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Part I here

Click on picture for larger picture.


Hand mural Hand mural
In an alley half a block from Main Street is this mural, which no other explanation. I like the concept, the odd hands away from the group at the top, and the pink feet at bottom right. River Falls, 4/22/09
Downtown Sculpture Downtown Sculpture
The other side of the riverwalk, facing Main Street, with some memorial bricks at the base. River Falls, WI 4/22/09
Brickhouse Music guitar selection Brickhouse Music guitar selection
Every town of 10,000 should have a good music store. Here, one of the clerks at Brickhouse Music poses in front of the electric guitars. The acoustic selection is in another room. River Falls, WI 4/22/09
River Falls Rainbow River Falls Rainbow
Walking around, the weather was great. Rain barely marred the day, and then ended with a gorgeous rainbow. I couldn't capture the whole arc, and pushed this a bit in Photoshop, but you get the idea. River Falls, WI 4/22/09

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Sometimes, despite the Michele Bachmanns and Tim Pawlentys littering the landscape, I really love Minnesota.

Click on picture for larger picture.

Downtown Minneapolis 5/21/08 Downtown Minneapolis 6/11/08
Downtown on a normal evening; note all the lights on.
Downtown Minneapolis just before Earth Hour 3/28/09 Downtown Minneapolis just before Earth Hour 3/28/09
Note Wells Fargo building (yellow, in middle) all lit up; Target building (colored lights to left) still on, but other building in center right has lights off, 8:30pm.
Downtown Minneapolis during Earth Hour 3/28/09 Downtown Minneapolis during Earth Hour 3/28/09
Note that Wells Fargo, Target and other buildings with lights off, 9:30pm.

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I haven't posted many pictures to LJ recently, largely because it's been too cold to take new ones and I've been doing Other Projects rather than digging through old photos to find interesting in the Hidden Minneapolis series. Still, I've found a few. Here is a picture of a mural taken very far south, sometime in the late evening, with a flash. It was high summer in Ushuaia, but the sun does set.


Mural in Ushuaia, Argentina Mural in Ushuaia, Argentina
December 7, 2005, coming back from Antarctica. The boat docked in the southern Tierra del Fuego city, and I explored.

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Continuing from Continuing from Intermedia Arts Arts 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008 part 1, 2008 part 2 and part 3

A few extras. Neither of these shots is of Intermedia Arts, or the responsibility of anyone therein, but I took both of them in the same walk after a Fringe show, and they are related. Vaguely.

Art van in Intermedia Arts parking lot
Art van in the parking lot of Intermedia Arts
Minneapolis, MN, August 9, 2008CE

Mural on Planet Soccer building
Mural on Planet Soccer building
Minneapolis, MN, August 9, 2008CE

Planet Soccer is on the next block north from Intermedia Arts, and this mural faces south to a parking lot.

I was on my way to the last picture in this Fringe Festival report.

Tomorrow morning, early, I'm flying to Washington DC for Thanksgiving. I'll be back by Monday, in theory. My participation in LJ will be limited. Hope you've enjoyed watching Intermedia Arts facade change through the years!
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Continuing from Intermedia Arts Arts 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008 pt 1 and 2008 part 2

Intermedia Arts, Mpls
Intermedia Arts parking lot (notw bench at left from previous shot)
Minneapolis, MN, August 9, 2008CE

Intermedia Arts, Mpls
Intermedia Arts parking lot, further on
Minneapolis, MN, August 9, 2008CE

Intermedia Arts, Mpls
Intermedia Arts parking lot, waste bins
Minneapolis, MN, August 9, 2008CE

No surface at Intermedia Arts is left un-arted, apparently. The whole place is worth a visit (and a donation), not just during the Fringe Festival.

Next (and last in the Intermedia Arts series unless I dig up more): A few extras
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Continuing from Intermedia Arts Arts 2005, 2006, 2007 and 2008 pt 1
(let's see if I can squeeze all four parts in before I go to Washington DC for Thanksgiving)

So far, I've only taken pictures of the facade of the Intermedia Arts Building. Ah, but all of the outside walls are space for art as well.

