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.

Will Steger's 1989 route across Antarctica no longer exists
A new film looks at how the explorer's observations in Antarctica have pushed the conversation about climate change forward.
'Unsettled Ground' lets its oddballs stay defiantly odd
Claire Fuller's beautifully written new novel follows 51-year-old twins who never left home, forced finally to cope with the outside world and some unpleasant family secrets after their mother dies.
How myths undermine the nations that build on them
Author Nesrine Malik says the stories we collectively tell ourselves might feel good, but they could ultimately destroy the foundation of our society.
Hollywood's top grossing films rarely include Asian and Pacific Islander roles and when they do actors are cast in stereotypical roles. The exception: Dwayne Johnson, who accounts for a third of all API lead actor roles.
Seth Rogen on the comedy advice he got at 12 that he still thinks about
Rogen's first comedy teacher taught him to write material based on conflict, so he focused his first stand-up routine on his grandparents. His new book of personal essays is “Yearbook.”
Questions for Zen Cho, author of 'Black Water Sister'
In Zen Cho's new novel, a young woman begins to hear a voice in her head: It's the dead, estranged grandmother she never knew. Wronged in life, the grandmother wants revenge after death.
'Things can come home again': Sacred birch bark scroll to return to White Earth Nation
A birch bark scroll that Ojibwe people consider among their most important cultural items will be returning to the White Earth Nation after being held for decades by collectors. Experts say it's a small success in what is a constant struggle to find and reclaim culturally significant items taken from Indigenous people and sold among private collectors.