A few weeks ago, Northeast Minneapolis was recognized for the best Art District in the U.S. The headline reminded me of the first summer after we moved to the Twin Cities, when we took the opportunity to visit some of the small art galleries.
I was impressed by the breadth of media used and how often it reflected a regional aesthetic – rural and small town landscapes, natural materials used on canvas, in metal or glass.
Even more impressive was how ingrained the arts seemed to be with the people we met, across all social groups, who would give us new ideas of galleries to check out or artists they knew personally.
One of our favorites is Michael Tonder. His blue green glass art with its flowing lines or jagged edges is often inside of an industrial setting which makes for an interesting combination of striking and strong.
As the weather warms up, so does the arts calendar in the Twin Cities.
Next month is Art-A-Whirl and one of the artists and galleries on my list to visit is Michael Schmitt in the Northrup King Building. His oil paintings of urban landscapes remind me of many of the places I have lived with the open sky of a small town.
What do you love about the Arts in the Twin Cities?
Mpls Transplant 
Have no clue about the artists in that area, but have friends who went to University up there and always rave about the art scene there! Thanks for sharing and good luck with the A to Z! Lisa, co-host AtoZ2015, @ lisabuiecollard.com
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Thanks for stopping by and checking out my blog! Been a lot of fun checking out all the other bloggers as well.
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I don’t know anything about art in Minnesota, but I have been there and it’s full of great people.
And I also really like the layout of your website!
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Thanks! Was nervous when I changed the format this year but wanted to incorporate photos/visuals more.
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I grew up in Moorhead, and my school would do trips every couple years to the Walker Art Museum. We’d tour the museum, then see a show at the Children’s Theater. Those were my favorite field trips! Haven’t been to very many of the smaller galleries, but I love the whole art/music/theater scene in the Twin Cities.
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It’s ages since I visited a proper art museum (early last year I think) but a couple of local arts centres have exhibition spaces and I try to have at least a quick look at them every time they change the content. I should probably try and get to one of the big museums this year.
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Just visited The Field in Chicago and enjoyed the Vikings exhibit. Mpls is giving me appreciation for small galleries that I didn’t have before.
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I was only in Minneapolis for a very brief business business probably 16 or so years ago at this point, so I didn’t see much, but this piece is beautiful!
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