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.

Communication is the challenge in this novel of loss and discovery
Jon McGregor's new novel follows an expedition guide who suffers a stroke in the middle of an Antarctic ice storm and loses the ability to speak — and the people around him at a loss for what to say.
Abstract art created during Chauvin verdict goes up for auction
The starting bid for Minneapolis artist seangarrison’s “Walking on Air,” which he painted outside the Hennepin County Government Center, is $150,000. The sale will benefit Youth Link MN and the Minnesota African American Heritage Museum and Gallery, as well as the Equal Justice Initiative in Alabama.
Percival Everett's latest combines racial allegory in history, horror and blood
In “The Trees,” Everett revisits the 1955 murder of Emmett Till, imagining a series of similar killings in the same small Mississippi town. Mixing horror, humor and insight, it's impossible to put down.
The Minnesota fall bucket list
The fall season in Minnesota is spectacular but fleeting! Here’s a list of all the things you should see and do before the leaves fly and the lakes freeze.
Make this 'Fortnight in September' your pandemic escape
R.C. Sherriff's recently reissued 1931 novel, which follows a British family on their two-week holiday, is a reflection on how time changes shape in periods like a vacation — or even a pandemic.
Watch a massive violin transport musicians down Venice's Grand Canal
The wooden vessel is called "Noah's Violin." As it floated through Venice's Grand Canal on Saturday, members of the string quartet on board serenaded viewers with their own (real) instruments.
Five takeaways from a big Emmy night for a short list of shows
“The Crown,” “Hacks,” “Ted Lasso” and “The Queen's Gambit” all did well on Sunday night. But the Emmys also laid bare the problems with production and representation that plague nearly every awards season.
Despite the title, we bet you'll like this YA novel — a lot
Michelle Quach's immensely lovable YA debut “Not Here to Be Liked” centers on Eliza, who's just been done out of her dream job as editor of the high school paper by an unqualified but very charming boy.
Ask a Bookseller: A climate-change driven YA sci-fi
Lauren Abesames of Wind City Books in Casper, Wyo., loves young adult fiction, and first on her list of recent books to recommend was “The Ones We’re Meant to Find” by Joan He.