Target Free Thursday Nights in March at the Walker Art Center Include Teen Poetry Slam, Women with Vision Screenings, Gallery Talk on Kiki Smith, and Rirkrit Tiravanija in Conversation

The Walker Art Center’s Target Free Thursday Nights in March are highlighted by a teen poetry slam contest on Thursday, March 2, at 7 pm, featuring Twin Cities finalists from a citywide competition who have qualified to perform in New York City for the Brave New Voices’ Poetry Slam. On the same night at 7 pm, is another edition of the Walker’s book club, The Artist’s Bookshelf, featuring the book Fledgling by Octavia E. Butler. Other highlights in March include gallery tours; screenings from the Women with Vision festival, including the films Sisters in Law (March 9, 7 pm) and Boys from Baraka (March 16, 7 pm); a Gallery Talk with novelist Siri Hustvedt on artist Kiki Smith (March 9, 7 pm); Radio mnartists: Live at the McGuire, hosted by KFAI’s Marya Morstad and featuring interviews and performances by Minnesota artists (March 16, 8 pm); a Contemporary Art in Conversation between artist Rirkrit Tiravanija and author/critic Bruce Sterling (March 23, 8 pm); and Got Mic?, featuring a performance by Oakland-based poet Ise Lyfe, followed by an open mic session for teens (March 30, 7 pm).

Target Free Thursday Nights are made possible by Target. Additional support provided by The Institute of Museum and Library Services.

Target Free Thursday Nights

March 2, 9, 16, 23, 30
Galleries open 5–9 pm; special events follow.
Free

Thursday, March 2

Some Assembly Required: Contemporary Prefabricated Houses tour, 6 pm

Quest for the Voice: Minnesota’s Brave New Voices Teen Poetry Slam Showcase

McGuire Theater, 7 pm
Free, but ticket required; available from 6 pm at the Hennepin Lobby desk.
This night of slam poetry features Twin Cities finalists from a citywide competition who have qualified to perform in New York City for the Brave New Voices’ Poetry Slam, which brings together more than 500 teen poets from around the world. Copresented by the Walker Art Center Teen Arts Council (WACTAC), Teens Rock the Mic, the Minnesota Spoken Word Association (MNSWA), and Spoken Word University.

Teen Programs are made possible by generous support from the Surdna Foundation and Best Buy Children’s Foundation.

The Artist’s Bookshelf: Fledgling by Octavia E. Butler
Conference Room, 7 pm
Free, but reservations required; call 612.375.7600.
The Artist’s Bookshelf is a book club that focuses on shared themes between contemporary literature and contemporary art. In this book, a nine-year-old girl suffering from amnesia discovers that she is actually a genetically modified, 53-year-old vampire. This unflinching parable examining racism, sexism, and the human body serves as a provocative companion to Kiki Smith’s equally bold take on bodily functions, fairy tales, and mythology.

Before the discussion, join a free public tour of the exhibition Kiki Smith: A Gathering, 1980–2005 at 6 pm. Books for the Artist’s Bookshelf can be found in the Walker Shop and at the Minneapolis Public Library www.mplib.org. Presented in partnership with the Friends of the Minneapolis Public Library.

Thursday, March 9

Architecture tour, 6 pm

Screening: Women with Vision 2006

Sisters in Law, 7 pm
Directed by Florence Ayisi and Kim Longinotto
Post-screening discussion led by Nyango Melissa Nambangi
In the little town of Kumba, Cameroon, there had been no convictions in spousal abuse cases for 17 years. Thanks to tough-minded state prosecutor Vera Ngassa and court president Beatrice Ntuba, however, things are starting to change. They are determined to help women in their Muslim village find the courage to fight difficult cases, despite pressures from family and their community to remain silent. Moreover, these two feisty and progressive women challenge prevailing attitudes about the status of women and children village-wide. Winner of the Prix Art et Essai at the 2005 Cannes Film Festival. 2005, Cameroon/UK, color, 35mm, in Pidgin English/Hausa/English with English subtitles, 104 minutes.

Take a free gallery tour before the screening: Kiki Smith: A Gathering, 1980–2005, 6 pm.

