First Friday in Calumet TONIGHT offers new exhibits, poetry, photography, more ...

Woodcut color reduction by Tom Rudd and Margo McCafferty. On exhibit at the Galerie Bohème in Calumet. (Photo courtesy Galerie Bohème)

CALUMET -- First Friday in Calumet will offer new art exhibits, poetry, a photography workshop and tasty treats in the galleries, cafés and studios.

Galerie Bohème: New and previous work by local artists

Galerie Boheme will be open from 6:30 p.m. to 9 p.m. on First Friday, Feb. 6, with new and previous works by Margo McCafferty, Georgi Tsenov, Cynthia Coté, Tom Rudd and others.

"Come to the first Friday events in Calumet and visit us at Galerie Bohème for a cuppa, a slice of cheese to go with the fresh bread and plenty of chatter from friendly faces," says host Tom Rudd.

Galerie Bohème is located at 423 Fifth St. in Calumet.

Café Rosetta: Poetry and Art

Café Rosetta is hosting a Poetry Reading at 6 p.m. Friday, Feb. 6, as well as a reception for Lena Wilson, a mixed-media watercolorist and sketch artist. With liberal use of color, the human form and natural and abstract elements, her artwork plays on the mysterious, but possible properties of cosmic energy.

Café Rosetta is at 104 Fifth St.

Paige Wiard Gallery: Colors of Winter

Pastel by Michelle Wegler. (Photo courtesy Paige Wiard Gallery)

Visit the Paige Wiard Gallery to bring a little color into your winter days! For the month of February artists will be displaying their visions of winter color. From bright sunset colors reflecting off the snow to shades of grey from shadow, see how artists view the colors of winter. An opening reception will be held from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. Friday, Feb. 6, in the Gallery at 109 5th St.

For more information call 906-337-5970 or email paigewiardgallery@gmail.com. Stop in and add a little winter color to your day.

Hahn Hammered Copper: Found Object Art and more ...

Stop in at Hahn Hammered Copper to see what's new in Art Copper and Found Object Art. You are sure to find something for your taste and for your budget at Hahn Hammered Copper, 203 Fifth St. in Calumet!

Calumet Art Center: Studio art projects

Old Mission twiner Teri Gray-Keenan enjoys twining a rug while streaming movies. Teri is the daughter of ceramic artist Ed Gray, Calumet Art Center executive director. (Photo courtesy Calumet Art Center)

The Calumet Art Center welcomed the New Year with a busy schedule of workshops. During the February First Friday, visitors can see the ongoing projects.

Ed Gray has been helping adult students discover "The Spirit of Clay" in a vessel building class. The weaving class has created manycolorful rugs which will be on display. Explore the beautiful sewn gift bags crafted for students of the knitting class. Touring the studio spaces at the Calumet Art Center is a great way to find inspiration for a project.

For more information, call 906-934-2228 or check out the website at www.calumetartcenter.com. The Calumet Art Center is at 57055 Fifth Street.

Cross Country Sports: Jewelry by by Annele Sakari

For the month of February, Cross Country Sports will feature jewelry by Annele Sakari -- Hello Starling Designs. Annele creates fine silver and pure copper jewelry using precious metal clay, a medium consisting of very fine particles of precious metals mixed with an organic binder and water.  During kiln firing, the binder burns off leaving only the pure, sintered metal behind. Often drawing inspiration from the local geography and nature, her beautiful designs include images of Lake Superior, the Upper Peninsula, ferns and flowers.

Visit Cross Country Sports at 507 Oak Street for an open house from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. First Friday. Meet Annele and enjoy refreshments while viewing samples of her art.

Copper Country Associated Artists: Photography Workshop with Mark Upton

Mark Upton, local photographer and Copper Country Associated Artists member from Allouez, Mich., will present a "How To" on Photography on First Friday, Feb. 6. Here is the schedule:

6 p.m. - 6:30 p.m. -- Camera basics, equipment and use
6:30 p.m. - 7 p.m. -- Action photography -- Copper Dog
7 p.m. - 7:30 p.m. -- Long Exposure photography -- Northern Lights
7:30 p.m. - 8 p.m. -- Open Questions and Answers

All ages are welcome to join this event. No reserved seating is required -- join the fun! Bring your camera along for any questions you might have.

For more info contact Pamela Hecht, CCAA First Friday program chair, at 337-2274. The Gallery, at 205 Fifth St., is closed during the winter months EXCEPT for 1st Friday Events.

