An Art-Full Life

A handful of Art Thell’s watercolor paintings adorn the hallways, rooms and stairwell of his home in Inver Grove Heights, while even more pictures are stored in the closet of his painting room.

But one of Thell’s best pieces—a painting of his father leading pigs through the snow at Thell’s family farm in rural Minnesota—is nowhere to be found.

That’s because the painting, entitled “Snowstorm,” is one of a handful of pieces currently hanging in an exhibition at the Dakota County Western Services Center. Thell, a lifelong artist, is among 26 area residents whose artistic work was selected earlier this year for the juried exhibition, called “Portraits, Reflections and Secrets of Dakota County.”

Thell’s first encounter with the arts happened while he was a student learning in a one-room schoolhouse in rural Minnesota. Every Thursday, Thell remembers, his teacher would break out the art supplies and teach students to draw, embroider and make papier-mâché sculptures.

Since then, Thell’s focus has turned to watercolor painting—a medium he prefers because it is more demanding.

“I’ve always been fascinated with watercolor, because you can’t cover up, you can’t change things,” Thell said. “You can’t hide your mistakes.”

Like many of Thell’s paintings, “Snowstorm” is drawn from Thell’s incredibly robust memory of his childhood near Freeport in western Minnesota. Often in the winter, Thell said, his father would let the pigs out before he went about his morning chores. The herd of hogs, Thell remembered with a grin, would follow the farmer around, dredging a path through the snow so that Thell’s father wouldn’t have to shovel.

Thell painted the piece on a whim, and when the Dakota County Public Art Citizen Advisory Committee officials contacted him earlier this year, he decided to submit “Snowstorm” to the exhibition.

This is the first year of the competition and exhibition, according to a press release issued by Dakota County. Artists' submissions were reviewed by the committee with the Dakota County Board of Commissioners, which made the final decision as to what pieces to display.

The exhibit is located in the hallway between the Dakota County Galaxie Library and the Western Service Center atrium in Apple Valley.  Viewing hours are 7:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Mondays, 7:30 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. on Tuesdays through Thursdays and 7:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Friday. The work will be on display until Dec. 22.

In addition to painting, Thell is also a skilled woodworker and ham radio enthusiast. Art, he said, engages his creative side, keeps him active and helps open his mind to the world.

It’s also an escape for Thell, according to his wife, Mirriam Thell.

"His talents for fixing things, for putting things together, for woodwork, for art…I’ve never seen so much talent in one human being," Mirriam said.

"I wish a little bit of it had come my way," she added, laughing.