Art Hounds

Sarah Peters, executive director of NorthernLights.MN, is excited to see the return of Queen B, a musical designed to be performed outdoors.

Written by Minnesota playwright and beekeeper Elle Thoni, the subtitled “A New Work of Honeybee Futurism” takes place in a future when bees are extinct and humans live in artificial domed environments in order to survive. As the characters realize the problems and inequalities with their situation, they must find a new way to make a life for themselves.

“My favorite thing about work like this is that, by being set in the future, it models for us a different way that our lives could be,” said Peters. “It has music [by Dameun Strange], it has dance, it has gorgeous costumes and makeup and the actors are an incredible, diverse cast that will make the show really come alive.”

“Queen B” runs Friday through Sunday at 6 p.m. in Franconia Sculpture Park in Shafer. Other performances are Friday, Aug. 27 at DreamAcres Farms in Wykoff; Saturday, Aug. 28 and Sunday, Aug. 29 at Squash Blossom Farm in Oronoco, and Saturday, Sept. 4 at Robert’s Lot in Minneapolis.

Photographer Julia Cheng is looking forward to this year’s Duluth Superior Film Festival, which runs Friday through Sunday at the Zeitgeist Zinema 2 in Duluth. The festival has a goal of challenging filmmaking norms and making space for diverse communities.

This year, they’ve partnered with multiple local organizations to promote the films. For example, Cheng is looking forward to two films sponsored by the Twin Ports APIDA (Asian Pacific Islander Desi Americans) Collective.

On Saturday, the festival presents “Land of my Father,” by Matthew Koshmrl, a documentary addressing the unresolved trauma stemming from Japan's colonial occupation of the Korean Peninsula, and the short film “Big Happiness” by Da Hee Kim, about transnational adoption.

The three-day schedule includes Q&A sessions with the filmmakers, which Cheng says is “just really special.” Viewers can buy tickets for individual films, in blocks at $15, or $50 badges for unlimited entry.

MCAD painting student Casey Grengs is a fan of the work of the Fresh Eye Gallery in Minneapolis, which supports emerging and mid-careers artists who have intellectual disabilities. Fresh Eye Gallery’s current show, “Creature Comforts,” features 10 Minnesota artists whose work finds wonder and peace within daily life.

Grengs says the work of one of the artists in particular, Lynda Mullan, who creates brightly colored, abstract paintings, gives her joy. The show runs through Sept. 25.

Photographer Stuart Klipper loves walking to his Minneapolis neighborhood art showplace, Gallery 360, currently featuring the work of Al Wadzinski and Dick Brewer.

“Al works in three dimensions. Dick works hyper-dimensionally,” Klipper said.

Wadzinski constructs animal effigies out of commonplace objects to create combinations that Klipper says demonstrates the artist is “preposterously witty.” Brewer carves and airbrushes designs into the back of plexiglass slabs to create “phantasmagorical” images. Klipper adds the two artists are “zany, and maybe most of all very perplexing.” The exhibition runs through Aug. 15.

Lanesboro actress Lizzy Andretta is looking forward to attending the Rhythms on the Root concert series this summer, held outdoors in Lanesboro’s Gateway Park. Next up in the monthly series is blues guitarist PK Mayo, who is originally from the Iron Range. The concert is Friday at 6 p.m. The series wraps up Sept. 10 with Iowan folk singer Pieta Brown.

“It’s just very exciting to get people out in any way they can to experience the arts,” said Andretta. Tickets are required for this outdoor event, and seating is first come, first served, in socially distanced pods.

Katie Drahos of the band Butter Boys had a shout-out to a fellow Minneapolis band, Serious Machine.

“They have such a great, ethereal sound,” Drahos said. Serious Machine’s latest EP is “Still We All.” Drahos said the band is particularly great in concert and recommends following them on social media to catch their next live Twin Cities performance.

Actress Eva Gemlo is excited about the return of live theater that is weird, challenging and magical.

She describes the world premiere of the play “Aquelarres” this way: “It's like [director] Guillermo del Toro meets [Spanish poet Federico Garcia] Lorca meets [Broadway musical] ‘Hadestown,’ and it's all inspired by the works of Spanish painter [Francisco Jose] de Goya [y Lucientes]. The political fantasy is set during the Spanish Inquisition, and it follows a possible saint, a pair of nuns and a coven of witches who unwittingly collaborate to overthrow their local government.”

The play was written by Joel F. Wilshire and directed by Madeline Wall of the Birth Play Project. 

“You will walk away going, oh my God, that was beautiful. Why am I crying?” says Gemlo. The play will be performed outdoors at the Edgecumbe Presbyterian Church in St. Paul through Aug. 15. 

University of Minnesota art history professor Jane Blocker recommends a dystopian, even apocalyptical, contemporary art show opening Saturday, called “Everyone Has a Right to Their Own Dystopinion.”

