Governor's Invitational Exhibit U.P. artists featured in governor’s exhibit From January through June, Governor Jennifer Granholm’s executive offices in Lansing will be graced with artwork from the Upper Peninsula. The William Bonifas Fine Arts Center in Escanaba has developed this traveling exhibit, which features nineteen Upper Peninsula artists selected from the center’s tenth annual ?Northern Exposure? juried show in November. The public is invited to meet the artists at a send-off reception at the Bonifas Arts Center on Friday, January 16 from 7 to 9 p.m. ArtServ Michigan, an arts and cultural education advocacy group, invited eight Michigan arts organizations to represent the artists of their region through a series of six-month displays in the governor’s offices from 2003 through 2010. The Bonifas Arts Center’s Upper Peninsula exhibit, titled "Superior States: The Governor’s Invitational Show," is the second regional exhibit to be presented. Although the exhibit will not be available for public viewing, it will serve as a backdrop for the daily activities of the governor and her cabinet members, advisors and guests. "We hope this exhibit serves as a reminder to the policy makers as they look at funding," says Bonifas Arts Center Gallery and Education Director Pasqua Warstler. "We hope itreminds them of how integral the arts are to the politics at hand, such as new initiatives like ‘Cool Cities.’ It’s an elegant and practical way to make U.P. citizens and communities visible at the Capitol." Artists selected for “Superior States” are Thomas Cappuccio of Marquette, Ingrid Cline of Gladstone, Kathleen Conover of Marquette, Anna Culik of Marquette, Linda Ferguson of Munising, Martha Fieber of Manistique, John Gustafson of Gladstone, Elizabeth Holster of Iron Mountain, John Hubbard of Marquette, Connie Kerkove of Ironwood, Joyce Koskenmaki of Hancock, Toni Johnson Mendina of Iron Mountain, Elaine Pakonen-Luedtke of Bessemer, Ambrose Peshlakai of Escanaba, Wayne Platek of Escanaba, Sue Robishaw of Cooks, Steve Schmeck of Cooks, James Thatcher of Negaunee and Pasqua Warstler of Escanaba. Logistical support for this exhibit was donated by Bramco Containers of Gladstone and Andex Industries of Escanaba.