2023 Artist Mentors

Angela Johnson

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Ray Allen

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Mark Nutt

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2022 Artist Mentors

Adam Swanson​

​I am very excited about this Drawing Water artist mentor because water science has been a key focus of my work for more than a decade. In the early 2000’s I worked for years in Antarctica with the National Science Foundation where I developed my knowledge of important ocean related experiments. Currently, I’m a member of the Twin Ports Art Science Collaborative and my work has been influenced by researchers from Lake Superior and the SPRUCE climate change project in Northern Minnesota. Now, more than ever, the implications of human actions in an ever-changing landscape are on the tip of everyone’s tongue. My recent paintings make scientific data such as this clearer and, most importantly, inspire audiences to learn what can be done to change course.

Mindy Schnell

​I’ve been involved with Drawing Water since its inception and enjoyed working with the scientists and artists.  Trout Lake is very familiar to me and is the subject of my watercolors that represent my time spent on the water.  The fish paintings are the result of my curiosity and the fascination with what lies beneath.  
I’ve mentored art students in the local schools for over 20 years, conduct watercolor lessons weekly year round, and give private lessons.  
Owing to the recent influx of full time residents and a new generation of recreational opportunities, I feel it’s important to reach out with information that  will encourage good stewardship of our Northern Lakes.

Terrill Knaack
To explain my interest in the mentorship program I offer a very brief summary of my background. The early stage of my career was as an understudy of Owen Gromme, curator of zoology at the Milwaukee Museum of Natural History. My interest was in environmental education and art. After that seven-year period I became a self-employed artist. I also involved myself with the environmental issues concerning priority watershed work and management of the lakes of my region, as a volunteer.
When art and science combine, the intersect brings up the most interesting questions.
Albert Einstein is often quoted as saying, “The most beautiful thing we can experience is the mysterious. It is the true source of all true art and science” Both the artist and the scientific investigator are both humbled by the mysteries of nature; the living earth, the cosmos and mankind itself. By observing nature with great attention, it becomes obvious that any one phenomenon is inseparable from another. The passion to explore nature, to understand the interrelationship of an element of the biotic community to another, is undertaken because the mystery itself carries an aura of beauty with it. Art that is authentic is the result of the drive to reveal and understand relationships that may at first be hidden. Something is sensed and felt that is beyond the obvious. Poetry, painting, and music reach places within us that our thoughts cannot reach.