Join us in celebrating the work of our 2026-2027 Artist in Residence Mietzi “Marie” Bleck on July 2 from 4pm-6pm. Light snacks and drinks will be provided and no advanced registration is required; all are welcome to attend. Thanks to a sponsorship by the Friends of the Mercer Library, the Artist in Residence program is free for all who wish to participate and enjoy our local artists’ work. For questions or additional details, please contact the Library at 715-476-2366.

Prints by Bleck have hung in the library since 1937 when they were donated by the Mercer Women’s Civic Club. With 89 years of history, the Mercer Library is proud to recognize her importance to Mercer history and welcome her home.

In the hope of honoring her art, life, and service to our country, several of her works will be prominently displayed at the Mercer Public Library, including the addition of three new block prints. The legacy that Bleck has left through her depictions of life in 1930s Mercer has survived long after its initial creation.

A multi-modal artist, Bleck worked with linoleum cuts, paints, sketches, and wrote poetry. Block prints that hang in the Library were made as a part of the federal Works Progress Administration’s (WPA) efforts to employ artists to beautify and enhance public spaces. Most of her work was inspired by her time in Mercer and Northern Wisconsin. She truly fulfilled the mission of the WPA in bringing art to our community and representing life in Mercer at the time.

Born in Oshkosh, Mietzi Bleck lived most of her life in Mercer including as a teacher during the 1937-1938 academic year. She was the head of the Art Department of Oshkosh High School before joining the Navy’s WAVES program, becoming a Aerographers Mate, and moving to Palmer, Alaska. After contracting an illness, Bleck returned to Milwaukee, where she ultimately succumbed, having lived a full, yet short life.