Barn-storming

Art and old barns aren’t a particularly common pairing, but this weekend both are celebrated in Oregon, Wisconsin in at a space as unique as the art inside. Housed in a repurposed century-old barn, The Wood Cycle, a Wisconsin-based furniture and cabinet-maker, puts on an annual weekend called “ArtS in the BarnS.” The event includes the Hayloft Gallery Art Fair, an exhibition of wood furniture, paintings, drawings, glass and ceramic sculptures, and photography from more than 30 regional artists from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday, June 16, and Sunday, June 17; free admission. At another barn roughly a five-minute drive away in Fitchburg, a benefit concert is scheduled for 7 p.m. on Saturday, June 16, featuring alt-country crooner Willy Porter (How To Rob a Bank) and Nelson Graham, an acoustic singer/songwriter. Bring your own lawn chair or sit on provided hay bales; the suggested donation for the benefit concert is $20.

GO ArtS in the BarnS at The Wood Cycle, 1239 S. Fish Hatchery Rd., Oregon, Wisconsin. Concerts at 5729 Adams Rd., Fitchburg, Wisconsin. 608-835-8462, thewoodcycle.com

While you’re in the area: Two microbreweries are in close proximity for the thirsty. The New Glarus Brewing Company (2400 Highway 69, New Glarus, 608-527-5850, newglarusbrewing.com) has free self-guided tours from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., allowing ale aficionados to see where and how the award-winning Raspberry Tart, Spotted Cow, and Wisconsin Belgian Red are made. Visitors may buy beer at the on-site Beer Depot. In Fitchburg, The Great Dane Brewery (2980 Cahill Main, Fitchburg, 608-442-0219, fitchburg.greatdanepub.com) is ten minutes north of The Wood Cycle. There, you will find cask ales, crop circle wheat (60 percent wheat malt), and plenty of other specialty quaffs worthy of a growler.

Where to stay: Helvetica Inn (101 3rd St., New Glarus, 608-338-3330, helveticainn.com) has three guest rooms and is within walking distance of hiking trails through New Glarus Woods State Park and the Sugar River State Trail; rates range from $85 to $150 a night. The Chalet Landhaus (801 Highway 69, New Glarus, 800-944-1716, chaletlandhaus.com) is a hotel fashioned after an old-school Swiss chalet but with plenty of modern conveniences; rates range from $128 to $165 a night.

Where to eat: Deininger’s Restaurant (119 5th Ave., New Glarus; 608-527-2012, deiningers.net) has a Champagne brunch on Sundays and an extensive roster of Swiss and German fare for dinner. Glarner Stube (518 1st St., New Glarus, 608-527-2216, glarnerstube.com) is located in the heart of New Glarus’s “Little Switzerland” and specializes in schnitzels and wursts, plus vegetarian takes on traditional Swiss dishes.

Photograph: Courtesy of the Wood Cycle