West Broadway gets a G.I.F.T. (Guerilla Improvement Facade Team)

By |

Towards the end of last year, I raised the alarm on this blog that Kemps had purchased two structures at 404 and 410 West Broadway with the likely intent of tearing them down for more surface parking. A discussion and extensive research followed on the Old North Minneapolis Facebook page (a site where more connections about northside history are being made every day). Late last month, we received the expected news that Kemps would apply for a demolition permit, and northsiders compiled our research to nominate the properties for historic designation. Continue Reading

REVIEW | Fight Like a Mother

By |

Walking into the Color Wheel Gallery you see a lot of things: vibrant hues that take the form of dangling earrings and embroidered purses, walls painted intensely with tropical colors and draped with feminist statements and sparkling ornaments. The gallery smells of tangy homemade soaps and oils and the delicious meals being prepared next door at Café Ena. It feels right that a show like ‘Fight like a Mother’ would be hosted in a place like this, a colorful, multifunctional shop where its home has been for five years now. The Color Wheel is very much a home and owner Tammy Ortegon has worked hard for many years to maintain that brilliant atmosphere.“Fight like a mother, resist like water,” she says of the piece that inspired the show and its title. “I just tell the artists that the theme is ‘fight like a mother,’ and let them interpret what that means for them,”The 18 artists involved in the show responded excitedly to this idea. Continue Reading

ARTS REVIEW | Matisse: Masterworks from the Baltimore Museum of Art graces the Minneapolis Institute of Arts

By |

I recently attended the exhibit Matisse—Masterworks from the Baltimore Museum of Art showing now at the Minneapolis Institute of Arts.  Most of the collection originally belonged to the Cone Sisters of Baltimore. These unique ladies were truly on the cutting edge of art appreciation. The sisters were friends of the Stein family, which included the historically important author Gertrude Stein. = Gertrude Stein was an important friend and mentor to many artists, including Picasso. It is staggering to consider Stein’s contribution to early feminism. Continue Reading

ARTS REVIEW | Art in Bloom at the Minneapolis Institute of Arts: A smell of summer

By |

Each Spring, for 31 years, the Minneapolis Institute of Arts (MIA) has partnered with local florists to bring flowers and art together to give us a glimpse of summer with Art in Bloom. No matter what’s really happening outside – it’s nice to know we’re guaranteed flowers inside. This year we really need that glimpse!The premise is simple, each florist creates a bouquet to be paired with a work of art from the collection. Sometimes the flowers match, sometimes they mimic, sometimes they enhance by contrasting. It’s a fun way to get a new look at the collection. Continue Reading

THEATER REVIEW | Blue Man Group at the Ordway Center for the Performing Arts: A delightful sensory experience

By |

A performance of Blue Man Group, now playing at the Ordway Center for the Performing Arts, is a delightful sensory experience. It has striking visuals, thrumming music with an air of novelty, and physical comedy of all sorts. It is also stuffed to the gills with audience-interactive elements and frequently spills off the stage into the aisles and seats of the hall. If the idea of dozens of giant balloons bursting into the audience for you to bounce through the theater appeals to you, the show is not to be missed.Blue Man Group doesn’t have a story or narrative per se, but it can loosely be understood as the adventures of three aliens (the titular blue men) exploring a world brimming with interactive science exhibits, percussion instruments, and devices like confetti cannons, paint sprayers, and enticingly glowing lights. There are also, of course, many audience members that they encounter and draft into taking part in the group’s antics. Continue Reading

REVIEW | For the Water: Much more than an exhibit at Intermedia Arts

By |

On April 16, Intermedia Arts opened For the Water, an exhibit curated by local artist Camille J. Gage. For the Water showcases three water-inspired projects in the Intermedia Arts Gallery: Camille Gage’s I AM WATER, Sharon Day’s 2014 Ohio River Water (Nibi) Walk, and Ananya Chatterjea’s Mohona’s Estuaries of Desire. The exhibit features photographs, dances, and documentary journeys about the water, as well as an interactive art form to involve people’s participation and awareness for our water. According to Intermedia Arts, the exhibit also includes “the first-ever public display of Sister River, a collection of works created by fabric artists from around the world in honor of the 2013 Mississippi River Walk.”

Continue Reading

ARTS REVIEW | Henrik Nygren covers everything from A to Z at his “Insights” lecture at the Walker Art Center

By |

This recap wraps up my review series of Insights, four lectures co-presented by The Walker Art Center (WAC) and AIGA-MN. Four leading graphic designers from around the world were chosen to share the thinking, methods, and processes behind their professional design work this year. The Insights series has been presented for over 25 years, an impressive fact demonstrating that the Minnesota design community continues to support design leadership throughout the world. Each presenter gave their nod to previous Insights series and two noted that they’d often been audience members (via the web casts, most likely).Henrik Nygren from Stockholm, Sweden, presented on Tuesday, March 25. The American Swedish Institute (ASI) was also a sponsor. Continue Reading

My ten favorite indoor places to sketch in the Twin Cities

By |

Twin Cities sketchers, cooped up for months can rejoice that the brutal winter of 2013-14 is over. The bad news is we still face at least a month of cold, damp spring weather. So today’s post is about ten of my favorite interior places to sketch in the Twin Cities. Missing from this list are buildings that I am saving for future posts that are both sketch-able inside and out – The churches, the Capitol, Landmark Center and some others. I am also saving coffee shops for another post. Coffee shops are awesome for sketching. Continue Reading