Watermark Art Center Education, Classes, & Camps
Watermark Art Center, 505 Bemidji Avenue N, Bemidji, MN 56601
About
Watermark Art Center Education, Classes, & Camps offers art classes, monthly classes and camps for kids, and Artisan adult classes. The program also includes Indigenous workshops, intercultural circles, events, performances, gallery tours, author readings, workshops, artist demonstrations, and interactive art activities.
• Schedule: Monthly classes and camps for kids
Watermark Art Center Education, Classes, & Camps is part of a non-profit, member-supported organization that encourages the growth and development of art in the community and serves as a resource for artists, art enthusiasts, art buyers, and the community as a whole. Its mission is to nurture, exhibit, and promote the visual arts. Watermark has four galleries with rotating exhibits, including a gallery reserved for Indigenous artists and dedicated space for Bemidji State University’s ceramic and print collections, and it also operates the retail gallery SHOP 505, which features high-quality, handmade treasures by regional makers. The program is part of a hub for community creativity that offers events, performances, and art classes for all skill levels throughout the year, and it is associated with pollinator and rain gardens. Many of its activities are made possible by a Minnesota State Arts Board Operating Support grant, thanks to a legislative appropriation from the arts and cultural heritage fund. Leadership for the broader organization includes Executive Director Lori Forshee-Donnay; Outreach Administrator Leah Grunzke; Interim Program Director – Miikanan Liseli Polivka; Program Director – Miikanan Gallery (on hiatus) Karen E. Goulet; Artist Liaison – Miikanan Gallery Nokomis Paiz; Art Education Program Director Jill Neumann; and Communications Director Lisa Seter. Watermark began as the Bemidji Community Arts Center, which was founded in 1982 after a merger between The Bemidji Community Arts Council, Inc. (established in 1970) and the Bemidji Art Center Association. The Bemidji Carnegie Library building, where the Bemidji Community Art Center was located, was built in 1909, added to the National Register of Historic Places on November 25, 1980, and its restoration was completed in 2019.
Last updated February 21, 2026.
• Schedule: Monthly classes and camps for kids
Watermark Art Center Education, Classes, & Camps is part of a non-profit, member-supported organization that encourages the growth and development of art in the community and serves as a resource for artists, art enthusiasts, art buyers, and the community as a whole. Its mission is to nurture, exhibit, and promote the visual arts. Watermark has four galleries with rotating exhibits, including a gallery reserved for Indigenous artists and dedicated space for Bemidji State University’s ceramic and print collections, and it also operates the retail gallery SHOP 505, which features high-quality, handmade treasures by regional makers. The program is part of a hub for community creativity that offers events, performances, and art classes for all skill levels throughout the year, and it is associated with pollinator and rain gardens. Many of its activities are made possible by a Minnesota State Arts Board Operating Support grant, thanks to a legislative appropriation from the arts and cultural heritage fund. Leadership for the broader organization includes Executive Director Lori Forshee-Donnay; Outreach Administrator Leah Grunzke; Interim Program Director – Miikanan Liseli Polivka; Program Director – Miikanan Gallery (on hiatus) Karen E. Goulet; Artist Liaison – Miikanan Gallery Nokomis Paiz; Art Education Program Director Jill Neumann; and Communications Director Lisa Seter. Watermark began as the Bemidji Community Arts Center, which was founded in 1982 after a merger between The Bemidji Community Arts Council, Inc. (established in 1970) and the Bemidji Art Center Association. The Bemidji Carnegie Library building, where the Bemidji Community Art Center was located, was built in 1909, added to the National Register of Historic Places on November 25, 1980, and its restoration was completed in 2019.
Last updated February 21, 2026.
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