Raising a Farmer

In 2019 I had partnered with local artist Heidi Jeub and the Morrison County Ag Society to create three murals which fair goers could create art. During the event artist came to demonstrate their craft.

County fairs in Minnesota can apply for through the Minnesota Department of Agriculture for the AGRI and Legacy Grant. The grant funding is through the Legacy Amendment. This project was created with a partnership with the Morrison County Ag Society to fund the project.

Like many of the projects this one snow balled from one phone call I had received from the Morrison County Fair manager. I reached out to local artist Heidi Jeub and Agri+Culture had legs to grow. When we open ourselves to thinking outside of the box good things can happen.

We are so excited for the three murals created at the 2019 Morrison County Fair will be on display at Art in Motion on the Lake Wobegon Trail in Holdingford, MN till September 13th, 2021. A Reception will be help Friday August 20 6-8pm.

Artist Statement

Agri+Culture is a collaboration of individuals and community. The project brought people together through the art form of a community mural created over the course of a summer afternoon.  

Rural communities are filled with isolation and the perception artist can not thrive in a rural backdrop. Rural communities are filled with art around them but are sometimes viewed as a hobby, not art. These art forms are found in various forms of wood working, metal work, painting and drawing. 

The collobration and merging of rural story teller Brenda Rudolph of Raising a Farmer and artist Heidi Jueb of Tiny School of Art & Design, and the Morrison County Ag Society;  Agri+Culturewas created.   

Land is symbolic but also essential to rural life. Brenda Rudolph and Heidi Jueb met with Morrison County Historical Society to dig deeper into the fabrics of Morrison County which has weaved the history of the county together. The concept for the three murals emerged from this meeting. The areal view of distribution of land throughout the centuries to what we see today through the three paintings: before the Homestead Act of 1862, post homesteading and what we see post World War II. 

At the Morrison County Fair in 2019 fair goers were invited to bring their creativity to the canvas making the creation of art accessible. The one-day event during the 2019 Morrison County Fair also included local black smith artist Doug LaBorde and brought home potter Matt Krousey. Each artist demonstrated their work bringing the various forms of art full circle. 

In rural communities the blending beyond organization groups is essential for creative projects to take root and grow. Agri+Culture is that project growing into a blend of communities.

Everett earned a Minnesota State fair trip with his market turkeys. I can’t help to think about the meaning behind turkeys for me personally. Everett has taken on his poultry journey completely on his own. He saved his own money for his first batch of birds. He loves anything with feathers. His first year he began with chickens, the next year he added ducks to his portfolio. This year he added market turkeys. This year is the first year Everett is State Fair eligible.  

I grew up in what you would call the heart of turkey country. My hometown of Swanville, MN was on Jeopardy because of turkeys. One of my first jobs was sweeping out turkey barns getting ready for a new batch of birds. My dad was a supervisor at Jennie-O providing for my family growing up because of turkeys. The summer after I graduated high school I worked at Jennie-O paying for my early years of college. Turkeys were a backdrop of my early years of life. 

When the fair turkeys arrived at our farm this spring I didn’t really pay attention to the significance of the turkey. They were just turkeys being raised for a 4H project. They were Everett’s turkeys. Everett won Champion with his Market Pen and Reserve Champion with his breeding pen. To say he was over the moon would be an understatement.  

August 1 was load out day for the Morrison County fair. As we were loading the many feathered animals Everett had at the county fair to go home, it hit me the significance of Everett winning his very first livestock Minnesota State Fair trip with his market turkeys. August 1 marked 17 years since my dad passed away.

Moments in life the presence of my parents come unexpectedly at times and take me by surprise. It is in these moments I pause and embrace their presence. Even if it comes in the form of a market turkey.