Intermedia Arts, Mpls
Intermedia Arts, alleyway
August 9, 2008CE

Intermedia Arts, Mpls
Intermedia Arts, around the back
August 9, 2008CE

Intermedia Arts, Mpls
Intermedia Arts, parking lot
August 9, 2008CE

Intermedia Arts, Mpls
Intermedia Arts, close up of directions
August 9, 2008CE
 
Wall behind bench reads:
RULES OF THE GAME
Painting on walls by permission only
Please respect our neighbors buildings
We reserve the right to paint over any piece,
or to ask any person to stop printing anytime
Do your best work... take your time...
rest obscured by bench; you'll have to visit

Next: Intermedia Arts part 3, the rest of the parking lot walls continuing to Part 4, a few extras
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Continuing from Intermedia Arts 2005, Intermedia Arts 2006 and Intermedia Arts 2007

By the 2008 Minnesota Fringe Festival, I'd finally twigged to the amazing effort that Intermedia Arts was putting in and around their entire building. The Theme for this year, both outside and in, was "Build Bridges Not Fences". These three shots are, iirc, most of the facade facing the street, left to right.

Building Bridges, Intermedia Arts, Mpls
"Build Bridges..."
Intermedia Arts, facing Lyndale Ave
Minneapolis, MN, August 2, 2008CE

Intermedia Arts, Mpls
note continuation of bridge and start of rainbow
Intermedia Arts, facing Lyndale Ave
Minneapolis, MN, August 2, 2008CE

Not fences, Intermedia Arts, Mpls
"...Not Fences"
Intermedia Arts, facing Lyndale Ave
Minneapolis, MN, August 2, 2008CE

Next: Part 2, the side of the building continuing to Part 3, the parking lot and Part 4, a few extras
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Continuing from Intermedia Arts 2005 and Intermedia Arts 2006

The I-35W Bridge collapsed the day before the 2007 Minnesota Fringe Festival started, which cast a bit of a pall on the event, and sucked up some of my extra-Fringe photo journalism. I only took two mural pics that year.

Intermedia Arts facade, 2007
Intermedia Arts, facing Lyndale Ave.
Minneapolis, MN, August 10, 2007CE
word balloon: "Girls Gotta Be Strong", a theme of the inside exhibits

Intermedia Arts facade, 2007
Intermedia Arts, facing Lyndale Ave.
Minneapolis, MN, August 10, 2007CE

Next: Intermedia Arts 2008 part 1, 2008 part 2, 2008 part 3 and part 4, a few extras
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Continuing from Intermedia Arts 2005.

This year, the murals on the facade of Intermedia Arts were a bit more political, a bit more bawdy.

Intermedia Arts, 2006
Intermedia Arts facing Lyndale Ave.
Minneapolis, MN August 6, 2006CE

Intermedia Arts, 2006
Intermedia Arts facing Lyndale Ave.
Minneapolis, MN August 6, 2006CE

Intermedia Arts, 2006
Intermedia Arts facing Lyndale Ave.
Minneapolis, MN August 6, 2006CE
note book: My Pet Goat

Next: Intermedia Arts 2007 continuing to Intermedia Arts 2008 part 1, part 2, part 3 and part 4, a few extras
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Dunn Brothers Mural
Dunn Brothers Mural
Lake and Bryant, Minneapolis, 6/18/08

Again, not particularly hidden but you either have to park in the Dunn Brothers Coffee on the corner of Lake and Bryant or catch a glimpse as you hurl west on Lake.

In other news: Political interviews and RNC coverage is gearing up. I may even go back to the Fair, probably Saturday. I'll be at the MoveOne.org Obama-watching party at Williams Pub tonight. Should be entertaining.
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Palmer's Bar, Minneapolis
Palmer's Bar, 5th & Cedar, Mpls
whilst traveling with [livejournal.com profile] dreamshark and Richard to a Fringe show, 8/2/08

This was taken in the early evening with the spotlights on, giving an ethereal effect. I don't recall ever going in Palmer's Bar but it's been a West Bank institution for as long as I can remember.

The bar is between the Bedlam Theater, functioning as Fringe Central for the 2008 Minnesota Fringe Festival, and the venues at the U of M's Rarig Center. [livejournal.com profile] dreamshark and Richard were cycling, but we "joined forces" and passed by.

Palmer's is the Northernmost establishment on the block. All the buildings on that side of Cedar between 5th and 6th are connected (and presumably share a common basement). As I was taking a different route between Bedlam and the U, on the 6th St. side of Cedar I passed by

mural at 6th & Cedar, Minneapolis
Sgt. Pepper mural at approximately 6th & Cedar, Mpls
whilst taking a different route to a Fringe show, 8/4/08

Aside: The guy on the lower right was carrying his severely damaged bicycle to the Hub. We had talked briefly closer to Bedlam, but by this time it was clear where he was going and that a hand would be helpful. I carried his tires to the corner, then bid him adieu. He's a Fringer, and we may meet, and he may tell me the story of how the damage occurred.
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Mural at Lake and 4th Ave Minneapolis
Mural at the bus stop on Lake and 4th Ave
from across the street
Minneapolis, June 9, 2008CE

Mural at Lake and 4th Ave Minneapolis
close-up of Mural at Lake and 4th Ave
Minneapolis, June 9, 2008CE

Mural at Lake and 4th Ave Minneapolis
Mural across the street from the bus stop on Lake and 4th Ave
view from the bus stop
Minneapolis, June 9, 2008CE


These two murals, which face each other on 4th Ave just south of the intersection with Lake Street, are probably the least hidden of any of the murals so far. Still, few people on my flist take the #11 bus, or stop at Lake Street, and this will be new to the ooties.

