Celebration of Hmong Culture in Hennepin Gallery, December 3 thru January 24

Via a December 3 e-newsletter from Hennepin County:

Forecast Public Art and the Hennepin County Multicultural Arts Committee announce “Sib Pauv Zog: A Hmong Cultural Harvest,” an exhibit in the Hennepin Gallery created by artists from ArtCrop and curated by Oskar Ly.

The exhibit includes the work and stories of Hmong artists and farmers reimagining Hmong existence and making way for new cultural traditions. Featuring items from fridges to recipe diaries, handwoven hemp to handmade couture, the display rethinks where creativity and inspiration live, what makes a cultural practice, and what a harvest can be.

Sib pauv zog refers to the reciprocal exchange of labor that supports the well-being of one another – an utmost responsibility in Hmong culture. Hmong people have always sib pauv zog, having long cultivated mountainous lands to grow their own food. Along with this, they express their identities through various forms of craft making, storytelling and cultural rituals. While there is no Hmong word for art, creativity exists throughout these cultural practices. Artists as farmers. Farmers as artists.

ArtCrop is the sister model to CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) partnering with artists and farmers to bring art + food culture together.

Learn more at artcrop.com; Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter: @helloartcrop.

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Special event:

“Sib Pauv Zog – A Talk with ArtCrop” Brown Bag Talk

Oskar Ly, Hmong French American multi-disciplinary artist, organizer and creative cultural producer

January 10, 2019, noon - 1 p.m.

Hennepin County Government Center Auditorium, A-level

ArtCrop will present on their work to highlight how art and agriculture are a core part of Hmong culture. The group will discuss their work using the CSA model (community supported agriculture/art), the artist residency on the HAFA farm, and public art exhibits. The session will include an interactive group discussion.

This exhibition and corresponding events are supported by the Hennepin County Multicultural Arts Committee (MCAC), which is receiving support from Forecast Public Art, a non-profit arts organization that activates people, networks and proven practices to advance the transformational power of arts in public life.

The Hennepin Gallery is free and open to the public Monday through Friday, 7:30 a.m. to 6 p.m., at the Hennepin County Government Center, A-level, 300. S. Sixth St., Minneapolis. The exhibit is sponsored by Hennepin County Communications.

The Gallery is a project of Hennepin County Communications.