Ernest Hüpeden's Painted Forest

05/30/2026

Programs & Events

05/29/2026

The Women of Ernest Hüpeden’s Painted Forest

There are two women who were vitally important to the Ernest Hupeden’s Painted Forest. It is safe to say that without Norma Gibeaut Mortimer and Dolores Nash, we would not have the Ernest Hupeden’s Painted Forest.

Both women loved their time as caretakers of the Ernest Hupeden’s Painted Forest.

Richard Wallenahl writes:
“My aunt Norma Gibeault Mortimer took pride in her time of stewardship of the hall.”

Brenda Reisdorph writes:
“If it were not for Ronald and Dolores Nash, the building would not have been preserved as well as it was. Incidentally, they had their wedding reception there as well. Their generosity made the gift to the community possible, and for many years they hosted wonderful community events before the Kohler Foundation took over to continue the legacy that they saw promise in. Their part needs to be told and remembered.”

We agree completely.

Modern Woodmen fraternal activities at Camp 6190 had largely ceased by the late 1920s, due in part to the degrading economy and in part to the growing ability of people to purchase life insurance directly from the company without belonging to the fraternity. Although MWA Camp 6190 was officially decommissioned on August 7, 1958, ownership of Wood Hall, and stewardship of the interior murals painted by Ernest Hüpeden, had already been transferred to the care of Charles Gibeault on February 11, 1947. Charles, and later his daughter Norma Gibeault Mortimer, cared for the hall for many years. After Charles’s passing, stewardship transferred to Norma alone on June 10, 1963.

On November 3, 1966, care of the hall passed to Dolores and Ron Nash. It was Dolores who gave Wood Hall the name “The Painted Forest.” She and Ron cared for the hall for another 24 years. On November 4, 1990, stewardship passed again — this time to the Kohler Foundation.

Without these women, Ernest Hüpeden’s Painted Forest would have been lost. Norma and Dolores both cared deeply, and their stewardship deserves to be remembered and honored.

We would love to learn more about their relationship with MWA Camp 6190 Hall and their years of care for this remarkable art environment. Did you know Norma or Dolores? Do you remember attending events at the hall? Did your family talk about them? Please reach out. We want to hear your memories.

Sometime between the 1950s and early 1960s, the original painted ceiling fell. As we approach another round of restoration, we are especially hoping to find old photographs of events held during Norma’s or Dolores’s stewardship — photographs that might offer even a glimpse of the original ceiling.

Before the Painted Forest was widely recognized as a cultural treasure, Norma and Dolores kept it protected with love. We want to know more about that history. Please reach out.

05/29/2026

It's the second Full Moon of May and is sometimes called a "Blue Moon". Head out the next three nights and enjoy the view!
💙🌕 Fri 7:30pm Moonrise (SE) 98% Full
💙🌕 Sat 4:25am Moonset (SW) 99% Full
💙🌕Sat 8:30pm Moonrise (SE) 100% Full
💙🌕 Sun 5:05am Moonset (SW) 100% Full
💙🌕 Sun 9:30pm Moonrise (SE) 99% Full
Times are CDT for Driftless Area of WI/MN/IA/IL. Hope you'll share your pix. Last "Blue Moon" was Aug 2023 and the next will be Dec 2028. Painting by Apollo 12 astronaut Alan Bean--4th human (and only artist) to walk on the Moon.

05/29/2026

Salomania Reigns!
One of the remarkable things about Ernest Hüpeden is how clearly the world around him appears in his art. His current events, now our history, are embedded in his artwork. At the Ernest Hüpeden’s Painted Forest, his 1898 curtain painting of the 1896 Battle of Manila, is one such example.

Recently, Lynne Adele, author of "As Above, So Below", forwarded a newspaper clipping to David Wells, director of Ernest Hüpeden’s Painted Forest. It was the front-page article from the La Crosse Tribune, dated September 27, 1909, reporting that Ernest Hüpeden had been arrested for risqué drawings of Salome.

The article is a report of another example of Ernest Hüpeden’s use of current events in his work, albeit an ephemeral art form this time – sketches of Salome.

In the late 1890s and early 1900s, the world became obsessed with the biblical story of Salome and John the Baptist after Oscar Wilde’s controversial 1891 play Salomé and Richard Strauss’s 1905 opera adaptation were produced. It was a global phenomenon. Both the play and the opera featured revealing costumes, the “Dance of the Seven Veils,” and sparked an international fascination with theatrical spectacle, exoticism, and scandal - Salomania reigned.

The short clipping also gives us insight into Ernest Hüpeden. According to the paper, he arrived in La Crosse by hopping a freight train, no ticket for him, then amused himself by sketching images of Salome with less clothes than the actresses’ images in exchange for food and drink. Considering the revealing costumes associated with Salome actresses of the era, those drawings must have been very striking.

