Artist in Residence: Britt Malec Art Show

Britt Malec’s work primarily consists of  mobile making, community song leading, and painting, though she has a regular writing and drawing practice. She recently has been exploring the Polish Folk Art of pajaki, mobiles made of paper and rye straw. She has learned from historical texts and images, directly from Polish experts who preserve this craft, and by engaging with her own experimentation with her own materials and technique. She feels that an important park of folk art is preserving and upholding traditions, but also finding a way to carry culture forward that is relevant, participatory, and alive. She is deeply committed to forging right relationships to land, familial history, and community. She feels that her work shines brightest when she is interacting with others, be it teaching a class on mobile making or botanical drawing, leading a singing circle, or working her day job in perinatal support. She is a birth doula, peer counselor, artist, teacher, and parent to two school aged children. These combined experiences have given her a unique perspective on the joys and challenges of rural life where she currently lives and works on Anishinaabe land in Grand Marais, MN.