Watermark Art Center

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Watermark Art Center Free and open to the public. A member-supported, nonprofit organization committed to nurturing, exhibiting and promoting the visual arts.

Watermark Art Center is a non-profit member-supported organization that plays a vital role in sustaining Northern Minnesota’s economic and artistic vibrancy.

10/19/2026

https://youtu.be/0UdnLerZg9g Working alongside local artist Mary Therese, kids and teens at the Boys & Girls Club of the Bemidji Area have spent the past several months working on nature and pollinator-focused murals in the back garden at the club. "That was really fun when I'd see them excited to b...

Who is that in your pocket? There's only one week left (closing October 24) to catch the 2026 Bi-annual Members Show. Ev...
10/16/2026

Who is that in your pocket? There's only one week left (closing October 24) to catch the 2026 Bi-annual Members Show. Every other year we ask Watermark members to submit work for the group show. This year we've got a good mix of paintings, photography, video, sculpture, textile, jewelry, and wood items.

This piece by Roberta Steinhart is entitled "Moose Camp Memorial."

Watermark galleries are accessible with no admission fee and open to the public Monday – Saturday from 10 to 5pm and located at 505 Bemidji Avenue N. in Bemidji, Minnesota. For more information regarding events, classes and exhibits visit watermarkartcenter.org or call 218-444-7570.

Currently on display through November 2026 in the Harlow | Kleven Gallery is the animal-focused exhibit "Fauna Vitae", r...
10/16/2026

Currently on display through November 2026 in the Harlow | Kleven Gallery is the animal-focused exhibit "Fauna Vitae", roughly translated as "the fauna of life."

Animals have long been central subjects in artistic expression, reflecting humanity’s evolving relationship with the natural world. From prehistoric cave paintings depicting powerful bulls and horses to works in which animals symbolize human virtues, vices, and social status, these representations reveal the cultural and spiritual significance of the animal world.

In contemporary art, animals continue to inspire artists to explore ecological and philosophical questions, including environmental destruction, captivity, and the complex boundaries between humans and nature. Through these depictions, animals become more than subjects of observation; they serve as mirrors of human emotion, cultural values, and our changing understanding of the living world.

The Harlow|Kleven gallery is located within Watermark Art Center and features work exclusively from Bemidji State University's Lillie M. Kleven print collection and the Margaret H. Harlow Ceramics collection.

Watermark galleries are accessible with no admission fee and open to the public Monday – Saturday from 10 to 5pm and located at 505 Bemidji Avenue N. in Bemidji, Minnesota. For more information regarding events, classes and exhibits visit watermarkartcenter.org or call 218-444-7570.

10/15/2026

Don't miss out on the FuN!!

Put this on your calendar: Artist Reception with Dawn Rossbach.The Blind Mind by Dawn RossbachOil Paintings & Mixed Medi...
10/10/2026

Put this on your calendar: Artist Reception with Dawn Rossbach.
The Blind Mind by Dawn Rossbach
Oil Paintings & Mixed Media

EXHIBIT: November 13 – January 30, 2027
RECEPTION November 13, 5-7pm with an ARTIST TALK at 5:30

The Blind Mind is a collection of works exploring Aphantasia, a condition that challenges Rossbach to form mental images. Her goal was to explore “recreating” subject matter without visualization. As an art teacher of many years, she developed a process to connect observational drawing and experience that got her close to reality.

More information here: watermarkartcenter.org/rossbach/

Watermark galleries are accessible with no admission fee and open to the public Monday – Saturday from 10 to 5pm and located at 505 Bemidji Avenue N. in Bemidji, Minnesota. For more information regarding events, classes and exhibits visit watermarkartcenter.org or call 218-444-7570.

WHO: ATTENTION POETS – ALL skill levels! WHERE: Fozzie’s Bar-B-Q in Bemidji, 114 3rd Street Bemidji MN WHEN: November 19...
10/10/2026

WHO: ATTENTION POETS – ALL skill levels!
WHERE: Fozzie’s Bar-B-Q in Bemidji, 114 3rd Street Bemidji MN
WHEN: November 19 , 2026 at 7PM
CASH PRIZES!

Get ready for the next POETRY SLAM at Fozzies in downtown Bemidji. Music begins at 6:00; performances at 7pm. Call Watermark at 218-444-7570 if you’d like to pre-register to guarantee your opportunity to perform or register at the show as space allows. Please limit your performance to 3 minutes or less so there is time for all who want to perform.

Rules and more information: watermarkartcenter.org/poetry-slam-news/

Watermark galleries are accessible with no admission fee and open to the public Monday – Saturday from 10 to 5pm and located at 505 Bemidji Avenue N. in Bemidji, Minnesota. For more information regarding events, classes and exhibits visit watermarkartcenter.org or call 218-444-7570.
Bemidji Area Arts Endowment

UPDATE: We will hold the reception for Anna on Saturday, November 14!The public is invited to a reception for Anna Johns...
10/09/2026

UPDATE: We will hold the reception for Anna on Saturday, November 14!
The public is invited to a reception for Anna Johnson, print and mixed media artist at Watermark Art Center from 2pm to 4pm Saturday, November 14. Johnson will speak at 2:30.

Anna Johnson, in her exhibit "Aanadakiiwan: the Seasons Change", explores the quiet, profound way life shifts with the seasons. Johnson (Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Indians) working in monotype on ledger paper, draws on sweetgrass, yarrow, sage, and other traditional medicines or plants that carry both physical presence and spiritual weight in Ojibwe culture are pressed and printed directly into each piece.

Exhibit info here: https://watermarkartcenter.org/seasons-change/

Watermark galleries are accessible with no admission fee and open to the public Monday – Saturday from 10 to 5pm and located at 505 Bemidji Avenue N. in Bemidji, Minnesota. For more information regarding events, classes and exhibits visit watermarkartcenter.org or call 218-444-7570.

Watermark Art Center opens the annual "It’s Only Clay Exhibit" on November 6 from 5 to 7pm. Awards and presentations beg...
10/08/2026

Watermark Art Center opens the annual "It’s Only Clay Exhibit" on November 6 from 5 to 7pm. Awards and presentations begin at 5:30pm with Special Guest Artist and Juror Lee Persell. The exhibit will be on display through December 23, 2026.

"It’s Only Clay" (IOC) is a national juried ceramics competition focusing on, and dedicated to, functional clay vessels. Each submission for IOC is judged in four areas: function, form/aesthetic, craftsmanship, and surface design. Selected works from the 2026 submissions as well as work by Persell will be on display as part of the IOC exhibit.

On November 7 from 9am to 3pm in the Watermark Education Studio, Persell will discuss the use of non-traditional tools as well as making one's own. In addition to sharing and demonstrating simpler and more ergonomic clay techniques, rim centering, tap centering, trimming and rib use will be explored.

The demonstration will include throwing and creating a variety of shapes, trimming, altering off the wheel, glazing troubleshooting, and her view on firing and finishing work. All experience levels are welcome!

All participants must register in advance and pay online: $30 per person/ $15 student. Space is limited. Learn more at WatermarkArtCenter.org/its-only-clay/

Watermark galleries are accessible, free and open to the public Monday - Saturday from 10 to 5pm and located at 505 Bemidji Avenue N. in Bemidji, Minnesota, 218-444-7570. Bemidji Area Arts Endowment

Address

505 Bemidji Avenue N
Bemidji, MN
56601

Opening Hours

Tuesday 10am - 5pm
Wednesday 10am - 5pm
Thursday 10am - 5pm
Friday 10am - 5pm
Saturday 10am - 5pm

Telephone

+12184447570

Website

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