Art Center is a visual arts organization located here in downtown Saint Joseph, overlooking the lake.

And we place exhibitions in our galleries that are intended to inspire the local community.

We draw artwork and artists from around the country that have some national repute.

And we really want to inspire people to have conversations and explore some interesting dialog around the artwork in the galleries.

The gallery exhibitions change six to eight times a year.

In the--in the facility, we also have a number of studio spaces where we host classes in clay and drawing and painting and photography and in the digital arts and in sculpture.

And those classes are for people of all ages.

Outside of the building itself, the Krasl Art Center's collection is comprised of public art.

So we don't keep those in the building.

We don't have a permanent collection in Krasl Art Center's galleries.

But we work with our partnering municipalities, Benton Harbor and Saint Joseph and Berrien County, to place our collection of sculptures within locations that are accessible to the public in Saint Joseph and Benton Harbor, and hoping that then people will be inspired to visit the two cities and check out all the sculptures that are placed.

Additionally, we want to keep the exhibitions outdoors fresh and lively, so we are really excited to have just opened the most recent biennial Sculpture Invitational and through that exhibition we borrow additional public artworks to place within Saint Joseph and Benton Harbor again to inspire people to check out the artwork.

And of course, with all of that comes a ton of partners, partner projects and collaborations with partner organizations and outreach initiatives with schools and afterschool programs and in the medical system.

Because we really do believe that having access to the arts is beneficial and advantageous for all people.

So you don't have to come into our building to be able to engage with Krasl Art Center programs.

We're happy to bring them to our partners as well.

Great.

Thank you, Julia, for the overview there.

Wow.

What a-what a treasure to have in our area.

Not all communities have embraced art like this or have centers or facilities like this.

Tell us a little bit about how the Saint Joe, Benton Harbor area ends up with--with this type of facility and programing in this area.

We are really incredibly fortunate to have the support of the community for an arts organization of the caliber of Krasl Art Center.

And it's a really great story that I love to share.

Sixty years ago, there were a handful of artists who had an idea to show off their artwork in Lake Bluff Park.

Lake Bluff Park overlooks Lake Michigan here in downtown Saint Joseph's, and the powers that be at the time said, 'Sure, go for it, show off your artwork'.

The artists hung their artwork from clotheslines in the park.

They strung clotheslines from tree to tree and clipped their artwork to the clotheslines with clothespins.

And that was the first art fair.

The event was supported by the community and by the municipality and became an annual tradition that continues today that we know as the Krasl Art Fair On The Bluff.

And it is because those artists sixty years ago with that crazy idea to hang their artwork in a park were supported in that idea.

They were supported by their community members, by fellow artists, and they were supported by the municipality.

And from that they formed an association.

They ended up securing a building in downtown Saint Joseph to teach art classes in and to talk with one another about their own artworks.

And those artists then went on to form what is now Krasl Art Center, and Olga and George Krasl made a commitment to making the arts accessible to the public and having a real museum, a real gallery, a real place to teach art and dedicated spaces here in Saint Joseph.

And they set the organization and the community up to have the Krasl Arts Center, as it's known today.

Without their financial support and their vision for the future, this facility wouldn't be here.

But without the community's support of those artists' crazy ideas, sixty years ago, we wouldn't have the Krasl Art Fair and we wouldn't have the Krasl Arts Center.

So this is the 60th year this summer.

Great.

Good.

Awesome.

Jamie, I want to loop you in to this conversation.

Well, you're relatively new to the center, not new to the community.

Been around for a long time and seen this.

Tell us what attracted you to the opportunity to work with Julie and the team at the Krasl?

So I've been on the flip side and a sponsor of the art fair in the past, so it was a great opportunity for me to take this next step in my career.

And what I love about this is it kind of melds my past careers.

I was in economic development in this--in the start of my career, and it's been so great to reconnect with friends and connections in the economic development world, and it's great to be back in the nonprofit world.

