Beth Skogen Beth Skogen Photography
Filmmakers Richard Bock (from left) and Steve Tyska interview Kevin Schaefer and Tom Ferrella.
For more than 20 years, Tom Ferrella and Kevin Schaefer have hosted a weekly Thursday night jam session in their space at Winnebago Studios. Founding members of a free-form music collective called the Earthboys, the recurring collaborations represent an ongoing piece of performance art — musicians are invited to drop by and spend the evening creating and recording improvised soundscapes. Over the years, the Earthboys have recorded thousands of tracks, each one representing a unique moment in time.
“Ninety-nine percent of the time, there’s someone here on Thursdays,” Ferrella says. “Some people come to listen, some people come to play.”
But on a recent Thursday night, Ferrella and Schaefer were in the studio taking part in a different kind of recording project — a documentary about Winnebago Studios and the community of multidisciplinary artists who work there. The project, from filmmakers Steve Tyska of Madison and Richard Bock of Viroqua, aims to highlight the Madison landmark and the creative ecosystem it has incubated before the building is torn down this spring and redeveloped into a cohousing community.
Tyska, a local physician and musician who has a shared space at Winnebago Studios, had long wanted to make a documentary about his studiomate, photographer Eric Bailles. But when Tyska learned about landlord Accipiter Properties’ plan for the building, he expanded his idea. “With Winnebago Studios closing, it occurred to me that everyone I’ve met in the studio is an amazing artist in their own right,” Tyska says. “I knew that this is a moment in time that we need to capture.”
So far, Tyska has interviewed on camera seven of Winnebago Studio’s 17 resident artists; he hopes to include as many artists as possible in the project. The theme of the documentary is still emerging, but several narratives have emerged — the distinction between professional artists and hobbyists, the role of incorporating “unintentional events” into artwork, the history of the community. Tyska plans to complete the documentary in time to submit it for the 2019 Wisconsin Film Festival.
One of the artists appearing in the documentary is Angela Richardson, an interdisciplinary artist who moved into Winnebago Studios in 1999. She remembers when a group of artists decided to hang the sign on the front of the building. “I think it was 2002,” she says. “We got together and said, ‘Hey, let’s let folks know we’re here.’” Once the sign was up, Richardson says the studio started opening its doors to the public more often, participating in citywide gallery nights and hosting its own art shows and sales.
Like many others, Richardson is sad to see Winnebago Studios go. But she’s pleased that the new development, Winnebago Arts and Cohousing, has the potential to include some of the Winnebago Studios artists. In addition to 45 private residences and common spaces, the proposed design will likely include 10 artist studios. Richardson hopes to have a space in the new development, and she sees the project as a model that could be replicated elsewhere in Madison.
“We have to be thoughtful, as a city, about how we are going to make sure artists still have space here in Madison as development continues and accelerates,” she says. “Mixed-use spaces could include artist studios in the mix. I think the economics could work.”
On Friday, March 16, from 6-9 p.m., Winnebago Studios will open its doors to the public for the last time. Ceramic artist Rachelle Miller is helping coordinate the goodbye party, which will feature live music, refreshments, art on display — and probably a few tears. “I’m really, really sad about the whole thing,” says Miller, who has been at Winnebago Studios for 14 years. “I’ve kind of compared it to mourning the loss of a good friend.”
Miller plans to move her studio into her basement while she searches for new studio space to rent. But she’s had trouble finding something affordable that fits her needs. “This town is so quick to build office spaces, but there is nothing for artists,” she says.
Beyond the artists telling their stories via interviews, the film will use visual storytelling and showcase as much artwork as possible. Tyska hopes the project will inspire viewers to create art of their own and also shine a light on the need for artistic communities in Madison. Says Tyska: “We’re losing something that’s getting harder and harder to come by.”