Tau Kappa Epsilon captures first place in Winter Carnival snow statue competition

With their London snow sculpture, Houghton fraternity Tau Kappa Epsilon won first place in the Fraternities Division and first place overall in the 2015 Winter Carnival competition with a vacation theme. The sculpture is facing Hwy. 41 next to Michigan Tech's Administration Building. (Photo courtesy Michigan Tech University)

HOUGHTON -- Tau Kappa Epsilon's towering and intricate snow sculpture of London as a winter vacation getaway took first place in the Fraternities Division and first place overall in Michigan Tech 2015 Winter Carnival's month-long statue competition.

Judging was held this morning, Thursday; and the Blue Key National Honor Society -- which runs Winter Carnival -- announced the results Thursday afternoon.

Second place overall and in the fraternity division was a Hawaiian scene built by Phi Kappa Tau, a Hancock fraternity whose snow statues won first place for the past seven years.

Hancock fraternity Phi Kappa Tau, at 1209 Quincy St., took second place this year -- a break in their seven-year winning streak -- with this Hawaiian snow scene, including King Kamehameha, hula dancers, sea creatures and a Tiki Bar. (Photo by Keweenaw Now)

While the Houghton winner met challenges of engineering to produce the tall structures of Big Ben and the London Eye giant ferris wheel, and added such London favorites as the double-decker bus and traditional taxi, Hancock's Phi Kappa Tau created very detailed ice and snow figures -- one of their specialties.

The Hancock second-place winner, Phi Kappa Tau, created a Hawaiian atmosphere with the surfer at left; icy sea creatures, foreground; the volcano Mauna Loa, center, sending smoke into the sky; hula dancers; a lifeguard; a daredevil fire thrower and more. (Photo by Keweenaw Now)

How about a nice, cool drink at the Tiki Bar? (Photo by Keweenaw Now)

Third place overall was Air Force ROTC, whose statue of Cape Canaveral in front of the ROTC Building also placed first in the Student Orgs Division. The Army ROTC's ocean statue placed second in that division and the Four Wheelers' Griswold family vacation, third.

Third place in the Fraternities Division was Sigma Tau Gamma, with a statue representing Egypt.

Theta Chi Epsilon placed first among women's groups with its statue depicting the Roman Coliseum, facing Hwy. 41 in front of the Opie and Van Pelt Library. Alpha Sigma Tau took second with a statue portraying Venice, Italy; and Delta Zeta's Taj Mahal statue came in third.

Summitt/WIE took first place among Residence Halls groups, with Raptor Hall placing second and Mama's Boys, third.

Statues built during the All-nighter Wednesday night were also judged, with St. Albert the Great, on MacInnes Drive, coming in first; TreeHouse, second; and FYE Wads, third.

Click here for the full results and more photos.

Michigan Tech's 2915 Winter Carnival continues through Saturday night, Feb. 7, with hockey games against Bemidji State Friday night and Saturday afternoon, snow volleyball, human dogsled races, a torchlight parade down Mont Ripley at 8:15 p.m. Saturday and fireworks following the torchlight parade.

Comedian Justin Willman to perform at Rozsa for Winter Carnival Feb. 6

Comedian Justin Willman will entertain during Winter Carnival at the Rozsa Center Friday, Feb. 6. (Photo courtesy Rozsa Center)

HOUGHTON -- The Rozsa Center, the Michigan Tech Student Entertainment Board, and the Memorial Union Board  welcome Comedian Justin Willman as the 2015 Winter Carnival Comedian, at the Rozsa Center for the Performing Arts at 9 p.m. on Friday, Feb. 6, 2015. Tickets are on sale now; all ages are welcome. To purchase tickets, call (906) 487-2073, go online at rozsa.mtu.edu or visit Ticketing Operations at Michigan Tech’s Student Development Complex (SDC). Tickets are $25, or Michigan Tech Students $10.

According to the IMDb mini-biography by Alex Murray, Justin Willman is an American magician, comedian, actor, and TV personality. The Guardian dubbed him as "some kind of variety Voltron with a comic flair that marks him out as the leader of the pack." He's a regular guest on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno (1992), Ellen: The Ellen DeGeneres Show (2003), and Chelsea Lately (2007); and he hosts the hit shows, Cupcake Wars (2009) on the Food Network and Win, Lose or Draw (2014) on the Disney Channel. He also tours regularly with a magic/comedy live show that Time Out says, "has to be seen to be disbelieved." His greatest trick yet, however, was receiving a standing ovation from President Obama, following a private performance at the White House. How did he do it? Magnets.

