Events Calendar

Color Play: Making the world a little more rainbow

bernie & zuzu's residence term at Pinney Library Studio: February 2023 - August 2023

bernie & zuzu's in-Studio work time: Thursdays from 12-2 pm

bernie & zuzu's drop-in open studio time: Thursdays from 2-4 pm at Pinney Library

bernie & zuzu wants you to come make the world a little more rainbow! Bernie invites the Madison community to explore color at weekly open studios and drop-in art making sessions that focus on color, shape, and mark-making in abstraction through the mediums of drawing, collage, block printing, stenciling, screen printing and painting. Throughout the residency, Bernie will invite the community to assist her with making the art studio into an installation and exhibition space that explodes with color: a rainbow room! Come play and be part of the fun!

bernie & zuzu is named for Bernie Witzack (she/her, a human) who is the creative force behind bernie & zuzu, and the extraordinary zuzu (a cat) who takes care of the business side of things. At bernie & zuzu, we create handmade, hand-painted, and screen-printed goods in small batches. We specialize in unique, one-of-a-kind art, home goods, accessories and prints with an emphasis on bright, bold color and playful shapes. bernie & zuzu is run out of a studio in the Madison Enterprise Center and we screen print at Polka Press, Madison’s local printmaking collective. We hope our artwork and goods inspire tiny moments of beauty, wonder and joy. 

Bernie studied Studio Art at Beloit College and has been making and exhibiting her art ever since. She earned an MFA in Fine Art & Design from the University of Michigan in 2013, focusing on improvisational drawing and painting. She then went on to study graphic design at Madison College, falling in love with screen printing along the way. She was working full time as a graphic designer and pursuing her art on the side when the pandemic hit in spring 2020. She left the design field in spring 2021 to focus on her art full time, launching bernie & zuzu in fall of 2021.

You can find bernie & zuzu’s goods at the Dane County Farmer’s Market on Saturday mornings from April-October, at Little Luxuries, Hatch Art House, and Communication Madison. They also vend at local art markets such as The Eastside Winter Market, Femmestival, The Crafty Fair and the Madison Maker Markets. bernie & zuzu have an online shop at www.bernieandzuzu.com

The Madison Writing Assistance (MWA) program offers free, one-to-one writing support for community members at library branches throughout the city. Our friendly, experienced writing coaches are happy to help with writing projects across a wide range of genres, including resumes, cover letters, application essays, grant proposals, fiction writing, memoirs, and more.

Schedule an appointment online with the link below, by phone, or in person.

MWA services are made possible through generous donations from the Evjue Foundation and UW Anonymous Fund, along with administrative and program support from the UW-Madison English Department, the UW-Madison Writing Center, and our Library and neighborhood center partners.

Artist Lydia Diemer is leading three art-making events to create a collective dream book at Lakeview Library. While drawing, stamping, cutting, and pasting, we’ll explore how images, ideas, emotions, and sensations fill our daydreams and our visions of the future. Attend one or all three of the events in this creative series!  Tweens and teens are especially invited to take part in these workshops, and school-age children, families, and adults of all ages are welcome to join. 

This week's session is a chance to draw with the Lakeview Sumi Ink Club! Let’s dream of books together. Our favorite stories and new futures. This cooperative, interactive drawing club is intended for everyone, to share, converse, and create together. Everyone is invited to make a BIG drawing for the Lakeview Library with the help of artist Lydia Diemer. Plus, our drawings will be featured on special Lakeview t-shirts, posters, and in a BIG collaborative Dream Book.

Lakeview Dream Book Workshops

Find more information about the other two workshops in this series by clicking the links below

Session 1: Thursday, March 2, 4:00-6:00pm -- Dream Book: Draw with the Lakeview Sumi Ink Club! 

Session 2: Thursday, April 13, 4:00-5:30pm -- Dream Book: Decorate Shirts + Customize Posters

Session 3: Thursday, May 4, 4:00-5:30pm -- Dream Book: Starch-based Collage + Collaborative Book Workshop

The Madison Writing Assistance (MWA) program offers free, one-to-one writing support for community members at library branches throughout the city. Our friendly, experienced writing coaches are happy to help with writing projects across a wide range of genres, including resumes, cover letters, application essays, grant proposals, fiction writing, memoirs, and more.

Schedule an appointment online with the link below, by phone, or in person.

MWA services are made possible through generous donations from the Evjue Foundation and UW Anonymous Fund, along with administrative and program support from the UW-Madison English Department, the UW-Madison Writing Center, and our Library and neighborhood center partners.

Calling all teens and tweens! Join us every Thursday evening to learn more about an influential artist and make your own masterpiece to add to your very own portfolio! All supplies will be provided, so just show up and have fun! 

This week we will be learning about Jenny Holzer and her emphasis on the delivery of words. Participants will create their own word photo art piece to add to their portfolio!

Gathers most Thursday evenings! Middle and high school students can meet other aspiring authors, bounce ideas off one another, share their stories, and feel the creativity flow! Writing club is led by local author Carole Madrzak.

The Madison Writing Assistance (MWA) program offers free, one-to-one writing support for community members at library branches throughout the city. Our friendly, experienced writing coaches are happy to help with writing projects across a wide range of genres, including resumes, cover letters, application essays, grant proposals, fiction writing, memoirs, and more.

Schedule an appointment online with the link below, by phone, or in person.

MWA services are made possible through generous donations from the Evjue Foundation and UW Anonymous Fund, along with administrative and program support from the UW-Madison English Department, the UW-Madison Writing Center, and our Library and neighborhood center partners.