Kewaunee Art Academy to host opening reception for new home Saturday

ALGOMA - After six years, the Kewaunee Academy of Fine Art has moved to a new location.

The art facility is now in Algoma on the Ahnapee River.

Students taking part in one of the school’s summer workshops lined the river Friday.

“I'm just getting this lovely green building and a little bit of the church steeple,” explained student Melanie Croke. “See it's a green building and a green background so that'll make it really interesting.”

Croke is a third year student at the Kewaunee Academy of Fine Art.

“We train students in representational painting and drawing, which means to paint or draw something that if someone were to look at it, they would recognize it,” said the academy’s artistic director Craig Blietz.

The school, which draws people from around the area and even out of state, recently made its new home in a vintage building in Algoma.

“The opportunity is we have a larger space now, we have a more flexible space now and we're better able to serve the students with this location,” said Blietz.

”It's really nice. I love the fact that you can step outside the door, and every where you turn is a beautiful scene to paint if you like,” Croke added.

Art students said not only is the facility a better fit, they enjoy being on the water and within walking distance of Algoma's downtown.

“I like change anyway so getting used to the new surroundings. It will be fun,” said student David Kapszukiewicz.

During the outdoor lesson, instructor Ken DeWaard gave students pointers as they painted. The effort to capture the essence of the scene was a race against the clock.

“It's not like a studio session. We're really trying, the light is changing so quickly, that we want to get the gist of the scene as quickly as we can,” said DeWaard.

While students and instructors say they'll miss the "old scene" in Kewaunee, some say it's the education that matters.

“What goes on is far more important than the facility, and people of Northeast Wisconsin have a gem here,” said Kapszukiewicz.

The academy will hold a reception to celebrate the new facility at 77 Steele Street in Algoma Saturday.

It begins at 5:00 p.m.