New Public Art In NoMi (And It Doesn't Even Make You Cringe And Clutch Your Purse!)

Contributed photo, xoxo, blog post by John Hoff

A new mural is taking shape on the side of the 4th Street Saloon Building, and--unlike a lot of other public art in North Minneapolis--it doesn't appear to be a cringe-inducing chaotic celebration of "urban dystopianism" with an overriding anarchistic graffiti motif, such as the...

..."distorted faces" banners which were foisted upon West Broadway by Juxtaposition Arts or (worse case artistic scenario) the "tripping cows" mural on the side of the Kemps Ice Cream factory. No, indeed, this mural appears to be something nice, something North Minneapolis can point to with pride. Johnny Northside Dot Com is excited to see how the mural will continue to take shape in the coming days and weeks.

NoMi Artist Mary Martin, Another Hidden NoMi Treasure!

Photo and blog post by John Hoff

Mary Martin has a sign on her garage that says "OPEN," but she's not selling anything. She has a huge sculpture on her front lawn which surely fools the eye of 100 percent of the people who see it: the sculpture appears to be metal, but it's really made of hand-carved, painted wood.

I was actually looking to buy a $20 battery from an ad on Craigs List when I accidentally happened upon Mary Martin's studio. Martin showed me the inside of her studio, talked about her art, and discussed where she gets materials. (By the way, Mary Martin is no relation to Mike Martin, the highly-esteemed commander of the Fourth Precinct, which was one of the first questions I asked)

Martin's carving material--some of it very large--comes from trees which have been sawed down in the neighborhood, some quite close to her house. A small network of friends and neighbors are aware of...

...Martin's need for large pieces of wood, and they help Martin.

Martin's art is studio quality, and has been displayed in studios in the past, but Martin seems a bit put off from the studio scene. She speaks of how wood is not as respected of an artistic medium as other forms of expression, except when it's polished and displayed with its natural grain. Try to make something out of wood and paint it, and the artistic world doesn't seem to respect that as much.

Amazingly, Martin will carve a massive portion of a tree trunk--seemingly in love with the feel, the smell, the texture, the complexity of the natural grain--then coat the whole thing with paint. My first impulse would be to think: Why did you do that? Why did you carve it so carefully then slap paint over it? But then I think deeper, and I realize Martin's art is a metaphor for the way people must behave in Western Civilization: we mask our true, complex individual nature beneath a facade of cosmetics, material possessions, acceptable public statements.

I'm not going to print Martin's exact address (she seems private and introverted in some ways) but her studio can be found near 35th Ave. N. and Logan Ave. N. if you're looking for it.
Martin's studio floor appears to have numerous "tattoos" in various languages.
You'd never guess this statue is made of painted wood unless you walked right up and touched it.
During times when she is in her studio, Martin puts up the garage door and puts an "open" sign on the "people door."

The Arts Are Revitalizing West Broadway...

This video on YouTube was drawn to my attention by NoMi glass artist Connie Beckers, a.k.a. "The Goddess Of Glass." It's about artists and their role in revitalizing West Broadway. Here's what somebody told me about the video...

A documentary video by Samantha Robinson for the Northside Arts Collective:

This film project is an extension of a research project on the role of artists in urban redevelopment and gentrification that Samantha Robinson completed as a Lilly Fellow at Macalester College in the summer of 2009. She decided to use video, a medium with which she had limited experience, to recount North Minneapolis residents’ memories and reimaginings of West Broadway. After months of wrangling artists, business owners, and politicians, filming interviews, and editing numerous hours of footage, She submitted a final cut of “Visions” to the 2009 Filmanthropist Project Competition, a local film competition for amateur filmmakers with an emphasis on socially conscious filmmaking, in December.

Last month, “Visions” was selected as a top ten film, screened at the Oak Street Cinema, and awarded second place.

From a letter to the Northside Arts Collective Board of Directors, "I hope that this piece of artwork contributes to the achievement of the NAC’s goals, because the process of its creation has altered the course of my life."

As a result of this project, she is currently enrolled in two media arts courses at MCAD and plans to pursue an MFA in Film Production.

(Blog post by John Hoff, blogging on the road from Manhattan, Kansas)

Mysterious "Adult Swim" Mural Appears In NoMi...

Photo By John Hoff

For a couple weeks, I've been wondering about a cryptic and mysterious wall mural which appeared on the side of 2230 Washington Ave. N. Finally, a couple days ago, I examined the mural with my friend Connie Nompelis. (No-bell-iss, it's Greek)

Upon further examination, I saw...