Forgive the three pics, but I wanted to impart a sense of place. In the top shot, you can see the bus stop (the small red sign on the left near where the person is waiting) as well as the intersection signpost. This is looking east. People stand at that stop all the time, and probably don't do more than glance at the mural behind them. The second shot is a closer view. Looks sort of like Duck Dogders on meth.

The third picture is across the street, looking west on 4th Ave. near the bus stop. [livejournal.com profile] gamerchick translated from the Spanish. The attribution on the lower right says, "Cuauhtemoc Huei Tlatoani, Tenochtitlan, Mexico, 1521" Cuauhtemoc, the great speaker, was the last ruler of the Aztecs, and is a revered figure in Mexico for standing up to Cortes, however unsuccessfully.

The Last Command of Our Venerated Leader Cuauhtemoc

Our destiny has now hidden itself, (or "been hidden", both readings are implied)
Our sun majestically
Concealed its face, and
It has left us in the most complete darkness.
Certainly we know that it will return again
That it will come out again and newly arrive
To illuminate us. Insomuch as it
Remains there among the dead, soon
Let us gather and in the center of our
Heart let us hide all that our
Heart loves, we know that it is our
Treasure and to us it is like an emerald stone...

Until such time as our new sun deigns
To come out, may our venerated fathers and mothers
Never forget to speak of it to our children,
And teach to their children while they (the fathers and mothers) live,
Just how good, until now,
Our beloved Anahuak has been...Now we
Pass on the work to our children:
That they never forget to teach to their children
How resplendent the dawn will be, how
Our venerated sun will spread again,
And exactly how she will conserve her strength,
And how she will greatly fulfill her promise,
Our beloved mother Anahuak!

- Cuauhtemoc Huei Tlatoani, Tenochtitlan, Mexico, 1521

(Note: Anahuak is the Nahuatl [Aztec language] name for the Valley of
Mexico, where Tenochtitlan [capital of the Aztec Empire] was located.
Tenochtitlan is now modern-day Mexico City.)

We began this short multi-cultural iconography at the Western bar which used to be an Irish pub with the wild mural in the parking lot on the same block as a Muslim prayer center. Three blocks later we've seen large murals from an arabic culture, a latino culture, some wild imaginations and an image from Mexican/Native American culture. While I think I've recorded all the murals near this section of Lake Street, to fully revel in Minneapolis street culture one must duck into some of the shops and restaurants and talk to some of the people as they pass by.

edited to add translation from [livejournal.com profile] gamerchick
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Lake Street Mural, Minneapolis
left part of Mural, roughly Lake Street and 3rd Ave, Minneapolis
June 9, 2008

Lake Street Mural, Minneapolis
right part of Mural, roughly Lake Street and 3rd Ave, Minneapolis
June 9, 2008

More mural art near where I live, on the south side of Lake Street getting closer to the heart of a latino community. This mural is on the side of a building, facing the parking lot. Visible but hard to see this from Lake.

In other news:

The calm before the storm. This will be my last quiet weekend, possibly my last quiet day, for a while. Next week starts the Minnesota Fringe Festival, and my coverage begins well before the July 31 opening. Then the Republicans are coming. Yoiks! I wish I got paid for some of this...

The Applecon galleries are done. I still don't have full annotation for everyone, but all the pictures are captioned and I've connected the site to the rest of the world. Anything else will be tweaking. Tell your friends and other interested parties.
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Minnehaha Creek
Minnehaha Creek, downstream from the Falls
Minneapolis, July 19, 2008CE

Minnehaha Creek isn't exactly hidden, but this part of the park is certainly off the beaten path.

Minnehaha Creek, part of the Minnehaha Creek Watershed District, wends its way from Lake Minnetonka through South Minneapolis, pausing at Minnehaha Falls, before the confluence with the Mississippi River. The Falls have been one of Minnesota's major tourist attractions since Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's poem The Song of Hiawatha in 1855. [livejournal.com profile] minnehaha K has all sorts of pictures and stereopticons and such, and can tell you a great deal more about the park.

