September 30, 2022 - MPR’s Tim Nelson profiles jazz pioneer Oscar Pettiford. Born 100 years ago and raised in Minnesota, Pettiford changed the sound of American music. He got his start on the stages of the Twin Cities, helping create a "Minneapolis sound" long before Prince. Pettiford’s innovations made him one of the most influential bass players of the bebop era. A century after his birth, that legacy endures.
October 5, 2022 - MPR’s Matthew Holding Eagle III reports on items related to tribal life in North Dakota being returned digitally. Thousands of culturally significant photographs, wax cylinder recordings and journals recently returned to the place where they were created over a century ago among the Mandan, Hidatsa and Arikara tribes in North Dakota.
November 18, 2022 - MPR’s Hannah Yang visits the Veterans Memorial Center in rural Tracy, a southwestern Minnesota town. Young Hmong dancers are busy getting ready for the Hmong New Year as they practice traditional dance routines.
April 19, 2023 - MPR’s Alex Cipolle reports on “Latin Art in Minnesota: Conversations and What’s Next” a hardcover art tome featuring in-depth interviews with 12 Minnesota artists who have roots in Central and South America, from Mexico to Chile. William “Billy” Gustavo Franklin edited the book, which explores their art, personal journeys, and conversations about identity, aiming to bridge gaps and inspire a wider audience to appreciate Latino art.
May 1, 2023 - On this segment of North Star Journey, MPR’s Jacob Aloi talks with Hmong shaman Billy Lor and others about shamanism and its importance in the Hmong community.
May 5, 2023 - MPR’s Alex V. Cipolle profiles St. Paul artist Liz Sexton, who is elevating papier-mâché to high art. Sexton creates lifelike papier-mâché animal masks and sculptures for her solo exhibition "Liz Sexton: Out of Water" at the Minnesota Marine Art Museum, highlighting environmental issues through her unique art form.
May 23, 2023 - On this episode of MPR News with Angela Davis, guest host Dan Kraker takes a ‘deep dive’ into the wonder of Lake Superior. Kraker speaks with a scientist who studies Lake Superior and two artists — a photographer and a writer — about the lake’s significance and healing presence.
August 28, 2023 - MPR’s Alex V. Cipolle presents a profile of Jim Denomie, an Ojibwe painter who died in 2022. Cipolle visits Minneapolis Institute of Art to view “The Lyrical Artwork of Jim Denomie,” which has transformed into a posthumous survey of the latter half of the famous colorist’s career; one that skewered mainstream histories and purveyors of injustice, from Fort Snelling to Standing Rock, while championing the joy and resilience of Native communities.
September 9, 2023 - In this episode of Ask a Bookseller, Emily Bright talks with Anna Hersh, of Wild Rumpus Books, on her book suggestion, Dear Mothman, by Robin Gow.
November 3, 2023 - MPR’s Melissa Olson reports that conservators and artists have worked nearly a year to restore a work of art created by artist George Morrison half a century ago. Morrison’s vision is felt by the people who helped to restore his work, and by those redesigning the building where the mural lives.