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.

Art Hounds: Landscapes and memory-scapes
Artists and art appreciators this week also recommend a streaming show from Theater Latté Da, which invites artists to perform favorite show tunes outside of their “type” and a retrospective of renowned Duluth artist Carl Gawboy, Bois Forte Anishinaabe storyteller and scholar.
George W. Bush lends his voice to immigrants in 'Out of Many, One'
The former president's book features his portraits of 43 immigrants — athletes, public servants, business leaders, educators — in an effort to join those saying, "The system's broken. Let's fix it."
In 'We Are Bridges,' a writer resurrects her great grandfather's memory
In 1904, Cassandra Lane's great grandfather Burt Bridges was lynched. In telling his story, Lane offers her own memoir — and lessons on family and American history for her future child and readers.
Prince fans headed to Paisley Park five years after death
Paisley Park, where Prince lived and worked, will welcome back a select 1,400 fans Wednesday to mark the fifth anniversary of his death from inside his creative sanctuary.
'At the End of the World,' an elegant and gritty mystery debut
Zhanna Slor's debut novel, set in a funky neighborhood of Milwaukee, follows two Russian immigrant sisters on very different paths. one now searching for the other after her mysterious disappearance.
A daughter grieves her mom, and finds herself, in 'Crying in H Mart'
Michelle Zauner's new memoir, built on her 2018 New Yorker piece of the same name, powerfully maps a complicated mother-daughter relationship cut much too short, with Korean food as a guide.
Missing travel? This 'irreverent guide' visits Anthony Bourdain's favorite places
"He always made people feel like they belonged," says a former Bourdain producer. “World Travel: An Irreverent Guide” is based on the TV chef's writings and an interview conducted just before his death.
'The Light of the Midnight Stars' doesn't shine brightly enough
Rena Rossner's YA novel, set in a magical version of medieval Eastern Europe, follows a rabbi and his three supernaturally-talented daughters. Unfortunately the characters never quite come to life.
Ask a Bookseller: 'The Copenhagen Trilogy' introduces Danish poet Tove Ditlevsen to English readers
Deborah Reed of Cloud and Leaf Bookstore in Manzanita, Ore., recommends “The Copenhagen Trilogy” by Tove Ditlevsen (1917–1976), which was released as a single volume in English in February.
Quiet no more: Sen. Hirono's immigrant journey fuels her fire in Congress
Sen. Mazie Hirono of Hawaii — one of the most outspoken Democrats in Congress — wasn't always so vociferous. She says her story, detailed in a new memoir, has driven her to "stand up to bullies."