Open Acoustic Jam

Bring your acoustic instruments and share techniques and talents. All levels and instruments are welcome.
Host: Jim Redmond.

2025 International Affairs Forum Full Schedule

The OAB is pleased to be a "Satellite Partner" for the International Affairs Forum, a program of Northwestern Michigan College. We will be streaming their regular programming and providing a wine reception prior to each event.

Strength and Exercise Program

This class encourages functional fitness through exercise using resistance bands for muscle strengthening and various warm-up and balance exercises.
Teacher: Jeanette Egeler.

Open Studio

Open Studio meets on Tuesdays to paint/create inside the Old Art Building. This is an opportunity to share techniques and talents with fellow artists. All levels and mediums are encouraged to participate.

Fishtown Writers’ Circle

A monthly gathering to share your writing, listen to others' works, and find inspiration.
Host: Dan Lisuk.

Afterschool Art Enrichment, K-2nd, April (Tuesdays)

SOLD OUT!

This class is all about playful art making with a focus on the process and experience of creating!
Teacher: Tracy Smedes-Hepler.

Afterschool Art Enrichment, 3rd – 5th, April (Wednesdays)

This class is all about playful art making with a focus on the process and experience of creating!
Teacher: Tracy Smedes-Hepler.

Grateful Gatherings

Join our monthly Grateful Gathering to explore inspiring ideas through meaningful conversation.
HOST: Barbara Burkhardt.

Afterschool Art Enrichment, 3rd – 5th, April (Thursdays)

This class is all about playful art making with a focus on the process and experience of creating!
Teacher: Tracy Smedes-Hepler.

Immigration in America: What the Data Really Shows

FREE COMMUNITY EVENT!

In this community talk, Bartlomiej Skorupa will share data-driven insights on what is happening in immigration today, using concrete facts to demystify a topic that is polarizing our communities.

Afterschool Art Enrichment, K-2nd, April (Mondays)

This class is all about playful art making with a focus on the process and experience of creating!
Teacher: Tracy Smedes-Hepler.

Rights of Nature: Global Movement, Indigenous Values

FREE EVENT!

The OAB is pleased to be a Satellite Partner for the International Affairs Forum.

Fleeting Moments: Ice Season

FREE EXHIBIT!

Join us for a special Earth Week Exhibit featuring the photography of Charles Aydlett. Fleeting Moments: Ice Season turns to Lake Michigan during the stretch of winter when everything is in transition—when the lake is neither fully frozen nor fully open. Ice forms, breaks, drifts, and reforms along the shoreline, creating patterns that can disappear as quickly as they arrive.

Leland Blues Album Release Party

Join Leland Blues for the Release of their Album "Man Made Rock," a creative endeavor born out of Open Jam Night at the OAB!

Afterschool Art Enrichment, K-2nd, May (Mondays)

This class is all about playful art making with a focus on the process and experience of creating!
Teacher: Tracy Smedes-Hepler.

Fishtown Writers’ Circle

A monthly gathering to share your writing, listen to others' works, and find inspiration.
Host: Dan Lisuk.

Afterschool Art Enrichment, K-2nd, May (Tuesdays)

SOLD OUT!

This class is all about playful art making with a focus on the process and experience of creating!
Teacher: Tracy Smedes-Hepler.

Afterschool Art Enrichment, 3rd – 5th, May (Wednesdays)

This class is all about playful art making with a focus on the process and experience of creating!
Teacher: Tracy Smedes-Hepler.

Afterschool Art Enrichment, 3rd – 5th, May (Thursdays)

SOLD OUT!

This class is all about playful art making with a focus on the process and experience of creating!
Teacher: Tracy Smedes-Hepler.

Grateful Gatherings

Join our monthly Grateful Gathering to explore inspiring ideas through meaningful conversation.
HOST: Barbara Burkhardt.

Metalsmithing: Beach Stone Pendant or Ring

An introductory metalsmithing workshop! Create a Lake Michigan beach stone pendant or ring.
Teacher: Janet Ryan, J Art Jewelry.

Jon Muq at the Old Art Building

For Jon Muq, a singer-songwriter born in Uganda and now living in Austin, Texas, music is part of a larger conversation he’s having with the world and everybody in it. Drawing from African as well as western musical trends and traditions, he devises songs as small gifts, designed to settle into everyday life and provoke reflection and resilience.

OAB Plein Air Painters Summer Program 2026

SOLD OUT

The OAB Plein Air Painters announces its 26^th season. Painters will meet all over the county on Wednesdays for 19 weeks of plein air painting.
Leader: Martha Elchert.

Leland Air Opening Reception & Exhibit

On Saturday, May 23, artists will paint and draw scenes around Leelanau County ‘en plein air.’ The finished fresh-off-the-easel pieces will return to the OAB for the 13th Annual Leland Air Exhibit.

Threat Multiplier: Climate, Military Leadership, and the Fight for Global Security

FREE EVENT!

The OAB is pleased to be a Satellite Partner for the International Affairs Forum.

Art of the Vineyard

NEW EXHIBITION!

