State of the Arts Blog

Garrison Keillor trashes Mark Twain autobiography
In a New York Times book review, Keillor finds Twain's autobiography to be 'a powerful argument for writers burning their papers.'
A round-up of arts stories making headlines
MN Original #217
Painter Cy Thao, butter sculptor Linda Christensen, sound sculptor Jack Pavlik and jazz singer Sophia Shorai.
A second, slightly broader look at Bruce Coppock's tenure.
MN Opera’s new director on Midmorning
MN Opera's incoming director Allan Naplan shares his vision for the future of opera.
A round-up of arts stories making headlines
Art Hounds: Chinese fashion, The Shiny Lights, and a feast at Fezziwig’s
The hounds hunt down an exhibition about Mao suits and modern Chinese fashion, a veteran rock band that resurrects a '70s sound, and "The Christmas Carol" re-told by the family Scrooge clerked for as a young man.
As First Avenue turns forty, Chris Osgood takes us down memory lane.
Directors of both the MIA and the Walker Art Center have staked their positions in the recent Smithsonian video controversy.
The former president of the SPCO has been hired to help the Detroit Symphony Orchestra create a vision for the future.