Gallery documents overlooked pedestrian experience

Everyone warned me about my feet, artist and non-fiction author Andy Sturdevant said as he
described his on-foot journey from Minneapolis to Northfield a two day trek that served as
inspiration for Flaten Art Museums latest gallery opening, The Via Northfield. Like, wear good
socks, wear good shoes. What they did not tell me was about underwear. I wore a pair of boxer
briefs. If I was doing it again, I would wear some of the really futuristic space underwear that
people have sometimes when they run marathons or bicycle long distances.
Sturdevants remarks at the gallery opening on Friday, Feb. 19 although comical reminded
show-goers of the rarity of the pedestrian experience and the unpreparedness society faces with a
low-tempo life. In a motor-paced society, The Via Northfield reasserts the beauty available within
an on-foot adventure.
It was kind of a mystical experience really. When youre out on dirt roads, and youre dressed in
regular street clothes, theres really no context for being out there. Youre so used to experiencing
that part of the world from a car, Sturdevant said.
To just walk through it and have this waving undulation of wheat fields and corn fields all
around you is a really surreal experience. Its almost like being at sea, because you are just
surrounded by this enormity, this scale that is so outside the context of what you understand
walking down a sidewalk.
Collecting Sturdevants experiences as a pedestrian along one of Dakota Countrys oldest paths
Pilot Knob Road The Via Northfield functions as an immersive, interactive archive.
Photographs, interviews and infographics guide the viewer through a linear map of the route,
allowing the exhibit to function in what Studevant deems a mid-range regional history
museum.
In an unassuming way, The Via Northfield harnesses the author-artists natural talent for
developing narrative by blending the disciplines of writing and content visualization. Although
information is displayed graphically, the exhibit beckons viewers to follow the artists path
linearly from start to finish, making it one of Flatens most reading-intensive exhibits in recent
years.

I think Andy commits this full power of attention to the work he makes as an artist and a
writer, Flaten Art Museum Director Jane Becker Nelson said. We see it here in the
photographs of the surface textures under his feet he walked over forty miles, we see it in the
careful listening of his interview subjects, and we see it in the quirky ephemera that he unearthed
in regional newspapers, archives and historical societies.
In addition to blending media, The Via Northfield also blends time periods. I think one of the
strongest elements of the show was the dual temporal aspect, Josh Torkelson 17 said. It had
this very contemporary approach with the photos of it now and the interviews of people now, but
it also had a historical approach. I think a lot of art these days, people are looking back at their
roots and finding connections to the past. I think that was one of my favorite things about the
show: it brought together past and present.
Although Sturdevant uses his personal journey as the backbone of the project, the interviews the
artist conducted during and after his pilgrimage drive the exhibit and broaden the projects scope.
The idea of talking to some people that had experiences as pedestrians along this path was a way
to unlock what we typically think of as a pretty unremarkable part of the state, Sturdevant said.
Students and community members can experience The Via Northfield in Flaten Art Museum
until the exhibits close on April 17.
To continue his exploration of history, place and memory, Sturdevant will also host an artist-led
walk from Flaten Art Museum to Waterford Township on Saturday, April 16. The six-mile walk
will begin promptly at 11:00 a.m. and include food, drinks, guest speakers and a performance by
Mike Gunther. Busses will provide walkers return service to the St. Olaf College campus after
the event.