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On January 30th a dozen souls braved single digit temperatures to see the world premier of Kate Casanova and Chris Koza's short film Blizzard at Matt's Bar in the heart of South Minneapolis.

Blizzard is an experimental sound and video piece inspired by “At Matt’s Bar, in a Blizzard,” an essay from the book Potluck Supper with Meeting to Follow by Andy Sturdevant, which explores the introspective yet socially unifying experience of walking through a snowstorm. The exact blizzard that Sturdevant navigated en route to the iconic Matt’s Bar of Juicy Lucy fame, took place on February 20, 2011. Casanova & Koza used found YouTube footage taken by residents of the Twin Cities from that date as source material for the project.

To show the short film, we attached a projector and audio system to the top of a car and powered it with a borrowed generator, which you can clearly hear chugging away in the video above. With the go-ahead from Matt's staff confirmed, we screened the short film and then headed inside to warm up with burgers and beers.

Thanks to everyone that came out and special thanks to Kate and Chris for creating such a haunting meditation on winter in Minnesota. If you missed the premiere, you can still watch Blizzard online here. And thanks to Morgan L'Argent for capturing the video above!

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Back in October, artist Isa Newby Gagarin created a Potluck Project inspired by Andy Sturdevant's essay, "The User of This Material: In the Library Picture Files." This lovely print piece was distributed at Andy's book launch party, and has since been available at both Coffee House Press and Works Progress Studio. A few weeks ago I paid a visit to the library picture files at Minneapolis Central Library to see them for myself, and to share Isa's piece with the folks working behind the information desk. I'd heard rumor that the library was thinking of doing away with the picture files, and I wanted them to know that even in the age of easily-accessible digital images, artists and others still find that physical catalog of images useful and inspiring. I introduced the librarian on duty to Andy's book, the aformentioned essay, and Isa's print project. He seemed surprised at the attention directed toward such an often-overlooked library resource. He took a few copies for himself, and promised to pass them along to others. I pressed for more info, but he couldn't tell me what the future holds for the picture files, though I have to say the look on his face was not promising. I explored the files on my own, and like Andy and Isa, I was enamored. So many surprising categories and strange juxtapositions. For those who feel like paying a visit, but need an excuse: I hid a stack of Isa's print project in the picture files, alphabetically of course. Look for it under "Gagarin" somewhere between "Gambling" and "Georgia (Republic)"

-S.H.M.

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Admission to Gator Matinee Includes All-You-Can-Eat Buffet: Andy In Orlando, 2005 is now available to watch online! Premiered at Joan Vorderbruggen's East Lake Bike N’ Bus-In Cinema, this short film by Brad Zellar was inspired by Andy Sturdevant’s essay, "That Beautiful Sense of Possibility” and his own experiences as a transplant to a strange city. Brad imagines what Andy’s life would’ve been like if instead of Minneapolis, he’d chosen to move to Orlando. 

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Actress, playwright and historian Dawn Brodey descended upon Minneapolis Eagles #34 last Sunday night for ALL AMERICAN FLAG-OFF, a game show style performance and participatory event inspired by Andy's essay "America's Historic Flags: Which Have Been Co-opted?" Despite it's impromptu nature, the event seemed a welcome way to spend the time between country dancing and karaoke .

Dawn asked our two contestants, Joy and Don, to guess which historic flags would or wouldn't be appropriate in hypothetical situations. Their answers, while almost always factually incorrect, were always entertaining - and represented some interesting perspectives on the use of flags as symbols in varied political and social movements. Click on the photos above for a play-by-play description of the event in the captions. Photos by Colin Kloecker.

Aerie #34 is one of the local chapters of the Fraternal Order of Eagles, an international non-profit founded in 1898 that promotes "peace, prosperity, gladness and hope." Some of their accomplishments include: founding Mother's Day, serving as driving force in founding the Social Security Program and helping to end job discrimination based on age with the "Jobs After 40" program.

They were most gracious hosts and we highly recommend getting in touch with them for your future public or private venue needs.