And then throughout, you know, a little--another stage in my career, I did a lot of event planning, so--and marketing and this kind of melds the best of both worlds.

But I'm really, really enjoying the opportunity to venture into this new industry that really has a huge impact on our community and make a difference by what we do each day.

Julia did such a great job doing the intro, but I want to make sure we mention the grounds here at Krasl and the investment that was made on the grounds here, because it's really changed the look of the community and that was an investment that was just made a few years ago.

So I kind of bring that up and throw it out to Julia just to talk about that for a second.

Yeah, I'd be happy to.

The Krasl Art Center is located in a beautiful location on the edge of downtown Saint Joe, again overlooking Lake Michigan.

And we have a commitment for public art and outdoor sculpture placement.

And we realized a number of years ago that the space could be better utilized in our green space, better utilized for humans than for cars.

So we embarked on a major development of the Krasl Art Center's grounds called Sculpting Community, and we had some very significant investment from First Source Bank to embark upon this project that completely changed the landscape of the grounds and made the green space in front of Krasl Art Center a place for people to gather.

And it includes a significant sculpture--site specific, dedicated sculpture by Richard Hunt that is located as a--as an entry way piece as you come into downtown Saint Joseph and onto our grounds.

And we moved parking so that there's a focus on people gathering.

So there are--there's an interactive sculpture space and we've just revealed a new sculpture in that space in the East Garden dedicated in memory of Lupe Hopp.

And there's a big oval lawn so people can bring their lawn chairs.

We see people playing catch out there.

We have these great big blue blocks that are really fun for the families to come and engage with.

And then a little seating area so you can grab a picnic lunch and take a break on the Krasl Art Center's grounds.

And this--this investment happened to be completed just before pandemic.

And we were all so heartened to see how much the space was used during those many, many, many, many months of early pandemic.

When we were seriously isolating and--and only living outdoors year round in the snow, people are connecting with one another and engaging with the artwork on Krasl Art Center's grounds because it now feels like it's a place for you where you belong.

It's intended for you to come.

There are no rules.

Well, except for not climbing on the sculpture, but it's really, you know, open to everybody.

And it's been embraced by the community and used by visitors and residents alike.

It's a gorgeous edition and I'm so thrilled that you're getting a chance to talk to it about today.

Our hope is that there are folks that are watching and haven't had a chance to get up there, get up there and see and experience some of that.

We're seeing a quick break here in the studio.

I'm going to go out into the field, George Lepeniotis, my co-host, is taking us up to the center.

George, let me toss it to you.

Thanks, Jeff.

I'm downtown Saint Joe at the Krasl Art Center, where I'm proud to accept my award.

No, actually, I haven't been given an award yet, but some someday maybe.

I'm actually joined by Summer Sprinkles and her creator, Tom Freier.

Tom, thanks for being with me.

Thank you.

So, Tom, tell me a little bit about your history.

I'm going to get Summer Pprinkles, but tell me a little bit about what brought you to become an artist.

Well, I've always tinkered with putting stuff together.

I worked with many different mediums over the years.

I've been a pattern maker and a machinist, and I've always collected old things and old cameras, mainly, as I started making things out of cameras because they're just not functional as cameras anymore.

Yeah.

Camera--that's a--that's a piece of function that has changed dramatically.

It has changed dramatically.

So you are repurposing these items and that's part of your medium, right?

Yes, it is.

We are standing here in front of the Krasl Art Center.

Before we went on camera, you talked to me a little bit about being a lifelong Benton Harbor resident.

Yes, I am.

Your studio still down in Benton Harbor, I take it?

Yes, it is.

Tell me a little bit about the Krasl and what it means to you and your career.

Well, Krasl's been a big part of my life.

I've been kind of not really involved with the staff so much, but I did classes here years ago and I've been involved in the art fair three times, forth time this year.

So that's coming up here on--.

July 9th and 10th.

And how many artists are here to exhibit during the art?

172 this year.

