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Arts and Culture

MPR News has you covered with news and stories about local art and culture happenings across Minnesota.

Art Hounds: Art Hounds are members of the Minnesota arts community who look beyond their own work to highlight what's exciting in local art. You can explore arts events here, or become an Art Hound today.

Art Reviews: Our arts team offers insight on the latest in theater, music, visual arts and more. We explore the breadth of creativity and innovation found throughout Minnesota, offering audiences a deeper understanding of the works and artists shaping our cultural landscape. Read more here.

Art Friend: Everyone needs an art friend. Art Friend is a new segment with our arts team. Art spaces can feel exclusive and art can be confusing, obtuse, and even boring. But, especially with the right context, everyone can be a critic. So let us be your guide- your Art Friend. Listen or read Art Friend stories here.

Our arts coverage is made possible in part by the Minnesota Legacy Amendment's Arts & Cultural Heritage Fund.

'Secret Identity' is a masterful 1970s literary mystery

'Secret Identity' is a masterful 1970s literary mystery

Alex Segura's mystery-thriller features a queer Cuban American artist fighting against the patriarchy and dodging bullets in the desperate, male-dominated world of comics.
by Carole V. Bell

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Art Hounds: Iron Range musicians jam and a new theater company opens in St. Paul

Art Hounds: Iron Range musicians jam and a new theater company opens in St. Paul

Art Hounds this week recommend you check out: The Mariah Theatre Company opening in St. Paul with the debut of Patrick Coyle’s play, “The Big Blue River;” a showcase of Iron Range musicians at the Ore House in Gilbert; and a surreal exhibit of thrift store furniture at Gustavus Adolphus in St. Peter.
by Emily Bright

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Ask a Bookseller: 'One for the Blackbird and One for the Crow'

Ask a Bookseller: 'One for the Blackbird and One for the Crow'

We're continuing our Women's History Month theme on "Ask a Bookseller." This week, Jessica Bohnsack of Sheridan Stationery Books and Gallery in Sheridan, Wyo., was happy to recommend a historical fiction novel set in her state: "One for the Blackbird and One for the Crow" by Olivia Hawker.
by Emily Bright

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Former Ambassador Marie Yovanovitch warns Putin will move west if he wins in Ukraine

Former Ambassador Marie Yovanovitch warns Putin will move west if he wins in Ukraine

Yovanovitch served as the U.S. ambassador to Ukraine but was relieved of her post following a smear campaign orchestrated by Trump lawyer Rudy Giuliani. Her new memoir is “Lessons From the Edge.”
by Terry Gross

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Three YA fantasies take you on a journey — at home

Three YA fantasies take you on a journey — at home

These three YA fantasies offer up creative magic systems and mythologies, stakes as high as they come, and girls with the grit to get it done.
by Caitlyn Paxson

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Youa Vang with Minnesota music news: Grant & 2 Annies

Youa Vang with Minnesota music news: Grant & 2 Annies

Youa Vang has been a music and culture writer for years in the Twin cities and she’s got a bead on a gig coming up and news about a couple of Minnesota artists she thinks you might love.
by Cathy Wurzer and Melissa Townsend

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From the archives: Historian Eric Foner on three constitutional amendments that altered history

From the archives: Historian Eric Foner on three constitutional amendments that altered history

In anticipation of Friday’s show about the Civil War, we’re revisiting a conversation Kerri Miller had with Pulitzer-prize winning author Eric Foner back in 2019, about how that era changed what it means to be an American.
by Kerri Miller and Kelly Gordon

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