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This Monument in Our Hearts: Flags, Symbols & Poems in Public

A few weeks ago the very hardy poets of Our Flow is Hard met at Mill Ruins Park for an early morning poetry performance, their contribution to Potluck Supper with Projects to Follow. We'd rescheduled their project due to threat of snow just a week earlier. The snow never came, and as luck would have it, the rescheduled date was bitterly cold.

In spite of numb toes and fingers, the poets pressed on. Thankfully, they'd chosen to incorporate flag semaphore into their performance, a means of communicating using flags and movement. We can only assume that vigorously waving flags was all that kept them from succumbing to hypothermia.

Semaphore flags were and still are used for communication over water, so the backdrop of the Mississippi River and St. Anthony Falls seemed appropriate. It's a beautiful spot that says much about the City of Minneapolis: why it is where it is, what used to be there, and from these elements, how we choose to make meaning through symbols. Andy's essay, "Public Buildings, Parades, and Protests" - the inspiration for this Potluck Project - also brings up these themes. He opens with a flagpole not far from the riverfront, a monument that has endured in spite of many waves of change.

Responding to Andy's essay, Our Flow is Hard chose two poems to perform using flags as accompaniment: Hannah Weiner’s Code Poems, a tribute to semaphore signs; and Anne Carson’s The Gun Dialogues, a tribute to Gertrude Stein's favorite song.

Here are some images from that performance. After performing the first piece with Andy, Our Flow is Hard invited the assembled audience to participate, giving each a flag. At the poem's direction, we all snapped our flags in unison, considering the words we were hearing and our surroundings.

After the performance, when Coffee House Publisher Chris Fischbach asked why they'd chosen those particular poems, Carrie Lorig of Our Flow is Hard replied that the poems were about love and violence, two things that flags represent, whether we realize it or not.

One thing that struck me about this Potluck Project was the contrast between the intimacy and complexity of the poems, and the overtly public and simplistic nature of a flag and what it intends to communicate. As Andy notes in his essay, flags can be powerful and enduring symbols. Poems too, though in a much different way. 

For a moment I wondered if the people in passing boats could decipher the meaning of what we were up to - or for that matter, the passing cars on West River Parkway? We shuffled off to begin our day, little white flags in hand.

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POTLUCK PROJECT: BLIZZARD

DETAILS: Using found video from the actual blizzard referenced in Andy's essay, "At Matt's Bar, in a Blizzard" visual artist Kate Casanova and singer-songwriter-composer Chris Koza create an experimental sound and video piece to be debuted at Matt's Bar, in a blizzard, whenever the next one should arrive.

WHEN: TONIGHT! January 30th! 8PM! You can see Blizzard projected outdoors, and afterward, it will be available online.

WHERE: Matt's Bar and Grill, 3500 Cedar Avenue South, Minneapolis, MN 55407

FROM POTLUCK SUPPER ARTISTS KATE CASANOVA & CHRIS KOZA

Blizzard is an experimental sound and video piece inspired by “At Matt’s Bar, in a Blizzard,” an essay from the book Potluck Supper with Meeting to Follow by Andy Sturdevant, which explores the introspective yet socially unifying experience of walking through a snowstorm. The exact blizzard that Sturdevant navigated en route to the iconic Matt’s Bar of Juicy Lucy fame, took place on February 20, 2011. Casanova & Koza used found YouTube footage taken by residents of the Twin Cities from that date as source material for the project.

ABOUT KATE CASANOVA:

Kate Casanova is a visual artist interested in ideas about nature and our ever changing understanding of what it means to be a human animal. She explores these ideas through any means necessary be it sculpture, video, performance, or collage. Casanova received her BFA in Sculpture from the Minneapolis College of Art and Design and her MFA in Sculpture from the University of Minnesota. Her work is exhibited nationally and internationally at venues such as The Gallery at (le) Poisson Rouge in New York, The Beijing Film Academy in China, and Station to Station, a US-traversing mobile art train. She is currently teaching Sculpture at the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire. More at katecasanova.com

ABOUT CHRIS KOZA:

