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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.

Bessie Smith and 'Hell of a Book'

Bessie Smith and 'Hell of a Book'

Two new books about being Black in America debut this summer—one by Jason Mott of North Carolina and one by Jackie Kay, a poet in Scotland. Guest host Euan Kerr talks with both authors about the difficulty of reckoning with race.
by Euan Kerr and Susan Davis

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This sweet, mid-grade story is perfect for budding romance fans

This sweet, mid-grade story is perfect for budding romance fans

If your kids aren't quite old enough for classic teen love stories, “Just Be Cool, Jenna Sakai” is a just-right read with a heroine who still spends Saturday nights playing board games with her family.
by Juanita Giles

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Actor Ed Asner, TV's blustery Lou Grant, dies at 91

Actor Ed Asner, TV's blustery Lou Grant, dies at 91

Ed Asner, the burly and prolific character actor who became a star in middle age as the gruff but lovable newsman Lou Grant, first in the hit comedy “The Mary Tyler Moore Show” and later in the drama “Lou Grant,” has died. He was 91.
by The Associated Press

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These 3 books are perfect for your back-to-middle-schooler

These 3 books are perfect for your back-to-middle-schooler

LeUyen Pham has written and illustrated more than 100 books for kids of all ages — so we asked her to give us some solid middle-grade reading recmomendations for kids heading back to school.
by Asma Khalid

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Ask a Bookseller re-sings the tales of Ovid from the women’s points of view

Ask a Bookseller re-sings the tales of Ovid from the women’s points of view

Autumn Siders of The Country Bookseller in Wolfeboro, New Hampshire, recommends a re-telling of Ovid’s collection of ancient myths “Metamorphoses,” told by the tales’ female characters.
by Emily Bright

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Take a magical mystery tour with this Chinese comic artist

Take a magical mystery tour with this Chinese comic artist

"If I could put it into words, I wouldn't be drawing it," says one of the characters in Zuo Ma's surreal graphic novel “Night Bus,” a collection of stories that drives through every literary boundary.
by Thúy Đinh

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An Afghan author on losing her homeland — for the second time

An Afghan author on losing her homeland — for the second time

"It is too cruel to ask if it hurts more the first or second time a homeland is lost," says Afghan American author Nadia Hashimi, whose parents are from Kabul. "I know one never becomes numb to it."
by Nadia Hashimi

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Art Hounds hearken back to the 60s

Art Hounds hearken back to the 60s

“Summer of Love” is a live, 1960s music and light show. “The Uncertainty Principle” explores the ripple effect of the Vietnam War. Plus, the Austin Artworks Festival is back this weekend with music and art.
by Emily Bright

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