Patsy Kahmann will be on hand to sign her new book “House of Kahmanns”
Appleton, Minn. The 20th anniversary of the Meander Upper Minnesota River Art Crawl will be held on September 29, 30 & October 1. The annual event features open house studio tours of 43 artists exhibiting in a variety of locations from Granite Falls to north of Ortonville in the Upper Minnesota River Valley in western Minnesota. One of the most popular Meander studio sites has been the A to Z Letterpress print shop on Main street Montevideo. A to Z is where the hand printed Meander posters are made and the print master genius behind the posters has been Andy Kahmann, proprietor of A to Z. For the past two years, Kahmann has been absent from his shop as he battled cancer. Family and friends kept the shop open for Meander visitors and now, with his cancer in remission, Kahmann will make a triumphant return to the Meander event with his sister author Patsy Kahmann by his side and some incredible stories to share.
“It is hard to exaggerate the key role that Andy Kahmann has played in the creation, establishment and successful continued operation of the Meander,” stated regional planner Kristi Fernholz of the Upper Minnesota Valley Regional Development Commission (UMVRDC). “He has been the budgetarian in chief and the steady promotional force who has worked closely with every featured artist over the past 20 years to make the keepsake posters,” Fernolz continued. “In many ways, Andy, along with Franz Richter who passed away last December, has been the heart and soul of the Meander and we are so glad he is back in action!”
Recently, Andy’s sister Patsy Kahmann released her memoir “The House of Kahmanns” which details the story of the Kahmann family beginning with a catastrophic event that split the family apart, and where twelve kids (Andy among them) were sent to ten foster homes. Patsy will be at A to Z Letterpress printing for the three days of the Meander to sign copies of her fast-selling book. Andy will be printing a free souvenir card for everyone who stops by to see him after his two year absence from the event.
A full list of the artists and other events planned for the Meander can be found at www.artsmeander.com. To obtain a free paper copy of the brochure call 1-866-866-5432 or request one from the website. Interested arts tourists can also visit the Meander Facebook page – facebook.com/MeanderArtCrawl – for more details.
The Meander is organized by the UMVRDC which works with local governments and helps implement programs in the region that stretch across city and county boundaries. Started in 2004 by a collective of local artists to spur economic development and showcase the region’s arts scene, the Meander draws more than 2500 visitors each year to Chippewa, Big Stone, Swift, Yellow Medicine, and Lac qui Parle Counties. Its name originates both from the region’s many rivers— and from the fact that the local and national attendees are encouraged to spend the weekend, well, meandering from studio to studio with family and friends.