Chris Koza is a singer-songwriter-composer living and working in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Critics have taken note ranging from local press: “The man’s got ‘pop’ down!” (Minnesota Monthly) to national attention: Paste Magazine calls Rogue Valley one Minnesota’s best bands. Koza performs with regularity in the Twin Cities, the greater Minnesota region, and nationally, supporting such artists as Brandi Carlile, The Jayhawks, Blitzen Trapper, Stephen Kellogg, Tift Merrit, and Field Report. Over the last several years, Koza and his band Rogue Valley have released a total of nine albums and EP’s. In addition to writing and recording his own music, Koza is also involved with co-writing and arranging songs with other artists, and is exploring commercial and film opportunities. Koza’s songs have been featured on numerous television shows including ABC’s Cougartown; MTV’s Jersey Shore and Matt & Kim; and CBS’s 2013 Superbowl pregame show. International music blog Americana UK gave Koza’s most recent solo release, The Dark, Delirious Morning, 9 out of 10 stars, calling it “an unpretentious little masterpiece.” Koza is currently developing new work both as a solo artist and with Rogue Valley, looking towards 2014 spring and autumn, respectively, for release dates. More at chriskoza.com

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POTLUCK PROJECT: VI IKKE TYGGE GUMMI PAA

DETAILS: Inspired by Andy’s essay “Snakker du norsk?” artist Mike Hoyt approached his mother-in-law about a collaboration illuminating her roots and local experiences with Scandinavian culture. Mike's Potluck Project is an illustrated retelling of her experiences as a teenager learning Norwegian at North High School.

WHEN & WHERE: You can see a digital version of the project here. A print edition will be presented to the North High School Alumni Association archive.

FROM POTLUCK SUPPER ARTIST MIKE HOYT:

After reading through my assigned Potluck Supper essay “Snakker du norsk?,” I immediately connected the story to my Scandinavian in-laws. More specifically, learning about their Norwegian, Swedish, and Finnish heritage and familial history through shared stories at holiday meals and family gatherings. Although we had never formally partnered on a art project of any sort, I contacted my mother-in-law, Deborrah Mickelson, and proposed to her a collaborative partnership to create a small project related to “Snakker du norsk?” I was delighted when she accepted my somewhat strange proposal. Deborrah and I met and developed a short “book report” project about a specific experience she had as a student of North High School. She spent that last month doing some research with the help of her sister-in-law, Joan Dweyer, and the North High School Alumni Association. She created the following essay for the project. We will be creating a hard copy to submit to the North High School Alumni Association archives.

ABOUT MIKE HOYT:

Michael Hoyt was born in Northfield, Minnesota in 1970. He received his BFA from the Minneapolis College of Art and Design in 1994 and currently resides in Minneapolis, where he is an independent artist and a nonprofit arts administrator. For nearly twenty years Hoyt has been producing, managing, and directing arts-based community development projects and youth development programs, while making his own art in his community. Although his formal training is in painting and drawing, his work has evolved to take the form of interactive sculptural installations and situations in which public participation is a key component. Creating and facilitating unique shared experiences that connect diverse and often nontraditional art audiences drive his art practice. Learn more at Michael-Hoyt.com

Illustration by Mike Hoyt.

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Once you finish reading it, you can’t help but feel homesick for the Midwest whether you’re from there or not. Sturdevant taps into the magic from in and around Minneapolis, and spins it into gold.

Jason Diamond via Volume 1 Brooklyn

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More than anything, "Potluck Supper with Meeting to Follow" feels like a long ambulatory conversation with an exceptionally interesting friend. Sturdevant’s voice — inquisitive, witty and intelligent — invites us in at every turn. The book’s material presence reinforces that invitation; it’s a lovely artifact, beautifully designed and charmingly illustrated.

Patricia Hagen via Star Tribune

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POTLUCK PROJECT: WHAT'S THE POINT?

DETAILS: Using Andy's essay "What have we done during the time we lived?" as reference point, artist Sam Gould talks with Andy Sturdevant (and possibly others) about the publication of his book and its supposed uselessness as seen through a contemporary lens.

WHEN & WHERE: A publication featuring Sam's conversation with Andy will be available soon, more info to come!

FROM POTLUCK SUPPER ARTIST SAM GOULD:

Taking the role of curmudgeon for the sake of making a larger point about the role of publication in an expanded field and its relationship to the formation of publics, I will talk with Andy Sturdevant about the publication of his book and its supposed uselessness as seen through a contemporary lens.

