Painting is alive at the Painting is Dead Gallery

It’s over 20 years and 30 miles from a figure drawing class at the Milwaukee Institute of Art & Design to the new Painting is Dead Gallery in Fredonia, Wis., owned by Katie Musolff ’04 (Painting) and Andy Fletcher, who first met in the class.

The couple purchased a farm in 2019 and had their first August 2024 gallery opening in an 1892 granary they preserved on the property. Their artwork and installation of the largest plot (15 acres) within Wisconsin’s Pollinator Program reflect their commitment to preservation and the American rural landscape.

“Andy and I decided to buy a farm without having any prior life experience in managing land or owning barns/outbuildings that need repairs and management,” says Musolff. “However, this choice wasn’t made on a whim. We had spent time living in Bayview and then moved to Stoddard, which is a town on the Mississippi River with a population of 800. We had successfully made that cultural transition as artists and thrived. So, taking the next step to a more rural area was not so strange. Our search went on for about eight years and spanned three counties.

“Andy always wanted to restore an old farm after seeing so many of them collapse. He works hard to record the American rural landscape. Our farm represents a piece of Wisconsin that has been preserved for the next generation.”

Musolff says her own practice “has changed a great deal since I graduated. I left MIAD as a figure painter and did commissioned portraits on the side, working mainly in oil and acrylic. Nowadays, I … concentrate on animals, plants and other natural elements in watercolor. It was a big leap, a big change.”

During the artists’ previous move to Stoddard, Musolff says, “I got very quiet and began to make work that was truly out of my head and heart. I had no trouble picking up dead birds, fallen nests, turtles and frogs from the river and bringing them inside to paint. The one thing that has been consistent throughout all my work is the fact that I work only from direct observation.”

When Musolff met Fletcher, she had “had taught adult art classes, painted people’s dogs and sold a painting once in a while. I participated in a regional art museum show and was represented by a few galleries. Things seemed ok.”

“Andy,” she says, “was in the swing of the Art Fair scene. Luckily for me, he had been doing it for a while and discovered what was working for him…. We took the leap … and began to tour together…. We have never looked back.”

“The Art Fair circuit is an amazing animal,” Musolff explains. “It most definitely has its pitfalls: It’s physically demanding and dependent on the weather. However, it is where we’ve found our main art community. Everyone involved is totally independent. They know how to problem solve, fix things, travel, be free and flexible. We handle our own sales, taxes, inventory, schedule and life balance. As a self-driven person, I thrive in this environment.”

“However, I rarely see anyone from MIAD, academia or the gallery world attending the shows. It makes me very frustrated because the artists working in the art fairs are fantastic resources of experience and knowledge that is applicable to the real world outside of sheltered institutions.… Nothing is guaranteed and yet, we keep moving forward. We could really teach a great deal to emerging artists.”

Musolff believes in this so strongly she recently joined the Friends of the Art Board at the Milwaukee Art Museum “to bring a working artist perspective to their art fair.”

As for a “typical” day on the farm, Musolff says, “Andy and I paint every day, probably between five and ten hours, depending on the show schedule. Our studio time is punctuated by meals and games of cribbage…. There is a huge garden on the property. That keeps us busy all growing season and fed all winter. Before every show, we have to frame all of the work. Andy cuts down all the wood, all of which is reclaimed, and makes all the molding. I cut the glass, mat board, assemble and wire each painting.”

As for the name of the gallery Musolff says, “The name came from a conversation about Rock’n’ Roll being dead, supposedly. And that led to how people said that Painting is also dead…. Then Andy stopped mid-sentence and said, ‘That’s it, that’s the name.’ We use a lot of humor in our business and so, it really fit the bill. On top of that, I paint dead animals, so it works on a few levels.”

The Painting is Dead Gallery is currently open by appointment. Follow it on Instagram: Painting Is Dead Gallery.