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Public Address is a platform for wide-ranging discussion of innovative projects, and practices. Read here for news, announcements, and postings and sign up for our e-newsletter here.

Contemporary art is increasingly “untethered” and moves from the white cube of the gallery to any site – including the virtual – to engage the public in its own realm. Public art is an ever-expanding field of inquiry, with artists of all stripes exploring the public realm. Beyond murals, monuments, memorials (and the occasional mime) public art has become a vibrant and engaging practice. From the spectacular to the quotidian, permanent to ephemeral, sited to virtual, material to performative, conceptual to cinematic, we believe there are unprecedented opportunities for new art practices in our shared environment. This is the critical focus of Public Address.

Northern Spark 2022 Artist Announcement – Press Release

Author
Sarah Peters
Post
04.28.2022

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Northern Lights.mn announces the artist projects of Northern Spark 2022 Northern Spark artists explore “What the World Needs Now” in St. Paul with soul-fueling art and community all-night on June 11 (St. Paul, MN) April 28, 2022 — Northern Lights.mn announces the artists and projects for the all-night, in-person participatory Northern Spark art […]

Telethon Sponsorship

Author
Sarah Peters
Post
03.13.2022

We’re seeking Sponsors for the Northern Lights.mn Telethon! A fundraiser for the Northern Spark festival and Northern Lights.mn Wednesday, April 20, 7:30-9 pm In-Person (limited seats) at Nanotako Studios and broadcast LIVE on YouTube  Featuring:  John Gebratatose from HUGE Theater and Black Out Improv returns as host!  The Northern Spark Kazoo band! Mayda as House Band!  […]

Northern Lights.mn Telethon 2022 – Postponed

Author
Anthonia Eboreime
Post
02.17.2022

IMPORTANT UPDATE, April 20, 2022: TELETHON IS POSTPONED We are sad to announce that we have made the decision to postpone tonight’s Telethon until a later date. One of our key players tested positive for COVID today and with the health of our performers, crew, and their families in mind, we feel this is the […]

Important announcement about the Future River artist opportunity

Author
Sarah Peters
Post
12.23.2021

December 23, 2021 Since our announcement on 12/16/2021 of the finalists for the Future River Call for Augmented Reality Projects we have learned of concerns about the call’s process and lack of care around our definitions of the terms Native and Indigenous.   In the call we used the language “Native artists or artist teams with […]

Assistant Producer – Northern Spark 2022 Job Description – Application Deadline closed

Author
Anthonia Eboreime
Post
12.3.2021

Northern Lights.mn supports artists in the creation and presentation of art in the public sphere to imagine new interactions between audience, artwork and place and explore expanded possibilities for civic engagement. Our largest program is Northern Spark, a free, annual, late-night, multidisciplinary arts festival that takes place in June and draws thousands of Minnesotans each […]

Northern Spark 2022 Open Call for Participatory Installations

Author
Anthonia Eboreime
Post
11.15.2021

Northern Spark 2021 at Victoria Theater Arts Center. Photo by Bruce Silcox. Image Description: People gather to make art under white tents and twinkly lights across a twilight sky.  Find a downloadable version of this call here. Apply here. Application Deadline extended: Sunday, January 9, 2022, at 11:59 pm CT. WHAT IS NORTHERN SPARK? Northern Spark […]

Northern Spark 2022 Open Call for Festival Closing Event

Author
Anthonia Eboreime
Post
11.15.2021

Census by Pramila Vasudevan and collaborators, Northern Spark 2016. Photo: Max Haynes. Image Description: a person wearing a grey hoodie sits with their back to a single lamp pole with a glowing light bulb. In front of them is a skyline at dawn with vivid orange, pink, purple and blue sunrise. Find a downloadable version […]

Support Northern Lights.mn to the Max

Author
Anthonia Eboreime
Post
11.15.2021

​​Your support raises us up!  We believe that art is what the world needs now. By supporting artists, we’re investing in opportunities to come together, explore ideas, heal, and grow. In 2021 our mission looked like:  A world premiere of an animation and soundscape by Moira Villiard and collaborators in 8 degree winter weather on […]

Northern Spark 2022 Theme and Open Calls

Author
Anthonia Eboreime
Post
11.15.2021

Northern Spark 2022: What the World Needs Now  We are excited to announce the theme, locations and Open Calls for Northern Spark 2022, the 11th festival since our beginning in 2011. Northern Spark 2022 will take place in-person along University Avenue in St. Paul, MN on Saturday, June 11, 2022 from 9 pm – 2 am. A […]

Get to know AOV11 artist, A.P. Looze

Author
Anthonia Eboreime
Post
09.10.2021

A.P. Looze (they/them) is a multi-disciplinary artist who surrenders to the unknown and believes in the healing power of the divine. For AOV11, Looze will expand upon a practice derived through the pandemic by creating a month-long immersive ceremony that will illuminate ancestral, descendant, and earth wisdom channeled through the medium of a flower: the rose. […]

Get to know AOV11 artist, Kelley Meister

Author
Anthonia Eboreime
Post
09.10.2021

Kelley Meister (ze/hir) is an interdisciplinary artist who uses drawings, sculpture, and time-based art to build transformative experiences and environments that encourage empathy through a shared emotional experience or exploration. Stay tuned to hotzone.kelleymeister.com for updates, to learn more, and hop on the ride! Here are a few questions we asked Kelley Meister to get to […]

The Future River: Call for Augmented Reality (AR) Project Proposals

Author
Sarah Peters
Post
09.10.2021

The Future River: Call for Augmented Reality (AR) Project Proposals Find a downloadable version of this call here. Phase 1 deadline: 11:59 pm CST, October 31, 2021. This call is closed.  Introduction Northern Lights.mn with long-time partners Mississippi Park Connection and the National Park Service are excited to announce a new opportunity for artists to engage […]

SPRING HOWL TELETHON

Author
Sarah Peters
Post
03.16.2021

Northern Lights.mn announces the Spring Howl Telethon, a live televised variety show produced by Northern Lights.mn partner Minnesota Community Network Channel 6 (MCN6) to support Northern Spark and Northern Lights.mn programming. Featuring: John Gebretatose of HUGE Improv Theater and Blackout Improv as host! 26BATS! as house band! Ifrah Mansour as Spring Howl poet! Sami Pfeffer […]

Essay on Madweyaashka: Waves Can Be Heard

Author
Sarah Peters
Post
02.17.2021

This essay was commissioned for the debut of Madweyaashka: Waves Can Be Heard by Moira Villiard in February 2021 as part of Illuminate the Lock.     Resilient: Searching for Connections through Waves By Suenary Philavanh    “Resilience: for a Native woman living in an urban, concrete jungle, what does that look like?” Where St. Anthony Falls […]

Northern Spark 2021: Alchemy

Author
Sarah Peters
Post
01.7.2021

Northern Spark 2021: Alchemy June 12 – 27, 2021 This summer the Northern Spark festival returns and takes new forms: in the mail, online, and in person, focused on two neighborhoods in St. Paul for a two week span of time.  In past years during Northern Spark, tens of thousands of people have gathered throughout […]