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.

Ask a Bookseller: 'Mary Jane' celebrates the music of the 1970s
Lisa Baudoin shared a favorite title from her store, Books & Company, in Oconomowoc, Wis. It’s the novel “Mary Jane” by Jessica Anya Blau. The coming-of-age tale is set in the 1970s, and Baudoin says the book captures the feeling of that decade — especially the music. 
This novel about Haiti's 2010 earthquake shows us: People persist
Myriam J.A. Chancy's new novel “What Storm, What Thunder,” shifting from one character to the next, skipping non-chronologically from 2014 to the day of the earthquake to the days before or the months after, is as far as possible from a maudlin account of a terrible tragedy: It is a precise, albeit fictional, reconstruction of the many kinds of individuals and experiences during and after the tragedy.
Halloween events in Minnesota and their COVID precautions
From costume contests looking for the best mask-wearing ghoul, to concerts that’ll have you shaking in your boots once you have your temperature checked, we’ve got you covered on some of the spookiest events happening across the state, and what you need in order to attend them. 
'Invisible Child' tells the story of childhood homelessness in America
While the book is very much the tale of young Dasani Coates, Andrea Elliott uses her story and that of her family to examine the many who find themselves in similarly impossible circumstances.
'Okciyapi' celebrates Dakota language and brings some healing
Dakota artist Angela Two Stars’ new installation in the Minneapolis Sculpture Garden brings layers of meaning embedded in its form.
Art Hounds: Relax and enjoy the show
Art Hounds recommend shows to sit back and relax with on a fall weekend: “Beer & Ballet” in Bloomington and Sweet Jazz in Northfield. Or, get in the Halloween spirit with the book launch celebration of “The Haunting of Potter’s Field” in Winona.
'What the Constitution Means to Me' comes to Guthrie
Actor Cassie Beck is at the Guthrie, portraying the playwright Heidi Shrek in her memoir play “What the Constitution Means To Me.” The Guthrie is staging the play as the first in-person production since Spring 2020.