Don’t blame me, but Burning Brothers Brewing is calling you out this year: “You’re not planning on buying your sweetheart a Valentine’s Day present at a BIG BOX store again this year, are you?”
This upcoming Saturday, the 9th from 3:00 to 9:30 PM, Burning Brothers Brewing in Saint Paul and MN Art Truck, a food truck for art. The event is hoping to make it easy to shop small and local for Valentine’s Day— all while ensuring you’re getting a unique, original gift all with a beer and snacks!
The mission of the art truck, according to founder Matt Swenson is “to make original art accessible to everyone, by bringing it to them.”
Buying art from the truck supports local artists.
“When they buy art on the Minnesota Art Truck, they are supporting the arts community as a whole. And, they now own living art (art with a story, connection, history, experience),” Swenson said.
Artists involved will be selling all range of items from classic gifts like jewelry and greeting cards to wire sculptures or cribbage boards!
If you’re finished shopping, the event also featuring a watercolor workshop with Coco Connolly using her piece, “Belle Plaine Barn Scrape” as a model to introduce watercolors and cover three simple techniques: graded wash, wet on wet, and dry brush.
To start shopping early, check out the full list of participating artists:
• Jewelry (Melinda Wolff – Art; Justin Barrett; Dave Sanko; )
• Sun Catchers (Just Me Geralyn & Glass)
• Paintings (Westy Caswell Copeland Art; Kevin Kluever Paintings; Dawn Rossbach; Anne Pryor; Coco Connolly; Melinda Wolff)
• T-Shirts (Chux Print and Design)
• Hand-Screened Posters (Dogfish Media)
• Cribbage Boards (Gardner Garage)
• Pottery (Marcia Paul; Lee Curtes)
• Minnesota Themed Art (Rich Stromwall, Illustration, Design, Etc.; Dogfish Media; Westy Copeland; Matt Swenson; Melinda Wolff; Gardner Garage)
• Fused Glass (Just Me Geralyn & Glass)
• Woodworking (Brian Wolff; Gardner Garage)
• Handmade Greeting Cards (Cloud 9 Cards)
• Digital Illustration (Rich Stromwall)
• Wire Sculptures (Bud Bullivant Works in Wire & Watercolor)
• Mixed-Media (Grechen Spottke)
• Robot Sculptures (Matt Swenson)
• Dish Towels (Kate Brennan Hall Illustration)
• Cabin Pillows (Matt Swenson)
• Books (Dan Hauser; Jonathan Wiese; Shelly Boyum-Breen; Lynn Garthwaite; Linda Henry; Virginia Weiss; Liv Hadden)
• Photography (Alan Shefland; Matt Swenson; Sue Perse)
• Journals (Matt Swenson)
• Calligraphy (Sally Smith Wightkin)
• Limited Edition Prints (Anne Pryor; Dogfish Media)
• Cutting Boards (Brian Wolff)
• Serenity Stones (Sally Smith Wightkin)
• Handmade Pens (Dave Goschey)
• Posters On Board (Posters On Board)
• Handmade Wood & Metal Signs (Matt Swenson)
• Valentine’s Day Cards (Cloud 9 Cards; Anne Pryor)
• Greeting Cards (Anne Pryor)
• Yard Art (Dave Sanko; Marcia Paul)
• Ornaments (Marcia Paul; Melinda Wolff; Geralyn Thelen)
If you miss this event, you can check out another handmade market the next day, Sunday the 10th at Lakes & Legends Brewing Company with Minneapolis Craft Market where 30 more crafters will be slinging their wares while you sip a pint.
For full details and event updates, follow the events on Facebook if you’re hoping to track down something unique for your sweetie this year.