Welcome to the inaugural Northern Spark, a free, all-night festival of public art and performances taking place outdoors and indoors in both Minneapolis and Saint Paul from sundown to sunrise. There is magic in the night, when the familiar, like the city skyline, becomes majestic, and a starry sky can transport the imagination. One’s senses […]
The print Northern Spark program guide - 32 pages of not-to-be-missed projects and scheduled events along with essential "getting around" information - is hot off the presses and will be available at the following sites beginning on Saturday.
There's nothing typical about the newest Twin Cities arts festival. From the time it takes place -- sunset to sunrise -- to the number of local arts organizations involved -- more than 50 -- Northern Spark has potential to be a monumental arts event. Inspired by the worldly 'Nuit Blanche' movement of nighttime arts festivals that originated in Europe, Northern Spark plans to turn the urban landscapes of St. Paul and Minneapolis into one giant art gallery early next month.
Storytelling is a time-honored way to ward off the evil spirits at night - or just plain drowsiness. Laurie Hertzel has a nice blog post in On Books about the Bedtime Stories project, which is organized by the Rain Taxi Review of Books as part of the Walker Art Center's Nightshift program for Northern Spark.
There are many other opportunities for storytelling at Northern Spark.
Ai Minnesota Students, Artifact Shore, Luke Axelson, Leslie Ball, Bridget Beck, Christopher Baker, Robert Bauer, Amelia Biewald, Philip Blackburn, The BodyCartography Project, Bart Buch, Jill Burchill, Calamity and the Owl, Charles Campbell, Chris Campbell, Jim Campbell, Jaime Carrera, Genevieve Chamberland, Christopher Charbonneau, Melinda Childs, Bryan Clendenen, Barbara Claussen, Como Avenue Jug Band, Corbian Visual Arts […]
With over 100 projects and performances to be presented as part of Northern Spark, we want to thank all our partners and sponsors who are doing so much to make this possible by thoughtfully adding to the rich array of offerings from sunset to sunrise on June 4-5. Thank you! All My Relations Arts, American […]
Trumpet, Trombone/Baritone/Tuba, Percussion, and Piccolo
Performance opportunity on the Stone Arch Bridge
for dawn or dusk // homeward is a 10-15 minute sound work for 100+ local musicians playing brass, percussion, piccolos and tiny whistles. The site specific performance will take place on the Stone Arch Bridge, stretching across the Mississippi playing overlapping melodies derived from the route of the river. The piece follows the route of the river south past St. Louis, Memphis, New Orleans and into the Gulf of Mexico. The piece is written by Los Angeles based composer Chris Kallmyer who will come out to work with the group on June 3 + 4. If you would like to participate, please contact the event coordinator, Phil Snyder.
Public Address asked Northern Spark food curator Sarah Peters to write about the culinary art of the Festival.
Trolling the Twin Cities all night long to experience a spectacular array of artist projects requires some stamina. You can always stop into your favorite neighborhood joint to grab a bite, but we’ve rounded up some of the best food trucks in the Twin Cities to provide sustenance along the way. Stationed in each Zone, these mobile chefs will keep you happily fed, caffeinated and recharged. Eat your way through the festival starting with a sunset dinner and ending with breakfast at dawn!
Mobile Food at Northern Spark
Border Tacos truck. Photo by Aaron Fenster
“IN 2006, NORTHERN LIGHTS.MN founder, president, and artistic director, Steve Dietz, helped organize the first Zer01 SJ biennial, a seven day festival of art highlighting the theme of “the interactive city,” which took place in San Jose, California. The event was a huge success, featuring the work of more than 250 artists representing over 40 […]
Be part of an amazing team; make the very first Northern Spark nuit blanche a success by volunteering. Every volunteer who commits to a three-hour shift will receive a t-shirt designed by Matthew Rezac, will have their name listed on the website, and will gain a unique and invaluable experience. Northern Spark appreciates its volunteers. […]
It's unlikely that with all the excitement of Northern Spark that you won't be able to stay up all night, but just in case, Le Meridien Chambers Minneapolis is offering a special Northern Spark rate for the evening, where you can crash for a power nap, if you want to.
Chris Kallmyer testing the sound properties of the site.
All My Relations Arts invites you to join us for a community conversation with local Native American artists Mona Smith, Bobby Wilson and Robert Two Bulls. They will be talking with guest artists Rigo 23, whose work Oglala Oyate will screen during the Northern Spark festival at AMRA. Joining them will be Tom Poor Bear from Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota. Poor Bear worked with Rigo 23 and appears in the video. Curator and poet Heid Erdrich will moderate. Light refreshments will be served.
Mississippi Megalops is a floating Chautauqua featuring performances & presentations of history, art & science aboard an authentic paddle steamer riverboat. Tickets are free, but limited! To pre-book a ticket visit bit.ly/megalopstickets.
Would you like to be part of a unique musical performance? Do you like the standing above/between the banks of the Mississippi? Do you play a brass instrument or percussion? Do you like bridges? Are you free the evening of June 4th? Do you like sparklers? Do you want to be part of something you will talk about for years? Do you have friends that fit the above description too? If so…we have something you are going to love.
Support MIssissippi Megalops and receive reserved tickets for one of the more than 90 highlight events of Northern Spark.
We recently juried a number of open calls, and selected an amazing group of artists to present work at Northern Spark on June 4-5. This is not a complete list, yet. These projects will join those presented by Northern Lights and our more than 40 partners, many of which are listed on the Northern Spark website. Congratulations to these artists:
Emily Darnell, Molly Roth, Terese Elhard; Daniel Dean and Ben Moren; Ben Garthus; Leslie Kelman and Mark O'Brien; Osman Khan; Mina Leierwood and Mike Haeg; Norbert Lucas, Jerry Riess, Craig Mary Verhoeven; Aaron Marx; Megan Mertaugh; The Notion Collective (Andy Dayton, Jason Bahling, Michael Eckblad, Candice Heberer, Jon Wohl); Angela Olson; Stephen Rife; Carissa Samaniego and Bridget Beck; Skewed Visions (Charles Campbell, Gulgun Kayim, Sean Kelley-Pegg); Angela Sprunge, Dana Maiden , Julie Kesti , Scott Kesti, Kaara Nilsso.
MPR's Chris Roberts interviews Northern Spark Artistic Director Steve Dietz. Chris did a great job of zeroing in on some of the key questions about why Northern Spark and why the Twin Cities? Ultimately, only the Festival itself can make the case, but listen here for some initial thoughts. And start "training" now to stay up all night on June 4.
Post your submissions to Northern Spark here http://submissions.northern.lights.mn/northernspark Deadline March 7 midnight CST Northern Lights and our partners are sponsoring more than 20 calls for participation in the Northern Spark nuit blanche. Some are based on specific locations, some on specific media, and others are free form. The deadline for submitting proposals is March 7, […]
Maquette and photography by Rasun Mehringer | northernspark.org
"Lagoon," Photo Craig Simcox
Northern Lights and our partners are sponsoring more than 20 calls for participation in the Northern Spark nuit blanche twin cities. Some are based on specific locations, some on specific media, and others are free form. The deadline for submitting proposals is March 7, 2011. Any artist – or in the case of some of […]
Northern Spark homepage
nvas of light as leafy forms, birds, and other designs transformed the structure. via Hyperallergic
Northern Spark is a new MN Festival modeled on a nuit blanche or “white night” festival - a dusk to dawn participatory art event along the Mississippi and surrounding areas.
