State of the Arts Blog

In a day marked by slow service, computer crashes and frustration on the part of both donors and organizations, Minnesota nonprofits and schools still managed to raise more than $17 million on Give to the Max Day, according to early estimates. The fifth annual day-long fundraiser got off to a strong start, but by midmorning Read more →
Give to the Max Day is temporarily stalled as the website fueling the statewide give-a-thon is apparently down. People throughout the day remarked on the site was moving slowly, leading some to make their donations directly. GiveMN has released a statement saying that it’s working to fix the problem: “We are experiencing a tremendous outpouring Read more →
Art Hounds: Pennyroyal, art collector art, and a play about the last passenger pigeon on earth
A stylistically flexible indie rock band, absurdest theater about a passenger pigeon trying to ward off extinction, and a view of art patronage at a Minneapolis gallery, all caught the hounds attention this week.
New Greycoats video pays eerie tribute to Foshay Tower
The Minneapolis band Greycoats just released a video for its song “Foshay,” dedicated to ‘the first skyscraper west of the Mississippi.’ Directed by local filmmaker Braden Lee, the video combines images of a ballet dancer in an abandoned warehouse, old film clips, and the signing of a ledger book. Greycoats’ Jon Reine sings the lyrics: Read more →
Writer Chris Martin finds literary gems in Minnesota’s errant history
Tonight author Chris Martin will share some of the fruits of his month-long residency at the Minnesota Historical Society’s Gale Family Library. Many of his most interesting finds involve historical mistakes. “The greatest mistakes seem to come from our garbled understanding of native cultures,” explains Martin.  “Since Longfellow’s ‘Song of Hiawatha’ is a sort of Read more →
“12 years a slave” director Steve McQueen sees slavery as a world story
Steve McQueen strolled into the conference room in a downtown Minneapolis hotel this afternoon ready to talk. He’s an intense guy, who makes intense films, most recently “12 years a slave.” The movie which unflinchingly examines the horrors of slavery in the South in the 1840s, has drawn critical praise, and helped rekindle the debate Read more →
Art Hounds: Blind Boys, Karen Sherman, and the spirit of Warhol in the City Center
  This week’s hounds have great enthusiasm for a revered gospel group, a charismatic choreographer and a recreation of Andy Warhol’s Factory in downtown Minneapolis. (Want to be an Art Hound? Sign up!) Minneapolis comedian Zach Coulter says he had a lot to think about after he went to see Sandbox Theatre’s “This Is A Read more →