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In this Issue: Real Minnesota Flavor

Here at a+E HQ, I swear we can already smell the Pronto Pups and cheese curds frying. You know what I'm talking about: we're about to complete a cherished rite of passage. Each August, mnartists.org packs up a table of goodies and heads out to the Minnesota State Fair. And every year, the best part of the Fair (aside from the fried Oreos and funnel cakes, of course), is the chance for all of us to get together, say howdy, and maybe rub elbows at the mnartists.org booth. To whet your appetite for the Fair, this issue's Point of View features a few tidbits from some of the fabulous artists you'll meet at the mnartists.org booth this year. For an unexpected, but equally authentic taste of real Minnesota flavor, explore our Zoom In artist, Kao Lee Thao's moving homage to the Hmong refugee experience. And while you're looking over this issue's eclectic sampling of arts events, download the songs in Sampler and give a listen to the smooth North country blues of Jeff Ray. And if you're not too busy, come on by the mnartists.org booth and visit us at the Fair. (We'll be the ones in the natty new t-shirts.)

mnartists.org is heading out to the Fair, are you?

Each year, artists from a huge variety of disciplines and representing every corner of the state flock to the fairgrounds to volunteer their time shilling for the mnartists.org community, spreading the word about this fantastic free resource to artists and enthusiasts alike. We want to celebrate the rich diversity of talent in the mnartists.org community by highlighting a few of the fabulous artists you're likely to meet up with if you visit the mnartists.org booth at the Fair.

And because we at a+E ponder the big questions, we talked to these artists about a couple of things on our minds lately: Fair food and animal exhibits.

Jon Skuldt, poet, copy editor and graphic designer

Minneapolis

"I'm looking forward to eating any Fair food that anyone standing nearby tells me to eat. What not to miss: It's a tie between the seed art and the bunnies."

You can find a sampling of Jon's poetry in the online versions of The Redneck Review and Slope magazine.

Visit the full collection to read Jon's fantastic poem, Ways I Haven't Died Yet

Lara Fahnlander, muralist

Duluth

"They say the food's why everyone goes. I love a bit of that good old fried and battered food like funnel cakes and corndogs. My tongue imagines some wonderful watermelon and some corn on the cob, but I never know what will sneak up and demand to be eaten once I arrive :). I love the student art exhibits. They remind me of when I would go to the Fair to see my pieces on exhibit, and how exciting it was. And who can miss the animals? Those baby pigs are just too much to resist!"

Lara's currently working on a mural in Wadena, MN chronicling the history of taconite mining in the Iron Range.

Yoshi Tamura, digital artist

Minneapolis

"I've never been the Fair before, so I'm looking forward to trying traditional Minnesota foods. I really want to see the Flaming Lips at the Grandstand."

Yoshi is originally from Japan, but is currently working in Minneapolis as a web designer. You can see more of his innovative work on his website.

Gabe Heller, musician

Minneapolis

"I don't know yet what I'll eat, but if I'm paying fair food prices it better have something really neat in it like pistachios or bison. Believe it or not, this will be the first year I'll have ever made it to the Fair. I'll probably just explore. I like finding the new exhibits best."

Gabe's big project at the moment involves fixing up and moving into an old house, but as soon as he's settled into his new place, he'll begin work on a new album called Everybody thinks I'm Dave. You can sometimes catch Gabe at Ball's Cabaret, midnight Saturdays at the Southern Theater in Minneapolis.

Christina Rimstad, photographer

Minneapolis

"I can't wait to get some roasted corn on the cob. And I love to go look at the barns, but the best exhibit at the Fair are all the different kinds of people that are walking around."

Christina's photos can be found in publications such as Pulse of the Twin Cities and Industry Magazine in the Twin Cities area. Her work is also featured in Intermedia Arts phenomenal show B-Girl Be: A Celebration of Women in Hip-Hop, which runs through September 9.

To see a sampling of these artists' handiwork, visit the collection on mnartists.org.

Hey everybody! We’ve got new duds!

mnartists.org recently hosted a competition which challenged artists to come up with a t-shirt design illustrating the community's mission of “radical democracy.” In excess of 40 designs were submitted, and the panel of judges—Walker Design Director/Curator Andrew Blauvelt, North Carolina State University Design Department Chair Santiago Piedrafita, CSA Design Founder Charles. S. Anderson, and Studio d founder Laurie DeMartino—came up with a tie. Votes were split between self-described "designer, artist, and social agitator" Kelly Munson ( "Participate") and Walker Art Center designer, Emmet Byrne ("No Aesthetic Left Behind").

Why choose? We'll take them both! mnartists.org is producing two shirts featuring both winning designs. Shirts will be on sale at the Walker Shop starting next Thursday and will be available at a discount for access+ENGAGE subscribers (see mnAccess below).

And that's not all: according to the Walker's popular Off Center blog, the Walker's holding an online contest and t-shirt giveaway. Off Center blogger Paul Schmelzer writes: "Special for Off Center readers: We’re giving away one of each t-shirt design in an online contest. Email me your answer to this fill-in-the-blank: “Radical democracy is ________________________.” An expert panel of Walker staffers will select the top entry and mail off a shirt (include your snailmail address). I’ll feature the top replies here."

For more up-to-the-minute events listings, check out mnartists.org

Project Director, mnartists.org:  Kathleen Kvern

access+ENGAGE Editor:  Susannah Schouweiler

E-journal design: Brand & Butter

Featured Contributors and Artists

Banner image (reprinted with artist's permission): Dreamer by Kao Lee Thao, gouache with transparent overlay for white swirls, 2004.

Sampler:

Album cover for Untitled by Jeff Ray, to be released fall 2006, courtesy Peace Stream Records.

Images credits for You Are Here (from top to bottom):

Black Label Movement photo by William Cameron, courtesy the Southern Theater.

Art of Design logo courtesy Density Studios.

Tekween image by Heba Amin (Egypt), courtesy Center for Independent Artists.

Point of View photo credit

All photos reprinted here courtesy their subjects.

Photo of Jon Skuldt by Sean Smuda.

access+ENGAGE is a twice monthly e-journal offering indispensable,

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The mission of mnartists.org is to improve the lives of Minnesota artists and provide access to and engagement with Minnesota’s arts culture.