“Wow, this is good! I did this?” exclaims Michelle Leask, after writing a poem as part of the Consenses art project, a multi-genre game of telephone hatched by the Old Art Building in Leland. Starting with the purple glass Infinity Disk in front of the OAB, artists were invited to take inspiration from and respond to the creation of only the previous artist in the series, resulting in multiple expressions in a linear creative conversation. The show opened in July, and viewers can walk from work to work to see the multi-media series as it was created, one art form at a time. Michelle’s poem is her response to “a nice soft watercolor of flowers in a vase. The poem is called Beauty in Brokenness, because I saw so many contrasts of old and new.”
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Many a Friday night over the past decade, patrons at the Little Traverse Inn have finished their fish n chips and listened to the affable, often kilt clad owner Scotsman Graeme Leask roar out the lyrics to Donkey Riding by Great Big Sea, or Mary Mack by the Clancy Brothers, backed by whatever local band was in the house that particular Friday. Blessed with a big laugh, a soul full of poetry and music, and a gift of the gab, Graeme has nurtured the burgeoning popularity of the old inn along M-22 across from Little Traverse Lake that folks like to call Leelanau County’s living room.
Halfway between Glen Arbor and Leland along M-22, just after the Maple City turnoff, you’ll find the historic Little Traverse Inn, owned by Graeme Leask, who was born in Scotland and grew up in Ireland and England before settling in the United States in 1988. The establishment, which includes six beautifully refurbished rooms and a pub, reflects Leask’s diverse heritage, beginning with the flag that flutters in the breeze in front of the premises. On any given day, it may be Britain’s Union Jack, Ireland’s green, white and orange vertical stripes, Saint Andrew’s Cross, the national flag of Scotland—or our own Stars and Stripes.
Graeme and Judy Leask, with daughters Chelsea and Gemma, have resuscitated an old county landmark and gathering place: the Little Traverse Inn. Most recently the restaurant North, and for many years before that the Leelanau Country Inn, this cozy glass-porched B&B and eatery has, as the menu recalls, “an incredible history.”