Another art-filled day!  Once the sun broke through, we were treated with a wonderful view of the Kaleva Bottle House and visit with self-taught artist, Joe McCuaig. 

Kaleva Bottle House—John Jacob Makinen, Sr.

1871-1942

14551 Wuoski Avenue

Kaleva, Michigan

Completed: 1941 (he died before he could move in)

With over 60,000 bottles laid on their sides, Finland native John J. Makinen, Sr. built his home with "rejected "bottles from his own company, The Northwestern Bottling Works.  Legend has it that he also coined the term "POP", an onomatopeia of the sound that the cork would make when it flew off the soft drinks.

Joe McCuaig, self-taught painter and sculptor

Copemish, Michigan

We had met Joe a few years ago at the Slotin Folk Fest in Atlanta, and although I remembered his brightly colored paintings and signs, I didn't really remember his cleverly crafted sculptures. So today was a great treat. We spent the late afternoon with Joe and his wife Sharon at their home in Copemish, looking at art, swapping stories, and hunting for morel mushrooms.