Frozen lakes dotted with ice fishing shanties are a familiar sight during Midwest winters. In 2004, two Minnesota artists decided to use the milieu as a jumping-off point for creativity and community. Since then, the Art Shanty Projects have been coming to terms with climate change.
Artist Jill Wells’ murals transform ordinary buildings, uplifting Black culture.
Built on community, La Luz Centro Cultural provides a unique space for Latinos in rural Hampton, Iowa.
Basado en la comunidad, La Luz Centro Cultural entrega un espacio único para los latinos en Hampton rural, Iowa.
Aaron Foley’s novel, “Boys Come First,” will be made into a TV series by Amazon Studios. It’s a win for indie authors, the Black LGBTQIA+ community and the Midwest at large.
In Indigenous culture, the arts aren’t mere entertainment but a vital practice grounded in community. Those arts include hoop dancing, a form of storytelling through movement. Starr Chief Eagle is among a generation of women making the traditionally male practice their own.
Finnish music sensation Okra Playground brought its captivating and charming sound to South Dakota, connecting cultures through music.
Central Ohio is home to a thriving community of zine makers, zine libraries and zine festivals—proof that, even with the advent of technology, this beloved analog medium is here to stay.
People with developmental differences lead the way at this joy-fueled, accessibility-centered arts studio in Athens, Ohio.
If we told you there’s a farm where calving, cheese-making, watercolor painting, and singing (to cows) converge, would you believe us?
From a 138-year-old historic church to a vacant tube manufacturing building, these projects across the Midwest are staking out space for creativity to shine.