The show contains the paintings, sculptures, collages and prints of a dozen artists, curated by Erik Farseth. The artists grapple with the stuff of science fiction novels and contemporary news: global pandemic, environmental disaster, political polarization and technology’s effects on our lives. 

“I think seeing art and knowing that there are other people out there who are contemplating the weirdness of this time, in material, real physical ways,” says Blocker “is really, maybe not joyful, but at least reassuring that you're not by yourself. You're not alone.”

The exhibition at Artspace Jackson Flats in Minneapolis will have a free opening night reception Saturday from 7-11 p.m. The show runs through Aug. 14.

When Sophia Hoiseth graduated from Minnesota State University, Mankato during the pandemic and got her own apartment, she looked for local art for her walls. She chose prints by fellow Mankato graduate Mai Tran.

Originally from Saigon, Vietnam, and now living in Mankato, Tran blends the two cultures in her relief printmaking in a way that Hoiseth — a transplant from Qatar — says feels like home. 

“I think when you look at Mai’s work,” says Hoiseth, “you can really see the intentional strokes of lines that were chosen to be carved out of woodblock and lines that were chosen to be left behind. And that makes for a really powerful contrast between the dark and light.”

Find Tran’s printmaking and photography here. 

Northfield, Minn., has a poet laureate, Rob Hardy, who recommends an interactive musical experience: The Musical Portraits of Northfield. Landmarks throughout town are posted with QR codes that, when scanned with your smartphone, play songs by Louis and Dan and the Invisible Band. Hardy compares their upbeat sound and kid-friendly lyrics to the band They Might Be Giants.

With their clever lyrics and rhymes, each song tells the story of a different Northfield landmark. Together, they make a techie scavenger hunt for families. Hardy says the song about Bridge Square always gets stuck in his head: “Bridge Square, it’s not a real square. It’s a trapezoid / you should not avoid.”

Archie Barbier of St. Paul discovered the music of DJ Ariesfirebomb over the pandemic, watching their Friday night dance parties on Twitch. “They are someone that's going to get the party started no matter where you are,” said Barbier.

Blending music of different styles across the decades, Ariesfirebomb creates “a black, queer, safe environment within their music, and within all of their performances.” In addition to Twitch, they are active on Instagram, where Barbier says he’s learned so much about the cultural history of music.

Ariesfirebomb has a live show Friday at the Fine Line in Minneapolis. The 9 p.m. show is for audiences 18 and over.

President of the Twin Cities Cabaret Artists Network, Jennifer Eckes  is excited about a Friday show by jazz vocalist Katia Cardenas. Cardenas sings jazz infused with R&B and pop.

Cardenas suffered a vocal injury three years ago. Over the pandemic, she strengthened her voice and wrote original songs.

Eckes calls Cardenas a vibrant performer and an up and coming musician to watch. The concert is at 8 p.m. at the Granada Theater, the renovated former Suburban World in Uptown. 

Mike Larson of Minneapolis is an escape-room enthusiast, and he loved Walking Shadow Theatre’s production of “Reboot,” an online play with puzzles.

Larson says an interactive puzzle-solving experience is the best version of this story, as opposed to one forced to fit a virtual medium. The actors are engaging and the puzzles enhance the play’s narrative, Larson says.

Participants play the role of hackers and you don’t have to act. Larson’s group of friends and strangers became so engrossed with the story that they found themselves having ethical discussions over their hacker plotline.

Unlike other escape rooms, there is no ticking clock built into the story, though there is an urgent mission to accomplish. You can buy tickets as individuals or with friends, and you’ll be interacting with other attendees to problem solve. The play and puzzles take about two hours. Ticket sales run through Aug. 31.

Shannon Riley of Stillwater, Minn., regularly checks the billboard at the Zephyr Theatre in downtown Stillwater for an eclectic mix of theatrical productions, literary readings and live music that gets people dancing in the parking lot.

The theater makes its home in the renovated Zephyr train depot, which Riley says is a cool and quirky spot to explore. This weekend, Zephyr is staging a full-scale professional production of the musical “Mamma Mia!” at North Lowell Park.

The musical about a summer wedding is set to music by the Swedish pop group, ABBA, and staged against a backdrop of the St. Croix River. The show runs Thursday through Sunday at 7 p.m., rain or shine.

Colin Bracewell recommends the music of Minneapolis singer/songwriter Brooke Elizabeth, who’s headlining at Aster Café in Minneapolis on Friday. Bracewell says the songwriter has made music since finishing high school, and has a steady performance calendar this summer to promote her new EP “You and Me.”

Bracewell, also a singer/songwriter, compared the honesty of her sound and the quality of her vocals to that of Phoebe Bridgers.

