Railway museum

Frontiersman

A unique art museum is literally rolling through Palmer next week, bringing with it a collection of Native American artwork that has traveled around the country already this

summer.

Artrain USA is a traveling museum that consists of five railroad cars, and next week, it is barreling down the tracks from Anchorage and setting up shop in downtown Palmer, where Valley residents will have the opportunity to not only see art, but meet working artists who are traveling along with the exhibit.

This is the first time Artrain USA has been to Alaska, and logistically speaking, it has been a smooth sail.

&#8220We've always wanted to bring the train to Alaska, but we made a concerted effort this time to make it happen. Our art advisors thought that it was important to bring this particular exhibit, made up of Native American art, to Alaska,” said Deb Polich, Artrain USA's CEO and president. &#8220We took it to Seattle by rail, then loaded it on a barge with the Alaska Railbelt Marine and sailed to Whittier, where we met up with the Alaska Railroad. This is definitely the longest trip we've made.”

The train left Ann Arbor, Mich., on Aug. 16. In addition to Palmer, the museum will spend time in Anchorage, Seward, Fairbanks and Nenana.

The Palmer event is being held by the Palmer Arts Council, easily the biggest undertaking for the group that has been around for less than a year. PAC president Mimi Pippel said she's excited about the opportunity to bring a national museum to downtown Palmer for the weekend.

&#8220We first became aware of the project in mid to late April, and since then, it's been a tremendous amount of work,” Pippel said. &#8220I'm just blown away by the support from volunteers to make it happen. There are so many service groups and businesses that have done anything we've needed to bring the Artrain to Palmer.”

The train has 71 pieces of art on it, from Native American artists around the country. Juneau artist Anna Brown Ehlers is traveling with the exhibit and demonstrating her Tlingit weaving. All of the exhibits have pictures of the artists, Polich said, because one of the project's goals is to make art more personal.

&#8220We work hard to bring the art alive for people,” Polich said. &#8220All too often we see artwork but don't recognize the artists as regular people. By putting the pictures up with the artwork and by having artists traveling with the train, visitors see these artists in ways they don't normally get to.”

Of the five cars, three are former passenger cars that have been converted into art galleries. The fourth car is the gift shop and studio where the traveling artists demonstrate their work, while the fifth car is dedicated to offices for Artrain staff. Polich said that because the museum is mobile, it really belongs to every hometown it visits.

&#8220We are America's hometown museum, because many of the communities we visit don't have art museums,” Polich said. &#8220Our intent is to bring a museum to these communities, and they take ownership in the museum while it's there. The folks we've worked with in Palmer have been fantastic. We're really excited about being able to come to Palmer.”

Pippel attended the train's opening in Anchorage and said she's impressed with the collection of art, and knows the Valley will be as well.

&#8220A lot of the Native Alaskan art we see is very traditional art, and the art on the train is more modern,” Pippel said. &#8220It's beautiful.”

As part of the train's stay in Palmer, cultural events also are being held at the Depot. The Chickaloon Dancers will perform, Pippel said, as well as Medicine Dream, a Native Alaskan musical group. Pippel said the support of local Native Alaskans has been overwhelming.

&#8220We're blessed to have the Chickaloon and Knik tribes as neighbors in the Valley, and to have the opportunity to share their talent and art with the community,” Pippel said. &#8220This is a total nonpartisan, nonpolitical effort. We're working every group to make it a success.”

The Artrain is hosting a Wednesday evening opening, by invitation only. During the day time on Wednesday through Friday, school groups from local high schools and Mat-Su College will tour the train. Pippel said she expects approximately 500 students a day to tour the train.

&#8220The Artrain staff targets the tours for students in grades four through six, but that doesn't mean the art is necessarily geared toward that level,” Pippel explained.

Then, on Saturday and Sunday, the train will be open to the public, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. The public is invited to come to the Depot and tour the train, and no appointments are necessary.

Contact Casey Ressler at

352-2265 or valleylife@

frontiersman.com.