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Blanchardville Public Library to hold back-to-back events
book shelves
A large weeding and re-organization project at the Johnson Public Library has resulted in more shelf space and a more attractive organization of the books and other items in the collection. -Photo by Tallitha Reese

BLANCHARDVILLE — The Blanchardville Public Library, 208 Mason Street, will hold back-to-back programs by author Michael Cooney on Thursday, Oct. 9.

At 10 a.m. is “Exploring With a Pilgrim’s Heart”.

This book documents 186 sacred sites, from internationally known shrines, ethnic roadside chapels, hunter shrines to backyard chapels the author searched Wisconsin to locate and document their history, capture their beauty and to encourage the reader to visit and experience for themselves.

Then at 11 a.m., it’s “Wisconsin Man Art: Big, Bold, Outsider Art Movements”, a celebration of Wisconsin artistry. Featuring 44 Wisconsin artists, this book captures a wide spectrum of creative expression from raw, primitive charm to polished, refined mastery. United by curiosity and bold imagination, each artist invites you into a world shaped by the questions: What if? Why not? What else is possible? A joyful tribute to creativity in all its forms.

Michael J. Cooney is a lifelong storyteller with a camera in one hand and a notepad in the other.

After more than 40 years as a TV commercial producer/director and trade publication editor, he’s now fully immersed in an encore career as a photographer, teacher, and writer. His writing and photography center on the people and places that shape everyday life — always with an eye for the overlooked and the quietly extraordinary.

He now lives in Oshkosh.