Twin Cities Daily Planet (https://www.tcdailyplanet.net/category/design-and-style/page/12/)
On November 18, Vita.mn—the local entertainment weekly published online and in print by the Star Tribune—celebrated its fifth anniversary of publication with a party at the nightclub Epic in downtown Minneapolis.
On the radar1. With Thanksgiving out of the way, holiday theater takes over full time. A Don’t Hug Me Christmas Carol and The Harty Boys Save Christmas start their runs on Friday at New Century Theatre and Bryant-Lake Bowl respectively. Browse this year’s comprehensive guide to all shows in production this season.2. Brandi Carlile is the headliner at the Fitzgerald Theatre back-to-back nights Sunday and Monday. Fans of the acoustic soloist are asked to bring unopened and unwrapped gifts to donate to Toys for Tots.3. Minnesota favorite Mason Jennings woos an already-wooed crowd at First Avenue on Saturday with his new album Minnesota. 4. Continue Reading
On the radar1. Local, handmade, and independent—MCBA’s 10th Annual Book Arts Festival starts the consumer season off right, with demonstrations and activities scattered throughout the day.2. If you’re looking for something to put on the wall rather than the shelf, make your way to MCAD’s annual art sale, the largest college art sale in the entire U.S. of A.3. Zenon Dance Company stole the show at the opening of the Cowles Center. Now they return to the Cowles with their full fall season. (It all fits into an evening–but a packed one!)4. Continue Reading
On the radar1. The American Swedish Institute’s Turnblad Mansion re-opens on Saturday after six months of remodeling, part of the bigger picture that includes the addition of the Nelson Cultural Center in June. But for now, being the holiday season and all, stop by that day to make some Swedish Christmas crafts.2. Joy Williams and John Paul White, who constitute The Civil Wars, come back to Minneapolis on their fall national tour. This time they’ll be wooing a bigger crowd at the State Theatre instead of the Bryant-Lake Bowl, which they played in April.3. The Warmth of Other Suns, an epic study of the Great Migration—the move north by millions of African-Americans in the early 20th century—has been one of the most acclaimed works of popular history in recent years. Continue Reading
I’m all about the bling. Jewelry, that is. I also love jewelers, especially local ones. The Walker Art Center (something else I love) is having their Jewelry Artist Mart this Saturday from 11 a.m.-5 p.m. in the Skyline Room. This is one of my very favorite events in the entire world. I have met my favorite jewelers (it’s not just their work, they’re also awesome people!) at this event in the past couple years. Amy Torello, from Taxco, Mexico, is one of the artists I met two years ago at the mart. She came over to my house last night for a jewelry party. We had a lovely time sipping wine, snacking, and looking at her awesome jewelry. Not only did I already buy a bunch of lovely pieces but I also got to introduce her to some friends. The party inspired me to tell you all about a few of my particular favorite jewelers. All of the lovely ladies in this list are local except for Amy—who I wish was local so I could see her more often! Continue Reading
On the radar1. Journalist-historian-author Larry Millett chats up Garrison Keillor at the Fitzgerald about his architectural history Once There Were Castles: Lost Mansions and Estates of the Twin Cities.2. This weekend, the Walker Art Center says both goodbye and hello to the pioneering modern choreographer Merce Cunningham. At Cunningham’s death in 2009, he expressed his wish that his dance company disband at the end of 2011, so their performances at the Walker will be our last chance to see them in Minnesota. At the same time, the Walker opens an exhibit featuring Cunningham’s archive of props and costumes—a major new acquisition for the museum.3. Continue Reading
Deep in the throes of construction, the Central Corridor route along University Avenue in St. Paul is a zone that many Twin Cities residents have been avoiding for the past several months. A new project funded by a national initiative aims to change that—both now and later—with the help of local artists. The project is, appropriately, called Irrigate.“The primary goal of Irrigate,” says Laura Zabel of Springboard for the Arts—one of the partnering organizations behind the initiative—“is to work during the construction period to build a parallel infrastructure of relationships among artists and communities, to mobilize artists to address the issues and opportunities there.”The project is funded by a $750,000 grant from ArtPlace, a national collaborative that’s just been created with support from the National Endowment for the Arts and several blue-chip foundations. ArtPlace president Carol Coletta credits NEA chairman Rocco Landesman and Ford Foundation president Luis Obiñas for making the initiative happen. Continue Reading
On the radar1. Two things Minneapolis is known for: beer and theater. Tip One Back for the Southern begins its series of fundraising events with a Town Hall Brewery beer tasting on Sunday at the theater, and supports the sweeping generalization.2. It’s Halloween weekend—not like the city hasn’t been celebrating the holiday all month long already. Wear your costume to The Loft’s Dead Writer’s Party at Kieran’s Irish Pub on Saturday, and read some posthumous poetry or prose.3. The ubiquitous word master Dessa will be at the Fitzgerald Theater on Friday with a new album, Castor, the Twin. 4. Shake your (costumed) moneymaker Friday night for Zenon Dance Company at their BOOty Bash at Honey, and/or at the Apocelectronica!!! Continue Reading
The steps that some major touring acts—including the Foo Fighters, Ke$ha, and Janet Jackson—have taken to control and own photojournalists’ work at their concerts have become so controversial that over the past several weeks I’ve felt compelled to blog about the subject not just once, but twice. In that debate, the speculation has been that the next step would be for musicians to demand approval (and ownership?) of written reviews—but it seems that the next battleground is graphic design, just as a major new exhibit of work in the field opens at the Walker Art Center. Continue Reading
