We the Village Artisans, believing in the power of art to ennoble and enrich the lives of all people, determine to encourage and support the arts in whatever way we can in the community of Garden, MI, and in the region of the Upper Peninsula of Michigan.
Gina was born in Oregon, raised in Cooks, MI and is a member of the Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians. In 1984 she married Warren Feichtenbiner and they have two sons.
I am a self taught eclectic artist. My art is varied and always changing. I am drawn to the lakeshore and forests. Gathering most of the materials that I work with from the great outdoors is truly a wonderful gift. Rocks, driftwood, feathers and birch bark are some of my favorite objects to work with. Some of my creations are: Rocked objects and vases; Birch bark baskets, Driftwood sunbursts and driftwood mobiles; Leather pillows, purses, coin and card holders; Beaded Jewelry, tie bags, button pins and jewelry; Non traditional penny rug wall hangings and table runners; Photo cards, dream catchers, and leather medicine bags.
While Warren and I are camping, fishing, kayaking and spending time with family we are gathering materials for future creations.
Artist Tana (Barbeaux) Leckson born of Native American Chippewa Indian decent, and raised a fisherman's daughter in the town of Fairport, Michigan. At an early age she fell in love with a kaleidoscope of arts ranging from drawing, knitting, and wood crafting, to playing guitar...all self taught. After leaving the Upper Peninsula to finish her last two years of high school, she returned to her roots in the picturesque town of Garden Michigan. Leckson hopes her artwork will encourage people to pay attention to how many special things there are in the world. She regards her greatest artistic achievement as the moment a person conveys that something she has drawn inspired them to maybe create a masterpiece of their own; or, that her artwork has helped them through a difficult time, and perhaps prompted them to help others. Tana has now added RECYLING PAPER into her projects. As you look at her many newly desiged GREETING CARDS you will see some creative recycled paper embellishments she has incorporated into her artwork. Pins made of recycled paper - Key Chains made of recycled greeting card paper and the list goes on. For more information you can contact Tana (Barbeaux) Leckson on Facebook and you can visit her WEB PAGE at: https://tanaleckson.square.site/
My Name is Lael (Rasmussen) Thelander. I grew up in Garden where I attended grade school, graduated from Big Bay de Noc High School and from Suomi College. A year after my husband, Charlie, and I were married we moved to Indiana because of his work for Enbridge Pipeline. Six moves within four states and 33 years later Charlie retired in 2006 and we are now back "home". We have two children: Heather (Rudy) have three sons and Chad (Jenn) have two sons. Working with fabrics has always been a part of my life from the day my Mother taught me to sew and my Grandmother taught me to knit and crochet. I was a 4-H member through school and a leader when my kids were members. I have taught ceramics, basket weaving, wheat weaving, done alterations, custom sewing, quilting, and freelance sewing for American Girl as well as knitting and crocheting items to donate to organizations. In 1980 a friend asked me to take a stained glass class and the rest is history. In many way the two mediums are a lot alike..........cutting and putting back together.
I have been a consignor with the Garden Gallery since they opened their doors. Now that Charlie and I are back on the Garden Peninsula, I have been able to become more involved with all those who work so hard behind the scenes to make the Village Artisans and Garden Gallery such an important part of the community.
Daryl has always lived in or near woods, water and wild areas and understands how to make the best use of what those areas provide. He has a intuitive nature and is able to bring out the feel of the wild and the natural in his work. As a young boy, living in rural lower Michigan, he began "whittling"and using any jackknife that was available. In the early 80's he moved to Cornell, near Escanaba, and felt that he had "come home". Shortly after that move, while at Marquette's traditional arts Music Fesival "Hiawatha", he watched a humming bird being carved and began to take a more serious approach to his art. He hasn't stopped trying different forms since that exposure. Today he continues to carve, make knives and turn. His knife making, a direct result of his inability to find the "perfect" knife for his carving needs, continues to take up the most shop space, though the wood burls, most of which have been generously provided by friends and acquaintances, are pushing to be in first place. Daryl and his wife Donna found the perfect woods setting and along with Donna's mother are there to stay. They have two grown children and 3 grandchildren, all who spend time in the shop working with wood, paint, leather and whatever else might be of interest to them. It is a busy shop summer and winter. Daryl continues to grow in his craft, working with various artists, attending seminars, and for several days during the summer he sets up shop in the UP Steam and Gas Village at the State Fair Grounds in Escanaba.
My name is Jenny Schiltz. I live in Escanaba, MI and I have autism. I started making gift tags to keep me busy and make new friends after I graduated from high school in 2007. My mom and I found a good idea for making tags out of recycled business cards in a book by Danny Seo called "Simply Green Giving". We decided to try a variation of Danny's idea using business cards and recycled gift cards. Now I am making very cool tags out of recycyled things including business cards, used greeting cards, pictures from magazines, kleenex boxes, raffia buttons and all kinds of things that people give to us or that we buy at thrift stores and rummage sales. I also make bookmarks, gift card holders, prayer beads, magnets and autism awareness pins. The packaging for everything I make is mostly made of recycled cardboard, coffee cup holders and paper. My mom and my aid help me with design and marketing.
I have been able to support my hobby and make new friends by selling some of my bookmarks, magnets and gift tags at the Rapid River Senior Center craft sales and at the gift shops in Stonington, Rapid River, Escanaba and Garden. In 2010 I donated 100 of my bookmarks to a woman on the island of Rota in the Northern Pacific Ocean. She was looking for help after a typhoon desroyed their library. I have donated prayer beads to Hospice in Mt. Pleasant where my aunt worked and to Operation Christmas Child which my church supports. Last year I started making autism awareness pins for my friend who was president of the Eastern Star in Grand Blanc, MI. She was able to sell these and raise money for autism research. I also gave away autism awareness pins at "Walk a Mile in my Shoes" on March 8, 2014 in Escanaba.