Minnesotans have submitted thousands of artworks from all four corners of the state. Whether it’s a painting of a Texas longhorn or a photograph of a woman grieving, Minnesotans are expressing themselves.
The Minnesota State Fair’s annual fine arts exhibition this year includes 337 works out of 2,834 total entries submitted across eight categories. Painting/mixed-media and photography account for more than two-thirds of the submissions.
While wandering the air-conditioned building, you’ll spot some of the usual suspects: portrayals of nature, people‘s cute pets, farm life, instances of Minnesota pride and history, depictions of the Minnesota State Fair and cheeky Minnesota inside jokes about a casserole vs. a hot dish. Some artists waded into political commentary, while others took photographs of concerts and other things to take your mind off the news.
A collection of Minnesota-made artwork is on display. (Alex Kormann/The Minnesota Star Tribune)
This year quite a few artworks reference the epidemic of missing and murdered Indigenous women and the ongoing effects of the war in Ukraine. And there are two artworks that literally sway with the wind or the air motion in the exhibition room ― a new category, perhaps?
In no particular order, here are 10 works to check out.
Jennifer Soriano's charcoal and pastel artwork “The Crane Wife" greets visitors at the entrance to the Minnesota State Fair's Fine Arts Building. (Alex Kormann/The Minnesota Star Tribune)
This hyperrealistic charcoal and pastel drawing of a woman surrounded by cranes references a tale from Japanese folklore in which a crane tricks a man into thinking it’s a woman so he’ll marry it. It’s also a reference to CJ Hauser’s essay “The Crane Wife,” which went viral in 2019. Either way, this detailed drawing shimmers.
“Mossy Field,” a lenticular photo by Areca Roe. (Alex Kormann/The Minnesota Star Tribune)
In Roe’s lenticular photograph, a woman dressed in a body suit, her back to the viewer, rests on a hill overlooking a surreal mossy landscape. The image calls to mind references to the body as landscape while also creating something otherworldly.
“Tunglskin (Moonshine),” a sculpture by Noel Swanson. (Alex Kormann/The Minnesota Star Tribune)
This character looks like something from a Maurice Sendak picture book or a dystopian cartoon smiling, its teeth contrasting against its bluish-green colored body. In old Norse, “tunglskin” means moonlight.