MUSKEGON, Mich —
COVID-19 restricts are the reason a number of annual indoor holiday events have been canceled, including the Muskegon Museum of Art's long-running Festival of Trees.
"Festival of Trees has been going on for 15 years," said Catherine Mott, Muskegon Museum of Art Assistant Director. "It was a wonderful event, in light of everything that's going on we've had to flip the script."
For the MMA, flipping the script means asking the same artists and decorators to put their efforts into turning wreaths into works of art.
Those works will be on display in the windows of downtown Muskegon businesses and organizations from Nov. 24 to Dec. 6, 2020.
"We give them free reigns," said Mott. "There are 43 wreaths, I had hopes for 20 and it just kept growing and growing."
Mott hopes the wreaths encourage people to walk around the downtown, and visit the small business in the community, many negatively impacted by COVID-19.
The wreaths and other holiday decorations on display inside a small MMA gallery can all be viewed online. And a walking map is accessible via a QR code printed on signage placed in the downtown.
The Festival of Trees is the MMA's second largest fundraiser. Most of the items included in the Wreath Walk will be sold in an online auction.
On Saturday, Nov. 28 (Small Business Saturday), the MMA will host a Hot Cocoa Hop, serving free hot cocoa in the MMA parking lot from 1 to 4 p.m. The event includes a food drive with canned good donations redeemable for a free museum admission pass.
The MMA is located at 296 W. Webster Ave., in downtown Muskegon. Visit muskegonartmuseum.org for more information.
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