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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.

Ep. 13: Be the change!

Ep. 13: Be the change!

The warm weather has us thinking about all the ch-ch-ch-changes on our horizon, admittedly some closer than others.
by Sean McPherson, Nina Moini and Tiffany Hanssen

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Author explores preacher father's silence on racial injustice in 1960s Alabama

Author explores preacher father's silence on racial injustice in 1960s Alabama

After Pulitzer Prize-winner John Archibald read sermons from his father's time as a Methodist preacher, he went on a quest to find out why his dad, a devout man, didn't speak out publicly on racism.
by Michel Martin

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'Once Upon A Quinceañera' has fairy tale charm

'Once Upon A Quinceañera' has fairy tale charm

Monica Gomez-Hira's debut novel follows a Miami teen whose job as a party princess brings her into contact with the ex who ruined her chance to have her own quinceañera — and of course, sparks fly.
by Alethea Kontis

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'This is the reality of Black girls': Inauguration poet says she was tailed by guard

'This is the reality of Black girls': Inauguration poet says she was tailed by guard

Amanda Gorman, who became a sensation after her poem at Joe Biden's inauguration, says a security guard outside her building told her she looked "suspicious." After the encounter she wrote: “This is the reality of Black girls: One day you're called an icon, the next day, a threat.”
by Matthew S. Schwartz

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Reclaiming family and memory in 'Sparks Like Stars'

Reclaiming family and memory in 'Sparks Like Stars'

Nadia Hashimi's new novel follows an Afghan woman who escaped the murder of her family during a coup. Her comfortable life in New York City is turned upside down when a figure from the past reappears.
by Marcela Davison Avilés

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The movie 'Fargo' marks its 25th anniversary

The movie 'Fargo' marks its 25th anniversary

Host Angela Davis talks with Todd Melby about his new book on the making of the movie “Fargo.” Was the 1996 crime drama by the Coen Brothers based on a true story and were those Minnesota accents for real?
by Angela Davis

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Musicians tackle powerful, personal topics for 10th round of Cedar Commissions

Musicians tackle powerful, personal topics for 10th round of Cedar Commissions

Over the past 10 years, the Cedar Commissions series in Minneapolis has been a platform for emerging musicians. The show will go on this year in streaming format, starting Friday night, as the artists take on subjects both powerful and personal.
by Emily Bright

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'Home is Not a Country' imagines the lives we could have led

'Home is Not a Country' imagines the lives we could have led

Safia Elhillo's novel follows a first-generation Muslim American girl who, bullied at school, longs for the homeland she's never really known and the alter ego who represents a more confident self.
by Nayantara Dutta

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Art Hounds: Three ways artists support each other

Art Hounds: Three ways artists support each other

As we approach the one-year anniversary of performance spaces going dark under the coronavirus pandemic, Art Hounds this week recommend three different spaces — two virtual, one physical — where performers, songwriters and visual artists can come together.
by Emily Bright

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