Local Artist Brings Copper Bowl Workshop to Porcupine Mountains Folk School Sept. 17

Join the Michigan Department of Natural Resources at the Porcupine Mountains Folk School from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 17, as Keweenaw area artist and gallery owner Ed Gray teaches students how to make and decorate a copper bowl using the ancient methods passed down from his ancestors.

Working in copper is part of Gray’s heritage. Thousands of years ago the Anishinabe, American Indians living in the Upper Peninsula, discovered outcroppings of a very pure form of copper and forged tools from the metal to fit their needs. Evidence of the ancestral work is found in tools, pits, and burial sites preserved by their descendants. Gray comes from such a heritage; his grandfather was a copper worker.

Workshop participants will form a copper bowl using primitive tools. The copper bowl will be annealed by fire until the forming process is completed. The bowls, which measure approximately six inches in diameter, will be embellished with beads and found objects.

Cost of the class is $95 per person. The Folk School is located next to Union Bay Campground, about four miles west of Silver City, on Engineers Memorial Highway 107.

Pre-registration is required and can be done by calling Beth Allen, weekdays at 906-884-4188.

The instructor and artist owns and manages the Ed Gray Studio and Gallery in the historic Vertin Building in downtown Calumet and publishes the Miskwabik Press, a periodical featuring various artists' works. For details about Ed Gray and his art, visit www.edgraystudio.com.

Friends of the Porkies, a non-profit organization dedicated to enhancing the visitor’s experience and educational experience in the Porcupine Mountains Wilderness State Park, sponsors the Folk School and its classes. Discover more about the Friends and its programs by visiting the web site www.porkies.org.

The Recreation Passport has replaced motor vehicle permits for entry into Michigan state parks, recreation areas and state-administered boating access fee sites. This new way to fund Michigan's outdoor recreation opportunities also helps to preserve state forest campgrounds, trails, and historic and cultural sites in state parks, and provides park development grants to local communities.

Michigan residents can purchase the Recreation Passport ($10 for motor vehicles; $5 for motorcycles) by checking "YES" on their license plate renewal forms, or at any state park or recreation area. Nonresident motor vehicles must still display a valid nonresident Recreation Passport ($29 annual; $8 daily) to enter a Michigan state park, recreation area or state-administered boating access fee site; these can be purchased at any state park or recreation area, or through the Michigan e-Store at www.michigan.gov/estore. To learn more about the Recreation Passport, visit www.michigan.gov/recreationpassport or call 517-241-7275.