Vesterheim Events Schedule

at the 43rd annual Decorah Nordic Fest

July 24-25, 2009

Click here to print out a PDF schedule of the Vesterheim Nordic Fest events.

General Museum Information


Vesterheim Museum’s Main Building, general exhibitions
Displays of both Norwegian and Norwegian-American furniture, woodcarving,
rosemaling, bunader (festive costumes), 25-ft. ship TradeWind, silver, fine art, press
gallery, church gallery, military gallery including the Civil War and World War II.
• Open 9:00 a.m. - 8:00 p.m. on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday;
9:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. all other days.
• Admission to the main building is $7 for adults, $5 for children ages 7-18 and seniors 65+.
Free admission on Thursdays, thanks to Decorah Bank & Trust Co.

Open Air Division, behind the museum’s Main Building
Immigrant homes, school, Norwegian home, and mill.
• Thursday and Sunday, guided tours with museum admission fee at 10:30 a.m.,
1:30 p.m., and 2:30 p.m. Meet in museum lobby.
• Friday and Saturday, 12:00 - 4:00 p.m., tour on your own, no admission fee.

Bauder-Landsgard Collections Study Center
• Friday and Saturday, guided tours at 10:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m., no admission fee.
Sign up ahead in the Westby-Torgerson Education Center, limit 20 people per tour.

Museum Store, the museum’s Main Building
Museum store with sweaters, jewelry, folk art, cooking supplies, books, and more.
• Open 9:00 a.m. - 8:00 p.m. on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday;
9:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. all other days.

Folk-Art Supply Shop, Westby-Torgerson Education Center
Featuring books and supplies for rosemaling, woodworking, and other folk arts.
• Open 9:00 a.m. - 8:00 p.m. on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday;
9:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. all other days.

Fladager Reference Library, Westby-Torgerson Education Center
• Open 9:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. and 1:00 - 5:00 p.m. on Friday.

17th Annual Vesterheim Nordic Fest Raffle
Westby-Torgerson Education Center, Hauge Gallery, First Floor
A bowl hand-turned by Paul Loftness, carved by Becky Lusk, and rosemaled by
Jean Simonson Giese. Tickets on sale in the Hauge Gallery and the museum stores.
• Drawing at 3:00 p.m. Saturday. Need not be present to win.

Demonstrations, Displays, and Sales:

Open 9:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m., Friday and Saturday, unless otherwise noted.

Museum’s Main Building

Annie Jacobsen and Susan Hanson, Madison, Wis. • Author and Illustrator will sign
their children’s books • Museum Store (10 a.m. - 3:00 p.m., Friday and Saturday)
Beatrice Hole and Floyd Foslien, Eden Prairie, Minn. • Psalmodikon • First Floor
Oneota Weavers and Spinners Guild, Decorah • Weaving and Spinning • Third Floor

Open Air Division and Museum Lawn

Carl Homstad, Decorah, Iowa • Woodcut Prints
Paul Loftness, Gibbon, Minn. • Wooden Plate and Bowl Turning
Living Heritage Demonstrators partially sponsored by Sons of Norway Valdres Lodge #503 in Decorah:
Jasper Bond, Sauk Rapids, Minn. • Pottery
John Drewes, Red Wing, Minn. • Leather Craft
William Jaeger, Anoka, Minn. • Figure Carving
David Johnson, La Crescent, Minn. • Making Dovetailed Chests
Tom Latané, Pepin, Wis. • Timber Framing

Westby-Torgerson Education Center:

