TC Weekend | Grand Old Day, Waterfest, Open Streets North Minneapolis and more!

By |

The official first day of summer may be June 21, but this weekend marks the unofficial launch of the summer festival season in the Twin Cities. The weather forecast shows a chance of scattered showers, but let’s hope the sun wins out! See below for this weekend’s lively roster: North Minneapolis Greenway Open Streets, May 31 This weekend marks the first of the Open Streets Minneapolis events, providing an opportunity for people to explore the proposed North Minneapolis Greenway route free of automobiles. Enjoy the streets on bike, foot or blade, while sampling great food, art, music and activities! For more information and free Metro passes, go here.North Girard/Humbold Avenues from West Broadway Avenue to North 42nd Avenue.10 am – 4 pm; Free  Open Streets – Jordan Area Community CouncilThe Jordan Area Community Council will be participating in this year’s Open Streets and invites you to partake in their festivities! Continue Reading

Twin Cities street art: Statues of Summit Avenue

By |

Street art can take lots of forms. Mostly I’m interested in murals and graffiti but for years I’ve walked up and down Summit Avenue in St. Paul thinking someone should take a picture of all of these statues. The art of Summit Avenue is there to stay, which makes is a different breed from the more fragile street art forms. Sometimes it represents an investment in art that was made generations ago; sometimes it’s a more current investment that I’m sure will be around for generations to come. It’s personal expression for the well-heeled. The tone and topic are for the most part different. Continue Reading

Twin Cities street art: Lake Street murals

By |

Got any plans for your summer? We plan to get out to see the street art in the Twin Cities — one street or neighborhood at a time. I’m a fan of srteet art; I’ve been lucky enough to see Banksy in New York, murals in Belfast and Blu in Berlin. This summer, I’ll be staying home but I figured there must be some sights to see in my home town, too. So my plan for the summer is long walks with a camera.We started with Lake Street — from the Lake Street Bridge to Lake Calhoun. Continue Reading

ARTS REVIEW | Scott Lloyd Anderson explores the mundane in “Paradise Paved” at the Douglas Flanders & Associates Gallery

By |

I recently saw Scott Lloyd Anderson’s exhibit entitled Paradise Paved at the Douglas Flanders & Associates Gallery in Minneapolis. Scott Lloyd Anderson has been painting full time since 2001. Before that, he spent 22 years as a magazine designer. Mr. Anderson prefers to spend the bulk of his creative time outdoors, painting “en plein air.” He often tries to complete his smaller paintings in a few hours, before the light has drastically changed on his scene. In Paradise Paved, the soft focus and rich color found in many of Anderson’s works here relate back to what the Impressionists invented in a general sense. Continue Reading

COMMUNITY VOICES | Katwalk 2014 delivers impeccable design with a sustainable focus

By |

It was fast, it was furious — and the show left awe-struck audience members eager for more fashion. Katwalk: Fathom 2014 at The O’Shaughnessy on May 17 showcased original work from over 30 students in the apparel, merchandising and design program at St. Catherine University.Sustainable practice is incorporated at every level of the program curriculum, from re-purposing textiles to creating looks from recycled material. Each year, this sustainability commitment is revealed in many of the designs featured at the Katwalk.The show opened with a series of re-purposed designs. As part of their “apparel construction and analysis” course, sophomore designers were tasked with creating a new look from an already existing textile product. Continue Reading

ARTS REVIEW | “Song of Jasmine” at the Walker Art Center: Ragamala Dance and Rudresh Mahanthappa fuse Indian and American cultures