Wow.

That's a lot of artists.

And that's all different types of art.

All different types of art.

Every every kind of medium.

And that's a--it's a juried show.

So it's exclusive to upscale art, not like crafts.

It's--it's good stuff.

So that's what it means, a juried show.

It means that it's curated a bit.

Yes, it is.

All right.

So in addition to Summer here, you showed us another piece of your art.

Tell us a little bit about that process.

I mean, I'm looking at this and it's an old sprinkler head.

Yes it is.

An old hot plate, it looks like to me.

Some spoons for legs.

Where do you come about all of this stuff?

I'll--I--I'll--I'll pick up a piece of junk antiques.

Everything I make my art out of is vintage or antique.

And I don't weld or glue anything.

Everything's put together with period correct fasteners.

So they always--are always old.

Okay,.

I'll see something and I'll say 'Oh, that could be a head.

Or that could be a body.

That could be a foot.'

I don't know.

I'll put it in the box and try to label it and then come back to it.

And when I see a couple more pieces, I'll put something together.

Well, she's very cute and you could just tell that she's got a whimsical feel about her.

So I was telling you earlier, it's quite the creativity.

Our show is Economic Outlook and obviously I think a lot of people think of an artist as a free spirit, as having a great life, just meandering around, doing fun things.

But it is, in fact, a job.

You talked about your your tax returns before we went on the air.

That's a job.

Tell me a little bit about this is one of your big shows.

Is this the larger one that you prepare for every year?

Yes, it is.

And so you create art with the purpose of showing, exhibiting, but also selling at these types of events?

Yes, definitely.

Are there other areas that you might go to?

Are there other shows like this one.

Local shows for right now.

But I plan on doing shows outside of the area when I get a little older and--and hit the road.

That's awesome.

As you progress with your art, I'm actually right behind us is--is a outdoor classroom it's called here at Krasl that was created during the pandemic and kind of with the idea of bringing people together in an outdoor environment.

You actually built that.

I did.

Would you tell us a little bit about that project?

Well, it's constructed out of plywood.

There's ninety-two individual pieces there.

It's all bolted together.

It's free standing and there's a light in the center and it creates a nice creative space for artists to come in and, you know, do what they're doing.

That's awesome.

And how long did it take you to create that?

A couple of months.

Did it really?

Yeah.

And everything, again, is handmade.

We've noticed the fasteners, you and I went through that.

It's very, very cool.

And is it on permanent exhibit here at the Kras?.

Just for the summer.

Just for the summer.

all right.

So as we wrap up here, tell me, what is it-- how many pieces are you bringing to the art fair?

Oh, all that I have is probably thirty, forty pieces.

Is there one in particular that's your favorite?

Yeah, I did a motorcycle, all created out of antique parts, and the rear wheel actually runs a piston up and down, so it looks almost functional.

I get a lot of comments on that.

That's still my favorite.

Will that be at the fair?

It will be at the fair.

I have that one.

Well, Tom, thank you for visiting us with us today.

Thank you for showing us your art.

Thank you for introducing me to Summer.

I'll show her to my daughters.

And I'm sure maybe we'll come to the fair and see her again.

Jeff, back to you in the studio where you're going to talk more about the Krasl and the effect it has where some people may think it's not a financial or economic driver, but in fact, it is and helps artists like Tom make a living doing what they love.

George, thank you for the trip up north and for an inside look up there.

Really appreciate seeing what's going on up your way.

Jamie, I want to come back your way.

We teased a little bit in the opener about the economic impact that the art center has, not only with the art fair, but also throughout the year.

Can you speak a little bit to that?

You just released some information about that here in the last month or so.

Yeah.

We had an opportunity, just about a week and a half ago, to talk about the economic impact of both the Krasl Art Center and the Krasl Art Fair.

The huge number is the combined impact, and it's a really exciting number.

It's a 4.9---combined economic impact, 4.9 million, which is an amazing number, and forty-five jobs supported by what we do.