Most people come to Minnehaha Park in South Minneapolis to see the falls. The 53 foot plunge is gorgeous, and the rain during the MN-StF picnic swelled the creek. Aside from the falls, visible from the picnic area level, there are paths that follow the creek. Several of us braved the mud to take in the lower paths including [livejournal.com profile] fmsv, [livejournal.com profile] cowfan, [livejournal.com profile] quadong, Kelly (on LJ?), [livejournal.com profile] sevenmpls, Dorf and [livejournal.com profile] jiawen This picture is from a hundred yards or so downstream from the falls, taken from a bridge over the creek at the behest of [livejournal.com profile] jiawen who wanted it as a desktop.

Tweaked per comments by [livejournal.com profile] minnehaha K
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Wow, I've been so busy with convention galleries and such that I hope I remember where these are from. Off Lake Street, next to the Taco Bell between 1st and 2nd Sts, near where 35W goes over Lake, across the street from the McDonalds. That whole area has a bunch of murals and this one is on the same block as as the arabic mural, the Roundup/Irish Too signs and the parking lot mural from previous Hidden Minneapolis posts.

Latino mural in Minneapolis
left section of Latino Mural in South Minneapolis, 6/6/08

Latino mural in Minneapolis
right section of Latino Mural in South Minneapolis, 6/6/08

The area on the South side of Lake from 1st St. to 4th is rife with building art. More later.
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Let me clear off some PhotoShop files before I plunge into Convergence cropping. I'll get back to the con in a bit. In the meantime, here is soemthing I've been working on for a while.

Most of the Hidden Minneapolis series so far has been within a few blocks of where I live. Finally, it occurred to me that one of the more interesting and yet obscure parts of the city is literally in my back yard.

Nicollet Park

Here's what I see when I leave my apartment.

Nicollet-Lake branch of Wells Fargo
The Nicollet-Lake branch of the Wells Fargo Bank
looking South

A standard bank in a standard location. But wait! The bank has provided a small green area between the parking lot and the bank building, which is in the center left of the above shot.

Rest area at Wells Fargo Nicollet-Lake
Rest area just outside the bank


But, I hear you asking rhetorically, what is that plaque?
What is that plaque? More pictures and history behind cut )
It's kind of neat to think that Babe Ruth once spit where my apartment is standing now!

The Millers moved to Metropolitan Stadium in 1956 and folded in 1960 when the Washington Senators became the Minnesota Twins in 1961, bringing major league baseball (and eventually two World Series trophies) to the former backwater city. Their crosstown rivals, the St. Paul Saints, also folded in 1960 but were revived as a minor league team in 1993 and are still playing today. But not here.
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Mural off Lake St. in Minneapolis
Mural off Lake Street in Minneapolis

Mural off Lake St. in Minneapolis
Mural off Lake Street in Minneapolis, across the alley

Just east of I-35W on Lake, roughly across the street from the McDonald's, is a building with offices and a series of bodega-style shops taken over by the Hispanic population. Not very far away (on the same block) is an Islamic prayer center, and I'm assuming that people from the Middle East own (or owned) the building, which goes over the alley. Dueling demographics coexist!

A wide alley leads from Lake to a parking lot. The back has entrances to both sides of the building, so even people who drive don't necessarily get a good view of these wall paintings. The top picture is facing east on the alley. Behind the wall is a decent Mexican restaurant. The bottom picture is facing west. Both murals decorate the whole wall.
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Roundup Bar and Grill
Roundup Bar and Grill, Mpls, 6/9/08

The Roundup Bar and Grill is on the corner of 2nd Ave. and Lake Street. That's 35W in the background. Across the street is a McDonald's, and down the street is an emerging Latino set of storefronts. I've never been to the Roundup, even though it's two blocks from where I live. Maybe it's that they don't have Buffalo Burgers or Ostrich Burgers like the old place did.

What old place, you may ask? Many on my FList have been in the establishment, some as performers. It used to be known as the Irish Too Pub, a grungy bar that occasionally had live music. That place is long gone, closed by the health department and/or the police or something. But memories survive, as does the sign in the parking lot in the back.

Irish Too Pub
Irish Too Pub sign, in back, Mpls 6/9/08

If you turned 90 degrees to the right, you would see the mural who's picture I posted Friday.
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Minneapolis Mural
Minneapolis Mural
June 9, 2008CE

Edited: This is just off 2nd Ave., the parking lot behind the Roundup Bar and Grill on the corner of Lake St. If you take the Lake St/31st Ave exit off 35W you will see the mural if you look to the right as you approach Lake.