01/12/2026
A happy 2026 to one and all from The Rourke! With the old year now behind us, we're pleased to announce that the 2025 Member Gift Art—"Kettle Pond" by photographer Chris Mortenson —is en route to our members' mailboxes right now.
Chris describes how he came to select and capture the image: "(. . .) I knew I wanted to make a photograph paying homage to the landscape of Clay County and Northwest Minnesota (. . .) I had been hunting pheasants with Dwight Mickelson and a couple other friends on the Mickelson family homestead, north of Rollag. We had just walked in pairs around the pond seen in this image, trying to flush birds. I stopped on the south end of the pond before heading toward the next pond and turned to the north toward this view. The land seemed to straddle the present and the past as the grass blew in the wind and as it took on the look of velvet as it extended into the distance. I felt a pang in my chest that all artists know when they see something that speaks to them."
For our current members: a numbered and signed silver gelatin print is on its way to you now with our gratitude for your support. If you are not currently a member, but are interested in owning this work that celebrates our native landscapes, you can take out a Rourke membership from now until 31 January 2026 and receive this limited edition print as our thanks to you.
