The intersection of art and politics

What story do you think this picture tells?

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Or this one?

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They’re part of an exhibit at the Capitol that was set up today, coinciding with the Homeless Youth Act, which seeks money to support programs and services for homeless youth.

Politics aside, it’s an impressive collection of art from young Minnesotans who’d been homeless, working under the tutelage of the Kulture Klub Collaborative (See Marianne Combs’ and Nikki Tundel’s outstanding profile of the collaborative). “Youth examined the various identities and personas they wear in their daily lives,” according to a release announcing the exhibit, which is only on display at the Capitol until Friday.

Each young artist was asked to consider their personas, and select two to examine. They were challenged to “examine and reconcile the differing parts of the same individual.”

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In family portraits, the young artists were asked to consider the family as a single identity, while capturing “something honest about each.”

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After the Capitol, the exhibit will be on display at the Kulture Klub Collaborative in Minneapolis.