ABOUT SAM GOULD:

Sam Gould is the co-founded and lead facilitator of Red76, an arts collaborative which materialized in Portland, Oregon in the early 2000’s. The group often works towards creating publics through the creation of ad-hoc educational structures and discursive media forms. While these frameworks are situated in what is called “public space,” - such as street corners, laundromats, taverns, and the like - the pedagogy of their construction is meant to call into question the relationships, codes, and hierarchies embedded within these landscapes. Gould is the editor of the groups publication, the Journal of Radical Shimming, of which the first fifteen issues were recently acquired by the Museum of Modern Art in New York. He is currently at work on a book in conversation form with artist / educator Doug Ashford to be published in the Between Artists series by Artist Resource Transfer Press in 2014. More at red76.com

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POTLUCK PROJECT: THE ALL-AMERICAN FLAG OFF

WHEN:  Sunday, December 1st at 6:30PM

WHERE:  Minneapolis Eagle #34, 2507 25th Street, Minneapolis, MN 55406

DETAILS:  A gameshow-style public happening that pits unwitting competitor against unwitting competitor to see who can guess the original vs. co-opted meanings of historic American flags. The winner gets $50.

FROM POTLUCK SUPPER ARTIST DAWN BRODEY:

The All-American Flag-off is a gameshow-style public happening that pits competitors against one another for a big $50 prize.  I, as the gameshow host, use images of several flags from American History and quiz the participants on their history and meaning. Many of the flags are obscure and unrecognizable. The game begins when I show the participant the flag and then give them a hypothetical scenario. They must determine the appropriateness of the flag in the scenario. If they guess right, they get a point. As an actor, one of the jobs that I do is perform as a gameshow host for corporate events; and I have extensive experience with Improvisation. I also work regularly with museums and historic locations to present historical content without being dry or predictable. What I am looking forward to the most with this project is the unexpected nature of a pop-up stage and the general public as both participant and audience.

ABOUT DAWN BRODEY:

Dawn Brodey is a full-time professional actress and writer in the Twin Cities. Theater credits include: The History Theater, Actors' Theater of MN, Frank Theater and The Mystery Cafe. Dawn also works extensively in film and television - appearing in many local and national films and commercials. Dawn's plays have been commissioned and performed at The Illusion Theater, Interact, The Bakken Museum, and The Museum of Russian Art; and Dawn also writes regularly for the City Pages' food blog - Hot Dish. Dawn has a dog named Dorothy and lives year-round on a houseboat on the Mississippi River. Her website is dawnbrodey.com

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Joan Vorderbruggen's East Lake Bike N' Bus-In Cinema took place a few weeks ago. Around 50 or 60 people braved the first chilly October night to watch films about East Lake Street or street life in general.

Huge thanks to Parka and Forage for the hospitality! Photos by Jaime Carrera and Colin Kloecker.

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It's a book that feels like the first book about my Minnesota—not the Duluth I knew as a child or the St. Paul I knew as a teen and visiting collegiate, but the Minnesota I've lived in since 2007, a Minnesota in which one can make a happy life because it contains multitudes.

"Andy Sturdevant's "Potluck Supper with Meeting to Follow": The Minnesota book that Minnesota needed" by Jay Gabler via the Twin Cities Daily Planet

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POTLUCK PROJECT: ADMISSION TO GATOR MATINEE INCLUDES ALL-YOU-CAN-EAT BUFFET: ANDY IN ORLANDO, 2005

DETAILS: Inspired by Andy Sturdevant's essay, "That Beautiful Sense of Possibility" and his own experiences as a transplant to a strange city, writer Brad Zellar imagines what Andy's life would've been like if instead of Minneapolis, he'd chosen to move to Orlando. 

WHERE & WHEN: This short film by Brad Zellar, starring Andy Sturdevant as Andy Sturdevant, will debut at Joan Vorderbruggen's East Lake Bike n' Bus-in Cinema on October 12th at 7PM.

