Sturgeon Bay, Wis. (February 9, 2024) – The community is invited to attend a reception on Friday, February 16th from 4:30 p.m. to 6 p.m., at the Door County Community Foundation. The reception celebrates the Lobby Gallery Spring Exhibition featuring works by Buttons Wolst. The Community Foundation is located at 222 N 3rd Avenue in Downtown Sturgeon Bay.
Buttons Wolst is a Door County painter known for her portraits and still-lifes, each defined by simple shapes and strong compositions. After seeing an exhibit of Ruth Grotenrath’s work last year, she started experimenting in gouache. For this show, she has painted several friends who have contributed greatly to Door County; as well as her favorite flowers, peonies and sunflowers.
“Gouache is a whole new medium for me, providing many challenges. It dries quickly, and, unlike the forgiving nature of oil, does not allow me to go over an area or rub it out and fix it,” said Wolst. “What I love about painting, whatever the medium, is the surprise of the outcome. I might start with an idea and then, as the painting progresses, things come about that I hadn’t an inkling of when I started.”
A native of Pennsylvania who long ago adopted Wisconsin as her home, Wolst has a BFA and MFA from Carnegie-Mellon University. After living in Michigan and Texas, she settled in Wisconsin. She was an editor for Little Golden Books for eight years and for twelve years owned and operated the Snowstar Ltd fine stationery stores of Sturgeon Bay and Fish Creek.
Her work has been juried into the Hardy Gallery and the Miller Art Museum, winning several awards. She has been asked to create work for their special exhibitions. From its inception, she has been invited to the Door Prize for Portraiture, capturing both Best of Show and Honorable Mention awards. Wolst’s work is in numerous private collections, both near and far. Her gallery representation is at Sturgeon Bay’s Avenue Art on Third. Her handmade cards are also available there.
Wolst has been known as Buttons since “preemie” incubator days, when she was red and straggly. Family visits weren’t to see the new baby, but to see the “button-nose”, which became shortened to “Buttons”. It stuck.
She signs her work with her given name, Archelle. Wolst lives in the Door County woods with her Dutch husband and their rescue dog Winnie.
For this exhibition only, Wolst will donate all profits to the Door County Community Foundation.
Each season, different Door County artists will be invited to exhibit their work at the Door County Community Foundation’s Lobby Gallery. The Gallery is normally open to the public during the Community Foundation’s regular hours of 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday.
The Door County Community Foundation, Inc. is a collection of separate charitable funds set up by individuals, families, non-profit organizations, private foundations and businesses that are managed, invested and disbursed for the current and future good of Door County. The Community Foundation was launched in 1999, currently administers more than $54 million in assets, and distributes more than $5 million to charities every year.