Thursday news and reviews

Thank goodness for the alternative press! I couldn't find any new arts reporting of note on either the Star Tribune or Pioneer Press websites, but between City Pages, TC Daily Planet, Examiner and MinnPost, there are actually a fair number of stories to share... Enjoy!

Art

Molly Spilane: 100 Creatives

According to her Etsy bio, Molly Spilane's mantra is "wear something unique." If you Christmas shopped at the Walker Art Center this year, you may recognize some of her designs from their gift store. Art doesn't always have to go on the wall; we're thankful that sometimes you can wear it.

Create a More Connected Minnesota

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- Jessica Armbruster, City Pages

Dance

"Black Swan" and "The Red Shoes": Dance demented

The Red Shoes, based on a Hans Christian Andersen story, has similar themes to Aronofsky's current psychological thriller, but it's not quite as demented--although I'm sure that in 1948, audiences thought, The Red Shoes was something of an oddity.

- Jim Brunzell III, TC Daily Planet

Fashion

Kevin Kramp: Extended interview with the fashion designer

Kevin Kramp's work-of-art knitwear first caught our eye months back at a local fashion show, where he was distinctly the star. Here's the extended interview we had with Kramp about his time in London, his upbringing in Minnesota and where his designs have taken him.

- Jen Boyles,City Pages

Fashion from Mao to NowBeginning with the last days of dynastic rule, to the war lords of the late 1910s and '20s, to the Japanese invasion, to the civil war, to cultural revolution under Mao, to contemporary China, the smart exhibit takes a look at not only what people were wearing, but the cultural beliefs and trends behind the clothes.

- Sheila Regan, City Pages

Max About Town

The outrageous onscreen: 'I Love You Phillip Morris' and 'The Forbidden Zone'

If I have a complaint about the film, it's that while Phillip Morris is played very sweetly by McGregor, he's barely a character at all. A former rent boy and ongoing kept man, he fulfils the function female performers used to be saddled with in this sort of film: fretting about their man in feeling the stings of their betrayal, but having no life or interests of their own.

- Max Sparber, MinnPost.com

Minnesotans and the past: 'Gatsby' and the Coen brothers' 'True Grit'

We are a country that doesn't have much past, but we like to remember, and mythologize, what we do have.

- Max Sparber, MinnPost.com

Movies

"Black Swan" and "The Red Shoes": Dance demented

The Red Shoes, based on a Hans Christian Andersen story, has similar themes to Aronofsky's current psychological thriller, but it's not quite as demented--although I'm sure that in 1948, audiences thought, The Red Shoes was something of an oddity.

- Jim Brunzell III, TC Daily Planet

Music

Second Before Sleep Debuts at the Fine Line Music Cafe

This past Saturday, Seconds Before Sleep celebrated the release of their first EP, More Daring Than Fate, at the Fine Line Music Cafe.

- Michelle Los, Examiner.com