FROM POTLUCK SUPPER ARTIST BRAD ZELLAR:

In 2005, a twenty-five-year old Andy moved to Minneapolis to see what might happen. A few years earlier, a twenty-five-year old Brad moved to Orlando with the same idea. Andy stayed in Minneapolis; Brad did not stay in Orlando. With the assistance of Galen Fletcher and Andy, Brad has made a short film imagining what might have come of putting young Andy in young Brad's position.

ABOUT BRAD ZELLAR:

Brad Zellar has worked as a writer and editor for daily and weekly newspapers, as well as for both regional and national magazines. He is the author of Suburban World: The Norling Photos, Conductors of the Moving World, and House of Coates. For the last two years he has been collaborating with the photographer Alec Soth on The LBM Dispatch, an irregularly published newspaper that chronicles American community life in the 21st century. More from Brad yourmanforfuninrapidan.blogspot.com/

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Potluck Recipe: Gubernatorial Dessert Bars

Inspired by the essay “"Have a Seat, Citizen, I’m here to help": The Completist’s Guide to the Thirty-Nine Portraits of the Minnesota State Capitol”

1 package of white cake mix

2 eggs

1/3 cup oil

4 tablespoons butter

1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

1 can of sweetened condensed milk

Mix together the cake mix, eggs, and oil.

Melt together the butter, chocolate chips, and condensed milk.

Take ½ of the cake mixture and spread it on the bottom of a 9x13" cake pan.

Spread the chocolate mixture out on top of the cake mixture in the pan.

Add the rest of the cake mixture by dropping it in small pieces over the cake mixture. Marbelize with a fork.

Bake at 350 degrees for 24 minutes. Cool before cutting.

—Joe Schiltz

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Potluck Project: All Snap Flags

WHEN: Tuesday, November 12th at 8:30AM

WHERE: Mill Ruins Park, near the downtown end of the Stone Arch Bridge in Minneapolis

DETAILS: An early morning performance / poetry reading on election day, using semaphore flags. Some participation. Grab coffee, come join us.

FROM POTLUCK SUPPER ARTISTS OUR FLOW IS HARD:

What is a flag but a sore spot in the sky? What is a parade but an outpouring of signal? How do you declare noise in the air? Our Flow is Hard invites you to a presentation of the unguarded guard, to a performance of All Snap Flags meant to challenge and celebrate. We'll be down by the river, down by the Mill Ruins, down by the Stone Arch Bridge, listening to Hannah Weiner's Code Poems, a tribute to semaphore signs, and to Anne Carson's The Gun Dialogues, a tribute to Gertrude Stein's favorite song. We will be thinking about candidates. New heads. Bring coffee. Bring eyelids for it. The light will be young and waving. 

ABOUT OUR FLOW IS HARD:

Our Flow Is Hard is a collective of girl poets both feathers and sticky. They are interested in all the spaces poetry could be in. They are interested in all the ways poetry might be heard. They hope at a boil. They hope you do too. Past readers for Our Flow is Hard include: Jenny Zhang, Sierra DeMulder, Mary Austin Speaker, Zachary Schomburg, Line Assembly, Joe Hall, Kelin Loe, Abraham Smith, Russell Jaffe, Natasha Kessler, & more. Past collaborators include: The Great Twin Cities Poetry Road Show & Whole Beast Rag. Their website is ourflowishard.tumblr.com.

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Potluck Recipe: Not Flat as a Pancake Pancakes

This recipe was inspired by "The Artificial Heart: Visualizing the Midwest Vernacular” (page 1), in which Andy refutes the commonly held belief that the Midwest is flat and empty.

1 ½ cups all-purpose flour

3 ½ teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon white sugar

1 ¼ cups milk

1 egg

3 tablespoons butter (melted)

In a large bowl, sift together the dry ingredients (flour, baking powder, salt, and sugar). Add the milk, egg, and butter, and mix until smooth.

Heat a lightly oiled griddle or frying pan to medium-high heat. Pour the batter onto the griddle/pan in increments of about ¼ cup per pancake and cook until golden brown on each side.

Garnish as you wish—fresh fruit, powdered sugar, syrup—for truly mouth-watering pancakes!

—Emily Gasperlin