If you kind of break it down a little bit more, the Krasl Art Fair On The Bluff in 2021 had a $1.2 million economic impact for that two day art fair.

That was a little bit different year for us because we only had 150 hours due to COVID and it brought out 14,000 visitors.

And what is exciting to me about that number is it was a different time.

It was still when we were in the pandemic.

So I look forward to the future number based on when we're more normal and we're back to normal.

The Krasl Art Center, as a whole, flipping gears a little bit, has an annual economic impact of $3.6 million in our community, which is a great, great contribution to the community.

We have an operational spend of $1.4 million and we support nine jobs.

So we make a difference in this community each day.

And it's exciting to see and hear that.

Those are the number part of it but, probably, what's more exciting and engaging is the people part of it and the quality of life part of it.

And I'm going to toss it to Julia to share a story that really touched my heart that we shared as we shared these numbers.

And I'm going to toss it to you, Julia.

Sure.

This is my favorite part.

You know, we--we know that a lot of people benefit from engagement with the arts, whether it's an opportunity for a family to have a conversation together or a place for them to be doing something that then inspires a safe place to talk about something that might be more challenging if you're sitting down with your teenager.

There are some things that are really hard to talk about if you're just making eye contact with each other.

But if you're working on an art project together, that might be a safer space.

And so we really do try to make the arts accessible to all people.

But there are always one off stories about ways that the Arts Center and the resources within the Arts Center benefited an individual.

And I have many, many of those stories.

But one of those we shared last week, a young woman who was-- she was joining the Krasl Arr Center as a teenager as I was becoming a professional here.

And she was that middle school kid who didn't quite have the place where she was successful.

She didn't really fit in in the clubs at school.

She didn't have the social circle that really supported her interests.

And she took an art class, an adult art class at Krasl Art Center, and she found her people.

She found a place where she was successful.

She found a place where she was celebrated, and she found a group of mentors who continued to inspire her into her adult life.

So she's now--she has a graduate degree and she's a working professional in Grand Rapids, working in the arts.

And--and the work of art center and availability to the network of people here helped bring her to where she is today.

So I asked her for a quote and she--before she gave me a quote, this is what she said; 'Thank you so much for the opportunity.

I don't think I'd be nearly the person I am today if it wasn't for having access to Krasl Art Center and all of the amazing people who helped shape me'.

And--and for me, that is more important than any of the economic indicators.

But those economic indicators are icing on the cake.

Yeah, that's great.

Thank you for sharing that story.

That's--that's--that's terrific.

So, Julia, talk for a second a little bit about just I think that's a great story in terms of how art is impacting.

And I think probably a lot of studies even help mention that.

So what's the current state of art?

Is--is this--are more kids getting into it, are they interested or less interested?

What--what's going on in the--in the space in terms of the--the interest level in art and participation in?

Our--our visitorship and our--our registration for classes is just as booming as ever.

And we have an ongoing request from community partners for us to offer resources in the visual arts to partner organizations and to their--their patrons and their client base.

So I don't think that the interest or understanding of the value of the arts has waned.

And I would say I think the past few years and the wild ride that we've all been on has really brought--brought it home, how valuable it is to have have the arts to inspire us.

You know, the arts don't necessarily give us food, lodging, education, clean water.

However, they do inspire us and they keep us motivated and they fill our heart and soul, even in the times when it may be a little bit more challenging to find that inspiration every day.

Great.

We're in our last 5 minutes.

I want to make sure we talk about the center for a second.

And Julie, I wanted one quick follow up.

So--so how did you how did you get interested?

Were you an artist as a--as a youngster?

That's what got you into this field?

Yeah.

I was the kid who didn't go to recess.

I stayed inside and went and learned how to do darkroom photography on fifth grade.

And I grew up in a rural school system in northern Indiana.

My dad's a tradesman.

My mom was a stay at home mom, and we did not go to art museums or the symphony.