The mural had the words "Adult Swim" on the side, click here for their website, which features cartoons for a grown-up sense of humor but isn't really "adult" humor in the more common sense of the term.

A little Googling revealed these murals have been popping up around the country, and at least one individual thought the murals were asking whether traditional Christmas is still relevant in the modern world. So there. Mystery solved.

While I was looking at the building, I noticed this cool star-shaped feature on the exterior. There are so many cool, historical buildings in NoMi and, for that matter, all over Minneapolis.

Too bad we have a Heritage Preservation Commission that is toothless, powerless and, at times, willfully blind and ignorant...not to mention a few of the commissioners who don't even bother to show up for a meeting.

But, oops, that's a different topic for a different post.

FREE BEER During Art Flow (Shameless Plug)

Facebook Image, BLO FLOWing Beer Tasting

Broadway Liquor Outlet, known far and wide as "BLO," will be having a free beer tasting during the North Minneapolis Art FLOW, Saturday, July 25 from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. at their location on 2201 West Broadway.

Oh, yes...

...the beer will FLOW at BLO. So far, the event is being advertised on Facebook under "BLO FLOWing Beer Tasting."

BLO also has monthly wine-tasting events.

Drummer Of The Band "Watson" Goes NoMi...

Photo By John Hoff

Brian Mondl of the band "Watson," also known as the "Thong Master," appreciated the recent props from this blog. Yesterday he picked up a NoMi sticker which he vowed to display on his basehead drum to promote our rapidly-revitalizing neighborhood.

Click here for a link which gives info on a July 2 appearance by Watson. 

(Do not click "Read More")

NoMi's "Goddess Of Glass" Makes Front Page Of STrib During Gay Pride Week...

Photos by John Hoff

Artist Connie Beckers and her partner, Tracy Allen, well-known North Minneapolis residents, were effectively the "faces of Minneapolis gay pride" today in the Star Tribune's coverage of Pride Week.

Beckers is called the "Goddess of Glass" for her amazing work with stained glass windows. She is also involved in the ad hoc NoMi group which is rebranding North Minneapolis.

In the pictures above, Connie is at North United Methodist where photos were taken for a NoMi-themed calendar. Connie is to the right, in green. "Sara" (spelling unknown) is to the left. She is Connie's "personal tattoo artist and glass apprentice."

In the bottom image, Connie shows off her Emerald City "Wizard of Oz" tattoo.

(Do not click "Read More")

Artistic Boarding In Cottage Park Area Of The Jordan Neighborhood (Summer Visitation 2009)

Photos By John Hoff 

As early as March of 2008, I was writing about "artistic boarding" and saying how it was a good idea. Well, more than a year later, with even MORE vacant houses in North Minneapolis...it's still a good idea. But it's not much MORE than a good idea, because very few boarded buildings are anywhere close to being "artistically" boarded. This good idea seems to have taken a permanent place on the back burner.

With such nice weather, and so many drab, gray boards...I think it's time to raise this issue again. A few days ago I was in the Cottage Park area of the Jordan Neighborhood and I snapped these photos of a nice example of artistic boarding.

My son agreed the boards painted to look like a window complete with curtains were "kind of cool."

(Do not click "Read More")

See Glass Blowing In NoMi Today, Tomorrow...

Flickr.com image

FK Art Glass, located in a residence at 2210 Bryant Ave. N., is part of an event called "Art-A-Whirl" and they will be having tours and barbecue TODAY, Saturday, May 16, from 6 to 9 PM.

(There are also some "open hours" tomorrow, Sunday, May 17, from noon to 5 PM)

The house where FK Art glass is located is very striking, because it is an old house in mid-renovation. Part of the exterior has been redone in a colorful way, but part remains the old exterior. You kinda gotta see it to believe it. Very cool, very artsy, very NoMi.

Of course, anybody who wants to purchase a house and blow glass, make art out of tree trunks, do WHATEVER can get houses in NoMi for, like, geez I saw a great one listed at $13,900 the other day and it wasn't even CONDEMNED.

Anyway, if you're in NoMi (North Minneapolis) and you'd like to take in the glass blowing thing, get to 2210 Bryant Ave. N. The flier I was handed with this info says, "Obviously we have HOT glass, but there will also be HOT dogs and HOT bratwurst and HOT chicken. You get the idea."

For more information, call FK Art Glass at 612-521-9773

(Do not click "Read More")