By |

Ragamala Dance’s directors Aparna Ramaswamy and Ranee Ramaswamy collaborate with jazz saxophonist/composer Rudresh Mahanthappa for the Walker Art Center’s newest commission entitled Song of the Jasmine. According to their website, Ragamala Dance studio draws “from the myth and spirituality of our South Indian heritage to make dance landscapes that dwell in opposition–secular and spiritual life, inner and outer worlds, human and natural concerns, rhythm and stillness–to find the transcendence that lies in between.”  The jasmine flower goes to the heart of sensorial worship in India, used not only for hair ornaments (as the dancers wore in this production) but also in worship rituals and even to bathe deities. This piece captures the essence of the flower, addressing and visualizing the poet Andal’s longing and the religious desire to connect, multisensorially with the god Vischnu–on the road to surrender.This newest commission from the Walker Art center draws on the poetry by the 8th Century Tamil mystic poet Andal. In 143 verses, called the Nachiar Tirumozhi (sacred sayings of the goddess), she wrote of her intense longing for Vishnu, the Supreme God in Vaishnavism Hiduism. Song of Jasmine expresses the poet’s intense longing for Vishnu. The songs are commonly used in rituals and serve as guidance how one can attain a state of bliss by surrendering body mind and soul to the Divine Existence (from a translation provided in the program).The tension created on stage comes from the refined movement and the relentless rhythm that drives the dancers on towards Vishnu, perhaps. Continue Reading

Public Functionary and In the Heart of the Beast look back on 40 years of the MayDay Parade in the midst of Art-A-Whirl

By |

Public Functionary (PF), the art gallery based in Northeast Minneapolis, will be hosting a weekend-long installation celebrating MayDay’s 40 years for Art-A-Whirl along with with In the Heart of the Beast Puppet and Mask Theater. The installation offers a chance to take a look at the puppets taken from festivals used in the early days as well as more recent ones up close. It also serves as a cross-reference of the two art-related neighborhood festivals: Art-A-Whirl and MayDay, both of which act as harbingers of spring, according to PF director Tricia Khutoretsky.Being a part of the Northeast Minneapolis arts community, Khoturetsky says that her thought with featuring the MayDay Festival during Art-A-Whirl was a way to show an example of what Art-A-Whirl could be. “There’s such a negative attitude around Art-A-Whirl,” she said. “It doesn’t need to be so serious.” Art-A-Whirl, which began in the 1990s, began as an art studio crawl, but over the years has grown to be a much larger festival, encompassing events, performances, music and more. These days, with so many other opportunities throughout the year to visit artist studios, Khoturetsky hopes the community can let go a little bit about pre-conceived notions of what Art-A-Whirl should be, and embrace it for the community event that it is.MayDay, Khoturetsky says, has managed to maintain its identity as a community celebration. Continue Reading

Looking a GIFT Cow in the mouth

By |

I can’t say I entirely blame Kemps for taking down the GIFT facade improvement. After all, they want to tear down two buildings on West Broadway and it doesn’t help their position if people are actually excited about potential. Oh no, it’s much easier to keep the buildings looking like blight so people are more inclined to favor demolition. But it does show their true colors, in that they are willing to make a prominent section of West Broadway look worse in order to further their agenda. Continue Reading

TC Weekend | Art-A-Whirl, EcoArts Festival, RetroRama and more!

By |

Retro fashion, local art, burgers and more — this weekend’s line up offers a little something for everyone. So far the weather sounds postcard perfect. Read on for details:    RetroRama, May 16If you love 70s and 80s fashion, this fun and funky event might be just what the doctor ordered! This year’s RetroRama features retro fashion by local designers, inspired by the new “Sights, Sounds and Soul: Twin Cities through the lens of Charles Chamblis” exhibit. The event will also feature a short set by singer, Cynthia Johnson, the voice of “Funkytown.” Continue Reading

The mortality of cars

By |

I love sketching people, but very often people are in cars and I hate sketching cars. But, cars are a big part of the landscape so I sketch cars. Cars all seem to be screaming for attention with designs which for the most part, reminds me of flashy athletic footwear. The only time I really enjoy sketching cars is when they are damaged or totaled. A car wreck in a rural setting can be picturesque like this rusty hulk up north near International Falls [above]. Continue Reading