If Minneapolis were one big high school, Tony Zaccardi would win the vote for class president in a landslide—but he wouldn’t be happy about it. In fact, he’s the most humble, unassuming 43-year-old popular kid you could ever meet. Before becoming the owner of the iconic Palmer’s Bar in Minneapolis’ West Bank in 2018, Zaccardi … [ Read more]
Artist Profile: Illustrating a moment in history with Andres Guzman
What began with yet another horrifying act of police violence against an unarmed black man has grown into an international social revolution. And with that came an explosion of public art. Starting at the corner of 38th and Chicago in South Minneapolis, murals memorializing George Floyd have spread as far as Berlin, Nairobi, and a … [ Read more]
Artist Profile: Sam Soulek found his calling through design
Cover artist Sam Soulek’s interest in graphic design was born on a fateful summer afternoon from an unexpected source: a TV ad for an art school’s video game design program. “I didn’t know design was even a thing,” he says. “But I knew video games were a thing, and I had to have this stupid … [ Read more]
The Growler’s Tourism Guide 2020: Road Trip Playlists
Find more great travel ideas in The Growler’s Tourism Guide 2020 The difference between dreading the endless hours on long, lonely stretches of highway and cherishing the open road as an essential part of your vacation can all come down to the soundtrack. If you tailor your playlists for an array of variables—mood, landscape, time … [ Read more]
Artist Profile: Breathing new life into Native legends with Marlena Myles
Though she may appear a mythical being on the cover, Zitkála-Šá was a flesh-and-bone Dakota Sioux translator, writer, musician, teacher, and activist. Taken by missionaries from her home in 1884 on the Yankton Indian Reservation in South Dakota to a Quaker boarding school in Indiana, she became one of the first of the Dakota Sioux … [ Read more]
Hot Stuff: Finding the source of Minnesota’s thermaculture boom starts with a trip to the Iron Range
Deep in the remote Iron Range of northern Minnesota on the shores of Lake Vermilion sits the quiet town of Tower, population of about 500. The Minnesohhtan accents here are as thick as they come—right on Main Street, Uffda Thrifts & Gifts shares a building with UBetcha Antiques & Uniques. The town has a rugged, … [ Read more]
2019 Year in Review: Minnesota’s Arts and Culture Scene
As we flip back in our mental Rolodex to remember the standout cultural and artistic happenings of 2019, we can generally sort the year’s events into three piles: good, bad, and…complicated. With a quick glance at the year’s headlines, things might appear grim: world leaders are running amok, and irreversible climate change is becoming … [ Read more]
3 Minnesota Cideries take home awards from U.S. Cider Open
Three Minnesota cideries took home awards from the sixth annual U.S. Open Cider Championships, with the final round of judging held in Buffalo, New York. Duluth’s newest craft cideries shined. In the Perry & Pear Cider category, Wild State Cider won bronze with their Pear Cider, while Duluth Cider garnered a gold medal in the Anything Goes … [ Read more]