Woodworking Shop, First Floor
Richard Enstad, Eagan, Minn. • Ropemaking (periodically Friday and Saturday)
Woodworking Classroom, First Floor
Rolf Taraldset, Hornindal, Norway • Relief and Acanthus Carving (Friday and Saturday
12:00-2:00 p.m.)
Fred Cogelow, Willmar, Minn. • Woodcarving (Friday only)
Hans Sandom, Minnetonka, Minn. • Acanthus Carving (Saturday only)
Becky Lusk, Coon Valley, Wis. • Figure Carving (Saturday only)
Harley Refsal, Decorah, Iowa • Figure Carving (Friday only)
Gold Medalists Classroom, Third Floor
Ribbon-Winning Rosemalers Vesterheim Sales Shop, with Nisse Rosemalers, Postville, Iowa
• Rosemaling
Kari Pettersen, Drammen, Norway • Telemark-style Rosmaling (Friday and Saturday
1:00-3:00 p.m.)
Jean Giese, DeSoto, Wis. • Telemark-style Rosemaling (Friday 11:00 a.m.-1:00 p.m.)
Ken Magnuson, Zumbrota, Minn. • Hallingdal-style Rosemaling (Friday 3:00-5:00 p.m.)
Lois Mueller, Platteville, Wis. • Valdres-style Rosemaling (Saturday 11:00 a.m.-1:00 p.m.)
Patti Goke, St. Cloud, Minn. • Agder-style Rosemaling (Saturday 3:00-5:00 p.m.)
Ethel Kvalheim Classroom, Third Floor
Else Bigton and Phillip Odden, Barronett, Wis. • Acanthus/Dragon-Style Carving
Gene and Lucy Tokheim, Dawson, Minn. • Ceramic Turning and Knifemaking
Lila Nelson Weaving Classroom, Third Floor
Oneota Weavers and Spinners Guild, Decorah, Iowa • Handmade textiles

Performances

Open Air Division

Friday and Saturday, throughout the day
Dancing Reindeer Herd Established in 1985, this herd from Milltown, Wis., is one of the largest in the lower 48 states of the United States. They have been in New York City’s Christmas pageant and in the 1994 movie Miracle on 34th Street. Visit these friendly reindeer and their owners, who will wear Sami costumes.
Skjaldborg Skjaldborg means “fortress of shields,” and this group from Elk Horn, Iowa, will present their Viking encampment and entertain throughout the day with full Viking combat demonstrations. (Sponsored by Voltmer, Inc., Decorah, and Viking State Bank & Trust, Decorah.)
Sam Shoults From Knox City, Mo., Sam presents his Viking Ship Replica, with which he has had many adventures, including sailing down the Mississippi River. (Sponsored by Viking State Bank & Trust, Decorah.)

Vesterheim’s Bethania Lutheran Church, 113 N. Mill St. (upper level)

Friday
3:00 p.m. Land of the Midnight Sun Theatre performance by young people inspired by the Sami. Presented by Vesterheim Museum and Upstart Crow Theatreworks, Decorah, Iowa. (Sponsored by Nick and Elida Rowley and Rowley Trial Law Firm.)
Saturday
1:00 p.m. Scenes from Ibsen’s John Gabriel Borkman The Commonweal Theatre Company, Lanesboro, Minn., performing scenes from their 2010 Ibsen production
3:00 p.m. Land of the Midnight Sun See above.
3:45 p.m. Land of the Midnight Sun See above.
4:30 p.m. Land of the Midnight Sun See above.

United Methodist Church, 302 W. Broadway

Friday and Saturday
1:00 p.m. An Apple a Day and Other Old Home Remedies Howard Amundson, Minnetonka, Minn. Born in a poor area of Northern Minnesota after the Depression, Howard entertains with his memories of home medical remedies.
2:00 p.m. Timeless Tales of the Ancient Norse Dag Rossman, Decorah, Iowa. Dag presents a combination of traditional myths and original stories set in the nine worlds of Norse mythology from his new collection The Dragonseeker Saga.

Special Exhibitions:

National Exhibition of Folk Art in the Norwegian Tradition
Westby-Torgerson Education Center, Hauge Gallery, First Floor
Annual exhibition of the finest American artists working in the Norwegian tradition.
Ribbons will be placed at 9:00 a.m. on Thursday. Pieces for sale by silent auction that
concludes Saturday at 4:00 p.m. Visit the exhibition for details.
• Open Saturday, July 18, through Saturday, July 25, 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.

Knitting along the Viking Trail
Main Building, Third Floor
Knitwear designed by Elsebeth Lavold, of Spånga, Sweden, with intertwining and runic motifs from the Viking Age.
• Open 9:00 a.m. - 8:00 p.m. daily.

Flashback: Norwegian Landscapes in Retrospect
Main Building, Third Floor
Photographs comparing historic and contemporary Norwegian landscapes. Made possible by The Royal Norwegian Embassy, The Norwegian Forest & Landscape Institute, and Dr. Ham and Suzanne Peterson.
• Open 9:00 a.m. - 8:00 p.m. daily.
Sami - Main Building, Second Floor
Artifacts and images from the Sami people.
• Open 9:00 a.m. - 8:00 p.m. daily.

 

To learn more about other aspects of the fest, call the “troll-free” hotline at 1-800-382-FEST, or check out the Nordic Fest website at <www.nordicfest.com>.