While the City of La Crosse was very concerned with morality and obscenity in the early 1900s, there is something in this short article worth reflecting on. Thirty days is a steep penalty for vagrancy, which is the actual arrest charge. La Crosse had (and continues to have) a strong history of caring for the unhoused. (Today, the unhoused are welcome at the public library where they receive food and assistance.) The question is: Was the thirty days a welfare check? Ernest Hupeden did not have much on his person at the time of his arrest. The police blotter from 1909 lists his possessions as: Glasses, Knife, Book, Stuff. We learned he wore glasses and carried a weapon.

There is a contradiction at the heart of Ernest Hüpeden’s story: Ernest Hüpeden was an intelligent and culturally aware man who understood theatrical spectacle, panoramic painting, popular illustration, and how to harness the power of current events in his artwork, yet he also lived a transient life outside many of the traditional expectations. This is something worthy of reflection.

You can expect more reflections on Ernest Hüpeden, the man and the artist, as Lisa Buttonow, Ernest Hüpeden’s Painted Forest docent and owner of the Branding Iron Roadhouse Farm-to-Fork Eatery in Lime Ridge, WI, continues researching Ernest Hüpeden’s life and shares her findings with us.

*** Interested in Salome?!

Salomé: A Tragedy in One Act: Classic One Act Play By Oscar Wilde (Annotated) Paperback – November 29, 2022
by Oscar Wilde (Author), Lord Alfred Douglas (Translator)
https://amzn.to/49Vu1La

***Reprint of the 1906 Edition
Salome: A Drama In One Act... Paperback – February 28, 2012
by Richard Strauss (Author), Oscar Wilde (Author)
https://amzn.to/4u7emQ1

Salome continues to inspire. Here are a couple of links to interesting articles:

“How a scandalous Jewish no-goodnik captured the imagination of the world 8/4/2023

https://forward.com/culture/556509/salome-jewish-figure-oscar-wilde-salomania-dance-of-the-seven-veils/

Reclaiming Salome as seductress, murderess and misunderstood Jew 10/13/2020
https://forward.com/culture/music/456360/salome-john-the-baptist-jewish-poetry-adeena-karasick-frank-london-klezmer/

*** Interested in Fraternal Art and History? Read “As Above, So Below” by Lynne Adele & Bruce Lee Webb
https://amzn.to/4u0j6Hm

*** Then of course, there is Tom Robbins Classic “Skinny Legs & All” with its unforgettable description of the Dance of Seven Veils.
https://amzn.to/49vYGP8

05/27/2026

On Sunday, May 31, artist Guadalupe Maravilla will fill the Arts Center with gongs and conch shells, bathing the participants with healing sounds in a free experience inspired by Indigenous healing practices. Participation is free.

Two sessions are available:
• 11:00 a.m. – Open to the public
• 1:00 p.m. – Intended for people impacted by cancer, including those in treatment, survivors, caregivers, and family members.

Special encounters like these are made possible through the generosity of supporters who make it possible for everyone to experience the healing connections between art, the body, and the mind.

If you’d like to help make programs like this accessible to all, please donate today.
➜ https://www.jmkac.org/join-give/

📸: Sound Ceremony with artist Guadalupe Maravilla at The Contemporary Austin, 2024. Image courtesy The Contemporary Austin. Photo: Brian Fitzsimmons.

05/27/2026

The link to register for our Owl class is Live! Build a home for an Owl. See our events page for details!

Most people hear an owl long before they see one. A single deep hoot from somewhere in the dark, and imagination fills in the rest — big, fierce, always one shape.

Then a saw-whet drops onto a low branch at eye level. It is smaller than a robin. The head looks too big for the body. The yellow eyes don't blink.

Across North America, owls run from seven inches to almost three feet. Same family, nearly five times the size range. A Great Gray's wingspan is wider than a couch. A saw-whet weighs less than a hamster.

What unites them isn't size. It's the engineering. The flat face is a parabolic dish that funnels sound toward the ears. The leading edge of each flight feather carries a fine comb that breaks up turbulence before it can make noise. And the smaller ones don't excavate their own homes — they move into the cavities a pileated leaves behind. The same dead-tree address from last winter, now under new ownership.

You've stood under a hunting owl. You just didn't hear it 🌿

05/24/2026

Here is the 2025 Annual Report for the Ernest Hupeden's Painted Forest — and what a year it was! We accomplished so much in 2025, and 2026 is shaping up to be even more exciting.
Phase II — the clapboard siding replacement — is on schedule for 2026; we are officially on the contractors’ schedule.

And our summer 2026 programming is EPIC, with so many wonderful events planned to enrich, inspire, and connect our community. Check out our events page on Facebook or on our website.

See you soon!

10/17/2025

The 2025 season is complete. Thank you without typos!! We have enjoyed meeting everyone! Like our fb page for information about stage II and stage III of our restoration.