We went to the local little theater play.

But I did not grow up as an art, as a--in a family that was patron of the arts, but they always supported my interest in the arts.

And I knew pretty early on I was always the kid who was studying art and had all classes in the arts, and my family supported that interest.

My dad, again, he's a tradesman and he continues to say, 'I can't believe you have a job with that art degree, Jule.'

So I'm very fortunate that my family saw the benefit of my arts education and--and I truly give them credit and give all the parents credit for letting our kids follow their personal passion.

We're not all super academic stars.

We're not all super track stars or football stars or cheerleading stars.

But the arts can be a place of success for lots of people.

Great.

So, Jamie, I'll come back your way in about in our last three minutes or so.

So I want to talk about the art fair a little bit.

So this is the--the thing that most people maybe are familiar with.

I think we've helped give them some insight into the other great things that are happening there.

But for folks who are thinking about that for this summer or maybe haven't been, tell us a little bit about the Krasl Art Fair when it is, where, what to expect, that kind of stuff.

So it's really exciting.

It's our 60th art fair, which is a huge milestone to celebrate both.

As for the art center and the community as a whole, we are going to have that coming up Saturday, July 9th and Sunday, June 10th, 10 a.m. to 6 on Saturday and 10 a.m. to 5 on Sunday.

It is a ticketed event, a minimal cost of $5 to come in.

Children, 3 to 11 are $3.

And that ticketing allows us--it's our major fundraiser here at Krasl.

That ticketing allows us to offer free art exhibits throughout the community and makes what we do each day possible so minimal cost to come enjoy it.

We're going to feature 172 artists from throughout the United States.

Really looking forward to it.

It takes over 400 volunteers to make this event possible.

So right now we're working really closely with our volunteers to get ready for the event.

It is located right here in beautiful downtown Saint Joseph On The Bluff.

It will have it all ready to roll here.

I looked at my calendar.

It's 50 days.

That's my countdown calendar.

If I can chime in with two fun things because it is the 60th birthday, we're excited to kick off the weekend with a Friday block party from 5 to 10 p.m. And that will be a birthday celebration for the art fair.

It's open to the public.

It also has a $5 admission and lots of the artists come.

So it's a good opportunity to rub elbows with the artists.

And--and then Saturday and Sunday, if folks want to be sure that they have an easy access to the event and a really exceptional experience, they can participate in the Collectors Experience package and that package is--there are a limited number of them available, but it gives you access to the block party all weekend long, access to the art fair, early access on Saturday, a breakfast on Saturday and then a VIP lounge.

That is really fun to hang out at.

Great.

Julia, our last minute.

Artists come from around the world or around the country to really experience this.

What's--what's there--what's their impression when they come here?

And many them probably come from communities that don't have a source like you there.

Tell us what the folks from outside are thinking.

I'm not going--I mean, it sounds like I'm touting our own horn, but it's really true.

They love coming to Saint Joe, Benton Harbor for the Krasl Art Fair On The Bluff.

We are kind.

It is a beautiful location.

The community takes really good care of them.

We have a buying audience.

They--the artists are just elated to be a part of the Krasl Art Fair On The Bluff.

And these folks are traveling around the country to sell their artwork and they love spending the time here in the community.

Great.

Jamie, in our last few seconds here, for those who want to know more information about the art fair and what to experience, where would you send them?

So we have a wonderful website.

It's just Krasl.org And that's K-R-A-S-L dot org.

We're also very active on both Facebook and Instagram.

Awesome.

Well, we're looking forward to thank you both for being with us today to share the great work of the center and a little bit more about the art fair.

That's it for our show today.

Thank you for watching on WNIT or listening to our podcast.

To watch this episode again or any of our past episodes, you can find Economic Outlook at WNIT.org or find our podcast on most major podcast platforms.

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I'm Jeff Rea.

I'll see you next time.

This WNITlLocal production has been made possible in part by viewers like you.

Thank you.