Michigan Museum Bar

Description: Acrylics on Canvas.

Size: 30″ tall x 24″ wide Unframed.

About: This painting is inspired by a photo I found in the Library of Congress (LoC). I don’t usually use other people's pictures for my art, but I couldn’t pass this one up. The original photo is by John Margolies from his collection Roadside America. To make sure I wasn’t facing a licensing issue, I contacted the LoC to verify that the image is available for creative use, and luckily, it is.

The building was the Bildo’s Museum Bar, located in Daggett, Michigan. Daggett is located in the Upper Peninsula, with a population of just over 200 people. During its heyday, it was a logging community.

I hadn't heard of a museum bar before. It’s hard to find a single definition, but they seem to be places that serve liquor and food, and either art, oddities, or both! They still exist, although the Bildo’s Museum Bar is long gone. It had a collection of wooden carvings and matchbooks. I suspect the totem poles near the door are a sample of the collection.

The graffiti from a passing train in Kokomo, Indiana. Train graffiti can be beautiful. The graffiti I used in the piece I adapted was meant to enhance a Native American art feeling and reflect the totems.