Gallery Talk: Siri Hustvedt on Kiki Smith

Thursday, March 9, 7 pm
Meet in the Bazinet Garden Lobby
Acclaimed novelist Siri Hustvedt is a fiction writer with a sharp eye for visual art. In her book of essays Mysteries of the Rectangle, she reflects on paintings by such artists as Francisco de Goya, Gerhardt Richter, and Joan Mitchell with the elegant prose of a poet and the scholarship of an art historian. Follow along as she talks about the act of looking while discussing selected works in the exhibition Kiki Smith: A Gathering, 1980–2005.

Thursday, March 16

Kiki Smith: A Gathering, 1980–2005 tour, 6 pm

Screening: Women with Vision 2006

Boys of Baraka, 7 pm
Directed by Heidi Ewing and Rachel Grady
Introduced by codirector Rachel Grady
This unique coming-of-age documentary tracks a group of 12-year-old boys from the most violent neighborhood in Baltimore to an experimental boarding school in rural Kenya. An emotionally explosive journey shot over three years, the film zeroes in on kids society has labeled “throwaways” who are willing to chase this opportunity for a better future across an ocean. 2005, U.S., color, video, 84 minutes.

Take a gallery tour before the screening: Kiki Smith: A Gathering, 1980–2005, 6 pm.

Radio mnartists: Live at the McGuire

William and Nadine McGuire Theater, 8 pm
Reception/Registration: 7–8 pm, Hennepin Lobby
Free, but ticket required; available from 6 pm at the Hennepin Lobby desk.
Hosted by KFAI’s Marya Morstad and the McKnight Foundation’s Neal Cuthbert, this evening in the McGuire Theater features interviews, performances, and lively conversation with Minnesota artists Black-Eyed Snakes, Jake Keeler, Live Action Set with Spaghetti Western String Company, Truth Maze, and many more. Help us celebrate Minnesota’s vibrant arts culture and the radical democracy that is mnartists.org. A cash-bar reception with member registration assistance on the site is hosted by mnartists.org prior to the event. Live at the McGuire will be webcast live on mnartists.org and rebroadcast on KFAI Fresh Air Community Radio and AMPERS Independent Radio Stations statewide. For more information, call 612.375.7611.

Radio mnartists began as a series of 20 conversations with a varied group of artists from around Minnesota. Produced by Marya Morstad, an award-winning producer and host of Art Matters on KFAI Fresh Air Community radio, the ongoing series reflects the diversity of artists working throughout the state and gives arts enthusiasts a compelling entry point into the broader Minnesota arts culture reflected on mnartists.org.

mnartists.org is a project of the McKnight Foundation and the Walker Art Center. Media support provided by IPR Radio Stations.

Thursday, March 23

Gallery tour, 6 pm

Contemporary Art in Conversation: Rirkrit Tiravanija and Bruce Sterling

McGuire Theater, 8 pm
Free, but ticket required; available from 7 pm at the Hennepin Lobby desk.
If you’re in the right place at the right time, artist Rirkrit Tiravanija might cook you dinner—you and anyone else who wanders into one of his infamous installations in which he prepares Thai food as art. One of the most influential artists to emerge in the 1990s, Tiravanija builds on the idea put forth by Joseph Beuys of “social sculpture,” which seeks to diminish boundaries between art and life. His recent project, The Land (1998–present), which he cofounded, is an environmental reclamation project near Chiang Mai, Thailand, that brings together art, architecture, and agriculture. Joining the artist in conversation is Bruce Sterling, science-fiction writer, Wired magazine blogger, and noted critic of technology and culture. His fiction includes Mirrorshades: A Cyberpunk Anthology (1986) and Heavy Weather (1994). An environmentalist, Sterling’s ideas on ecologically sound design can be found at veridiandesign.org.

Thursday, March 30

OPEN-ENDED (the art of engagement) tour, 6 pm

Teen Open Mic Night: Got Mic?

Cinema, 7 pm
Join us in the OPEN-ENDED exhibition gallery for a performance by Oakland-based poet Ise Lyfe, who has been featured on Russell Simmons’ Def Poetry Jam and recently put out his third album, Spread the Word. Cap off the night with an open mic session at 8 pm. Co-presented by the Walker Art Center Teen Arts Council (WACTAC) and the Minnesota Spoken Word Association (MNSWA).