Mark Ceilley of St. Paul has picture books on the mind, as a debut author himself. On a recent trip through Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport, Ceilley discovered Picture Book Parade.

The series features one picture book by a Minnesota author every two months through next August. Individual pages are blown up on panels so that visitors may feel they are stepping into the story.

The book for this month and next is “In Search of the Gingerbread Man” by Timi Bliss, followed in 2023 by Peter Pearson’s “How to Eat an Airplane,” Molly Beth Griffen’s “Ten Beautiful Things,” Cheryl Minnema’s book “Johnny’s Pheasant” and Bao Phi’s “A Different Pond.”  

The exhibit is located between gates C18 and C19 at Terminal 1.

Wendy Knox of Frank Theatre stopped at Prove Collective in Duluth to see Carolyn Sue Olson’s work. Olson created a series of brightly colored oil pastel portraits of essential workers, beginning with the stay-at-home order in March 2020 and continuing through July 2021.

The portraits have been on display in various locations around the state, but this is the first time all 100 have been exhibited together. Olson has put the complete series in a book, which is available through her website. The show runs until Nov. 18.

Knox found encountering the entire collection a powerful experience. “You forget certain things that have happened” over the course of the pandemic, Knox said, “it is a little stroll down a not-pleasant memory lane, but it is really informative to see” what we’ve been through.

Breanne Tepler, lead singer/songwriter of Breanne Marie and the Front Porch Sinners, loves the art and music scene in Duluth. This Thursday evening, she’s heading to Wussow’s Concert Cafe, which she calls “the heart and soul of the Duluth music scene,” for a concert and artist’s opening reception.

The artist is Annmarie Geniusz, a “wickedly talented” Duluth-based artist who creates joyful, whimsical creative works, from illustrations and murals to stained glass creations. Geniusz will be the November featured artist at Wussow’s, and the artist’s reception will feature local ska band, Woodblind, from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m.

Tepler also says to check out the mural Geniusz painted next door Wussow’s, at Zenith Bookstore.