Born in St. Louis, Missouri, Justin began entertaining at the age of 12. After breaking both of his arms trying to ride a bicycle while wearing rollerblades (a hopeless attempt to impress girls), he started learning card tricks as an alternative to physical therapy. Nicknamed "Justin Kredible" by his mother, he officially turned pro when his parents hired him to perform at his sister's fifth birthday party. (He still has not been paid for the gig.) Justin is a graduate of Emerson College in Boston and currently resides in Los Angeles. He does not own a rabbit.

Click here for more about Justin.

Please note the Rozsa Box Office is closed during regular business hours and will only open two hours prior to show times.

From Tech Today: Celebrate Winter Carnival at Michigan Tech this week

HOUGHTON -- It’s time to celebrate our snowy home: Winter Carnival is back with the snow statue competition judging on Thursday, Feb. 5.

The 2015 Winter Carnival theme is "While Frozen in the Ice and Snow, We Dream of Vacations on Which to Go."

The Winter Carnival tradition began in 1922. Organized by the Blue Key National Honor Society since 1934, Winter Carnival is Michigan Tech’s mid-winter celebration of the season in the Keweenaw. Festivities kicked off in January when the month-long statue-building competition got under way. Since then, speed skating, broomball, curling, ice bowling, ice fishing, snow volleyball and much more have gotten underway.

Carnival culminates in Wednesday night’s All-Nighter, Feb. 4, with one-night statue construction joining the month-long statue projects. Broomball, a smorgasbord of unique food treats, a snowy wall of speakers pounding out music, and much more will take place across campus well into the night.

The weekend brings a two-game series against Bemidji State in hockey, the Broomball Alumni Invitational and the Torchlight Parade with fireworks over Mont Ripley.

Click here for the complete schedule.

For additional information, visit the Winter Carnival website or contact Blue Key at 487-2818 or bluekey@mtu.edu.

(Winter Carnival logo courtesy mtu.edu.)

Parking during Winter Carnival and extended Shuttle Service

In order to accommodate the many visitors during Winter Carnival, the following lots will be available beginning at 4 p.m. on Wednesday, Feb. 4 (Lot 11 opens at 4 p.m. on Friday, Feb. 6), free of charge, no permits required.

Lot 9 (commuter lot by the Rozsa Center)
Lot 5 (graduate student lot by the Rozsa)
Lot 27 (pay lot between the Administration Building and MUB)
Overnight parking -- You may park in Lot 9, the commuter lot by the Rozsa, without a permit.
Lot 11 (near the Administration Building) will be open at 4 p.m. on Friday.

Lastly, there will be free parking at all metered areas. Transportation Services will also extend its operations during Winter Carnival. The Michigan Tech shuttle service will run from 1 p.m. to 10 p.m. Wednesday through Saturday. The City of Houghton shuttle service will run its regularly scheduled service. Please remember that the Michigan Tech shuttle bus is not equipped to handle children but you may use the on-demand service that the City of Houghton provides.

For any questions or comments regarding Winter Carnival parking regulations or shuttle bus service, call Transportation Services at 487-1441 or Public Safety and Police Services at 487-2216.

Portage Library to host Master Gardener presentation, workshop TONIGHT, Feb.2

HOUGHTON -- The Portage Lake District Library will host the Keweenaw Garden Club for an evening of mid-winter landscaping wisdom and planning presented by certified Landscape Designer and Master Gardener at Michigan Technological University Quincy Higgins Arney.

Higgins Arney will present "The Do’s and Don’ts of Landscape Design" from 7 p.m. to 8 p.m. TONIGHT, Monday, Feb. 2. An optional workshop will begin at 8 p.m. and graph paper, pencils, and rulers will be provided.

Winter is a great time to plan and design gardens, yards, and outdoor spaces, and Higgins Arney will guide participants through the landscaping design process. She will share tips and tricks that can save time, money, and energy while creating a landscape that enhances a home’s aesthetics and usability. She will also show how to reduce the amount of maintenance it requires as well as how to make the landscape more environmentally friendly.

The Keweenaw Garden Club was established by and for gardening enthusiasts. They have presentations at the Portage Lake District Library on the first Monday of each month, September through May. To learn more about the club, visit https://sites.google.com/site/keweenawgardenclub/.

Library programs are free and everyone is welcome. For more information, please call the library at 482-4570 or visit www.pldl,org.