Jon Hinkel has been a block carver and printer since the age of 10, with his primary medium the multicolor block print. All of Jon's work is created and produced at The Tight Squeek Press, which serves as both a design studio and a production shop.

Jon's work has always been narrative-oriented, combining figurative, landscape and still-life elements based on his original designs and drawings. Chosen images are refined and transferred to blocks, then hand carved or engraved. The blocks are printed by hand as proofs, with presswork often extended to produce limited edition runs.

Jon's academic foundations lie in geology and art, while his pressroom experiences were gathered as a commercial pressman and bindery worker for many years.

Peter Spooner is an artist, educator, curator and art appraiser, who is thrilled to serve on the Board of Directors at SOLCA.

He worked for 35 years as an art educator and museum curator. After leaving the Tweed Museum of Art in 2012, he opened an art appraisal business (Archive Arts, LLC) and continued teaching at local colleges. He has served on numerous boards and grant panels, including Minnesota State Arts Board, Illinois Arts Council, Jerome Foundation, Duluth Public Library, Arrowhead Regional Arts Council, The Artists Fund and the Duluth Public Arts Commission. Peter and his family have enjoyed living in Duluth's Lakeside neighborhood since 1992.

Susanna Gaunt is an award-winning mixed-media installation artist and instructor living in Duluth. Using mediums such as weaving, photography, embroidery and collage, she analyzes the human condition through a philosophical and scientific lens. Inspired by historic European curiosity cabinets, natural history museums and personal specimen collections, she tangles human anatomy with animal taxonomy, creating works that encourage curiosity and reflection.

Susanna holds a BFA in Painting, Drawing and Printmaking from U of M Duluth and a BA in Philosophy from Boston College. Her work has been shown in solo and juried shows throughout the region. She taught photography for 10 years at Rocky Mountain School of Photography and currently runs the Youth Photography Club at Duluth Art Institute. She looks forward to additional teaching opportunities and engaging more with community through the Spirit of the Lake Community Arts.

Alison Aune is an artist and art educator. She was raised in Amherst, Massachusetts and later her Minnesota-Nordic roots drew her to Duluth in 1985, where she earned her MA in painting at the University of Minnesota Duluth. After working on her PhD at Ohio University and in Norway, she returned to Duluth and in 1991 she was hired as the Education Coordinator at the Tweed Museum of Art.

Since 1999, Aune has been the area chair and professor of Art Education at UMD, where she develops museum and community learning opportunities to promote meaningful art engagement for all ages. She is active at Spirit of the Lake in providing creative art experiences for children.

Theresa Hornstein is a retired biology teacher who now runs a small artisanal business, Grey Lady Designs.

She is the president of the Nice Girls of the North Arts Cooperative and teaches classes in natural dyes, felting, crochet, knitting, embroidery, and upcycling.

Maddi Frick is a crafter, gardener and copyright licensing professional living in Duluth, MN since 2022. While she grew up in Grand Rapids, MN, she’s lived in Los Angeles, Denver and the Twin Cities primarily working in the music industry.

Maddi is a UMN Extension Master Gardener volunteer and a member of the Guild of Music Supervisors, the California Copyright Conference and MN Women in Film & Television. She lives in Lakeside with her husband, dog and cats.