In celebration of the annual Leland Wine & Food Festival, the Old Art Building is proud to present "Art of the Vineyard," a multi-media exhibition dedicated to the beauty, culture, and craftsmanship of the wine world.

Six Mile Strings

Six Mile Strings aim to expand the scope and artistry of the traditional string quartet by working with artists of many genres and across disciplines.

Music in the Air: 1000 Watt Prophets

Free Concert!

1000 Watt Prophets are a Michigan-based roots-funk powerhouse blending Americana, New Orleans groove, and soul-forward rock into a high-energy, deeply musical live experience. Featuring veteran players from the Midwest festival circuit, the band delivers songs that feel both road-worn and urgent, driven by deep pocket rhythms, rich harmonies, and a relentless commitment to the groove.

Music in the Air: Looking Forward – CSNY Tribute Band

Free Concert!

Looking Forward came into focus to celebrate the musical genius of Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young. Never with the intent of playing their songs “note for note,” rather the concept is to share the music in concert with the audience–their music, our way.

Music in the Air: Kyle Brown & The Human Condition

Free Concert!

Kyle Brown is a singer/songwriter based out of west Michigan. For over a decade Kyle has been honing his craft in clubs and barrooms throughout the Midwest. His band, The Human Condition, consists of Nina Sofia (Vocals & Guitar), Mike Schertenlieb (Drums), Kosta Karis (Bass), and Mikey Olsen (Keys).

Artists’ Market 2026

The 28th annual market will offer over 70 booths of fine art from artists and makers around the state.

Warren & Flick

Warren & Flick's music reflects their wide-ranging influences and shared curiosity. They spend much of their time composing, arranging, and performing together—crafting pieces that balance clarity and complexity, familiarity and surprise.

Art Leelanau 2026 Exhibition & Benefit

Join us for the 34th Annual Art Leelanau Exhibition. This show features work from invited artists who reside in or have strong connections to the Leelanau area.

Music in the Air: Elizabeth Landry Trio

Free Concert!

Touring nationally and playing many well known theaters, breweries, festivals and venues. Elizabeth can be seen playing with her trio including Caul Bluhm and Joe Wilson. You are sure to get lost in Elizabeth’s sweet, smoky melodies, and storytelling lyrics.

Music in the Air: Zach Watson & Co.

Free Concert!

The OAB is happy to welcome Zach Watson & Co., bringing a raw mix of folk, blues, and soul that reminds you why live music matters.

Finding Beauty & Light: A Gayle Kabaker Exhibit

Finding Beauty and Light explores Gayle’s love of painting and her search for the common thread of beauty in everyday moments. Whether in a sun-dappled face, a flapping clothesline, sparkles on a wave, or simple nudes, she finds a way to hold the moment in paint.
Instructor: Gayle Kabaker.

Anyone Can Sketch: with Gayle Kabaker

Gayle will lead participants through a series of fun, low-pressure warm-up exercises designed to train the eye to really see what you want to draw. The workshop continues with drawing from a simple still life, focusing on interpretation rather than accuracy—encouraging each participant to draw in a way that feels natural, playful, and enjoyable.
Instructor: Gayle Kabaker.

Family Workshop: Let’s Draw Monsters! with Gayle Kabaker

Inspired by the sketchbook practice Gayle shares with her five-year-old granddaughter—whose favorite subject is monsters—participants will explore imaginative drawing of monsters or whatever else they are inspired to draw.
Instructor: Gayle Kabaker.

Music in the Air: A.S. Lutes

Free Concert!

Having previously spent a decade as the lead singer and principal songwriter of Brooklyn, NY indie-pop band The Stationary Set, Andrew Lutes relocated back to his northern Michigan birthplace in 2016 to pursue a more quiet existence set to the backdrop of NoMi's natural amenities.

Perfectly Imperfect: A Full-Day Painting & Drawing Workshop with Gayle Kabaker

Spend the day painting and drawing for fun in this relaxed, creative workshop. Participants will draw and paint from a still life and from what’s around them, learning to observe the world with fresh eyes. Gayle will guide you in developing a fun and sustainable sketchbook practice, showing how to draw and paint not only what you see, but how to interpret it—transforming observation into something expressive, playful, and uniquely your own.
Instructor: Gayle Kabaker.

Clothesline Art Show & Sale

This outdoor show will feature original work from our 2026 OAB Plein Air Artists group. Stop by the front lawn to view their beautiful paintings from around Leelanau County!

Music in the Air: A to Z

Free Concert!

Audrey Mason and Zinnia Dungjen, both multi-faceted instrumentalists and vocalists, are a young local talent going by the name A to Z. Having met at their current high school, Interlochen Arts Academy where they study songwriting, the young women have been playing around Northern Michigan together for two years now.

The Rebel Eves

Cultivating moments of vulnerability, laughter, original songs, and incredible 3-part harmonies in their shows, The Rebel Eves can promise you will walk away feeling inspired, connected, and hopeful.

OAB 2026 Member Exhibit

Our annual member exhibit, showcasing work from our OAB Member Artists.