Artist Christopher Selleck of Robbinsdale, Minn., traveled to Rochester to see Preston Drum’s immersive exhibit, “Bubbles” at the Rochester Art Center. The show combines sculpture, video and paintings large and small. Selleck describes the style as “at once painterly, playful, punk rock and sentimental,” and he suggests visitors keep an eye out for “joyous little re-creations” sprinkled through the exhibit like Easter eggs.

Drum is part of the sandwich generation that is caring for younger and older relatives at the same time. The show includes a moving meditation on caring for his mother, who has Alzheimer’s disease.

The exhibit runs through Oct. 17.

Roy Taylor hosts the radio show “Indigeneity Rising” at KFAI, and recommends the Mni Sota Native Music Series, presented by The Cedar Cultural Center in Minneapolis.

Artist Alex Buffalohead curated the series by North American Indian musicians, which runs each Thursday in July at 7:30 p.m. on The Cedar Public Access Channel.

The Cedar’s Indigenous Music Series has featured performers from around the world for the past decade, but this year’s virtual series is focused exclusively on North American artists, most of whom are from Minnesota. The genres include rock, blues, and alternative. You can listen back to the July 8 performance by Keith Secola, and tune in to hear The Wake Singers Thursday, Corey Medina & Brothers on July 22, and on July 29, an Artist Showcase hosted by Keith Secola. The series is funded by the Rosemary and David Good Family Foundation.

Kelly O’Sullivan of Apple Valley was in Theatre 55’s production of “Hair” in 2019, and she is excited to see the theater reprise an outdoor, music-only version of the show on this side of the pandemic. Theatre 55 puts on productions by seniors — an age group particularly hard-hit by COVID-19. O’Sullivan says the original cast formed a strong bond, and she’s looking forward to seeing members who supported each other sing songs about experiences from the past year.

Performances for “Hair! The Concert Experience” this weekend and next are at Caponi Art Park’s outdoor amphitheater in Eagan, Fridays and Saturdays at 7 p.m. and Sundays at 3 p.m.

Art fan Doris Rubenstein of Richfield, Minn., is grateful for both summer and arts events. She’s fascinated by the way local artist Jodi Reeb turns one summer product — beeswax — into paintings.

Reeb’s encaustic, or hot wax, art is on display in “Structure and Connection” at the Kolman and Pryor Gallery at the Northrup King Building in northeast Minneapolis. Reeb’s work is paired with that of Maine artist Dietlind Vander Schaaf.

Rubenstein said “you can always ask gallery owners Anita or Patrick as many questions as you have about encaustic. It's an opportunity to enjoy art and learn something new — a sweet deal!”

The show runs through Sept. 4.

Carin Bratlie Wethern of Bloomington, the artistic director of Theater Pro Rata, enjoys listening to the debut album “Side by Side” by the Minneapolis-based duo Champagne Drops. Bratlie Wethern said, “each song feels like a little semi-precious stone in a child's treasure box.” She loves the way the sparse instrumentals offset the voices of singers Emily Dussault and Leslie Vincent, creating an intimate album about female friendship, motherhood and childhood.

While the album is meant for a general audience, Bratlie Wethern says her 4-year-old daughter is a fan of the album, which has become a soundtrack to bathtime.

Art festivals are popping up across the state this summer after many were canceled last year due to the pandemic. Annette Block-Valdivia of Grand Marais recommended one arts festival off the beaten path along the North Shore: the 15th annual Hovland Arts Festival. It takes place this weekend from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Block-Valdivia called the small town north of Grand Marais “a gem” and said the festival is a great place to find beadwork, fiber art and leatherwork, as well as paintings, wildlife photography and more by local makers.

The event, which includes live music, takes place both indoors and outdoors at the Hovland Town Hall on Highway 61.

Solo musician Lyla Abukhodair of Duluth, Minn., has fond memories of seeing Laura Sellner perform with her band Superior Siren shortly before the pandemic closed venues. She’s excited to share about Sellner’s new solo EP, called “Kill Your Darlings.” Abukhodair admires how hard Sellner works, the way she encourages fellow musicians and her “dreamy” music.

Sellner will be doing a Minnesota tour with her new music this summer, including a stop in Two Harbors at Castle Danger Brewery at 6 p.m. Thursday and in Minneapolis at Utepils Brewing at 1 p.m. Sunday.

Filmmaker Naomi Ko has followed the work of Yeej Moua for the past few years and looks forward to the premiere Thursday of his short film, “The Wind Always Strikes the Highest Mountain.” The film was written and directed by Moua and funded by Northern Spark as part of the final weekend of this year’s two-week festival.

The short film tells the story of a Hmong American teenager grieving after her brother dies of COVID-19. The family was unable to perform a traditional Hmong funeral.

