Hello Artists! I’m very excited to announce that we were able to reschedule full-time, professional artist Kristin Casaletto, Tom’s daughter, to speak to us on August 20^th, 9:30 AM, at Riverside Park’s Island Picnic Shelter.  See her impressive bio here and resume here.  She has won many awards, grants and residencies and she is an interesting and articulate speaker.  http://www.kristincasaletto.com/ I was also delighted to hear that her artwork "Apocalypse", photo attached, (woodcut, 48 x 96", co-printed with Laura Casaletto, attached) will be on view in the lobby area at the Grand Rapids Art Museum Thurs., Aug. 13, from noon to 9:00 p.m. and Sat., Aug. 15th, from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Note: GRAM is free on Thursdays from 5-9 pm. This is a group show of artwork by GRAM docents. (Must wear mask (GRAM defines an acceptable face covering as one that covers both the nose and mouth and wraps under the chin.) to enter and get a timed ticket, even during free hours. Go to artmuseumgr.org to reserve.) Kristin’s bio statement:   Kristin Casaletto’s art centers on socio-political challenges of 21st-century life in a super-power nation, addressing power imbalances (racial, economic, gendered) or perilous trends (nationalism, complacency) as perceived from her position within a working-class, mixed-race family.   Her innovative approaches to drawing, painting, printmaking, and monumental scale confront the complex relationships among corruption and redemption, justice and injustice.  The work dives deeply into both formalist and conceptual concerns to suggest multiple meanings.  It alludes to the cumulative effects of history on the shape of contemporary society. Casaletto exhibits nationally and internationally and has shown with such artists as Nick Cave, Betye Saar, Sue Coe, and Faith Ringgold.  She has won awards, grants, and residencies from Pyramid Atlantic Art Center (DC), the Georgia Humanities Council (Atlanta), the Robert Blackburn Printmaking Workshop (NYC), and numerous others.  Her art is held in university and museum collections such as the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C., and the Edith and Ely Broad Museum of Art in E. Lansing, Mich.  Recent solo shows were exhibited in New York City; Monterey, California; and at the Georgia Museum of Art in Athens, Georgia.  She is a fulltime artist based in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Meet at Riverside Park, at the Island Picnic Shelter at 9:30 AM.  Directions:  Enter Riverside Park at the Guild St NW traffic circle.  Then turn right on to Riverside Park Drive and follow to almost the end where you will see the brown Island Picnic Shelter.  It is nestled between a lake and the Grand River.  https://www.grandrapidsmi.gov/Directory/Places/Parks/Riverside-Park  and click on “View Map” to see more details. Looking forward to seeing you there! Leslie