Ko praised Moua as a “jack of all trades” who creates music as well as writes and directs and wants to see how Moua will bring those skills together to inject a sense of youthfulness, joy and community on a difficult subject matter. The film is in Hmong with English subtitles, followed by a bilingual Q&A. It screens online at 7 p.m. Thursday, 9 p.m. Friday and 2 p.m. Saturday.

Jon Skaalen of Stillwater is interested in Full Circle Theater Company’s upcoming virtual event, “Sharing Stories on Issues of Disability and Theater.” It’s a combination short live performance and an interactive discussion, featuring four actors with disabilities telling their stories as artists.

The show runs for 90 minutes, with English closed captioning and ASL interpretation, at 7 p.m. Friday and Saturday at 7 p.m.

Visual artists Lisa Bergh and Andrew Nordin of New London, Minn., recently took an art-themed road trip that included a stop at the Nemeth Art Center in Park Rapids, Minn. and the T. L. Solien exhibit “See the Sky.”

Solien’s large scale paintings captivated them. They described the drama of his contemporary work — its humor and pain and emotional charge — as well as his skill with color. “There's actually some subtle moments in some of the smaller pieces that I found myself kind of stuck on,” said Nordin, who was struck by Solien's use of the color yellow.

“I always love going to the Nemeth Art Center,” added Bergh, “You enter into the space through the [Hubbard County] Historical Museum with tons of artifacts, which even made more sense when you walk [up the big stairs] into Solien’s work, because the show is just built on all these artifacts of his personal history of culture.”

T.L. Solien’s show runs through July 17, with a closing reception on July 10 at 4 p.m.

Claude and Laurel Riedel of Minneapolis love the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness, and they recommend a children’s picture book written and illustrated by Ely residents, about a familiar scene during wildfire season.

The book is “Big Yellow: Firefighting Superstar,” written by Polly Carlson-Voiles and illustrated by Consie Powell. 

The Riedels have a personal connection to the story. While on a camping trip near Trout Lake some years ago with the author and her husband, they saw smoke from a forest fire. Both Claude and Laurel vividly remember the big yellow airplane that came swooping down to the lake in front of them, scooped up water, and then climbed up above the treeline with its heavy load to go fight the fire. 

Immediately, they turned to Carlson-Voiles with a recommendation: “You have to write a story about this,” said Laurel.  “Kids will love this. We are loving it as grownups.” 

The picture book was published this year by Minnesota-based Legacy Bound. The Riedels say their grandchildren, ages 7 and 10, enjoy reading about how planes are built and used to fight forest fires. Of the Ely-based illustrations, Laurel Riedel says “Big Yellow looks just like I remember her, just a little friendlier.”

Painter Nancy Ensley of Ely, Minn., recommends a collection traveling across the Iron Range this summer. The Ancient Cedars Trail Exhibit features the work of 12 artists from Duluth and northern Minnesota, including paintings, fiber arts, weaving and bead art.

The trail — recently created through the efforts of the Department of Natural Resources, the city of Tower and a private landowner — preserves a grove of old-growth white cedar trees that date to the late 1800s.

There is no gallery in Tower to house the exhibit, Ensley said, so the works will stop in different Iron Range cities. This month, the collection is on view at the Lyric Center for the Arts in Virginia. The show travels to Ely’s Art Corner in July, the Borealis Art Guild in Hibbing in August, and Northwoods Friends of the Arts in Cook in September.

Northern Spark is back in the Twin Cities this year with a modified format. Instead of dusk-till-dawn arts events, the hybrid of live and virtual events is spread over two weeks. Musician Kashimana Ahua is excited about Dameun Strange’s Sol Soundgarden, a 24-hour interactive musical installation.

Strange’s work imagines a realm where musical flowers bloom. Visitors use a mobile device to locate and listen at locations representing different blooms, spread across the Rondo and Frogtown neighborhoods in St. Paul.

Strange composed each piece using sounds recorded in the corresponding space. Collaborator Sayge Carroll created instruments inspired by the environment. Ahua called it a “magical experience just waiting to happen.”

The installation runs Saturday beginning at 9:02 p.m. for 24 hours.

Sculptor Betsy Alwin of Minnetrista recommends Gwen Partin’s visual arts exhibit at Form + Content Gallery in Minneapolis.

The exhibit of large and small works on paper explores weaving, sewing, and textile patterns.  Alwin said you may first notice the encounter large collage drawings in Partin’s “Remnants” series. The paper and fabric scraps and hand embroidery are a tribute to her mother, a quilter.

Visitors don gloves to look through hand-bound leather books containing the artist’s drawings. “I really enjoyed being able to interact with the drawings in this personal way,” said Alwin. “I could sense the amount of time in each work, and it brought me closer to the meditative process of making them.”

The show closes Saturday. Hours are 1 to 5 p.m. by appointment at Form + Content Gallery.