MIDWAY CONTEMPORARY ART

EXHIBITIONS:IN 2023 OUR EXHIBITIONS WERE ON A BRIEF PAUSE AS WE RENOVATED OUR NEW PERMANENT HOME AT 1509 NE MARSHALL STREET IN MINNEAPOLIS. WE CONTINUED TO WORK WITH UPCOMING ARTISTS KRM MOONEY (NYC) AND CAMERON PATRICA DOWNEY (MPLS) TO PLAN AND FABRICATE WORKS FOR THEIR UPCOMING SOLO-EXHIBITIONS. MOONEY MADE MULTIPLE SITE VISITS TO MINNEAPOLIS TO WORK WITH A LOCAL FOUNDRY AND CONNECT WITH THE TWIN CITIES ARTS COMMUNITY. LIBRARY:"LAUNCHED IN 2007, OUR LIBRARY'S MISSION IS TO PROVIDE THE PUBLIC WITH THE MOST COMPREHENSIVE AND ACCESSIBLE RESOURCE FOR RESEARCH INTO CONTEMPORARY ART IN THE REGION. WE ADD BETWEEN 500-1,000 SELECTED TITLES TO THE COLLECTION ANNUALLY. HOLDING OVER 11,000 VOLUMES AS OF 2023 INCLUDING MONOGRAPHS, EXHIBITION CATALOGS, REFERENCE BOOKS, DVDS, AND PERIODICALS IT PROVIDES A BROAD OVERVIEW OF ARTISTIC ACTIVITY AND ART PUBLISHING FROM AROUND THE WORLD. MANY OF THE BOOKS AND OTHER MATERIALS IN MIDWAY'S COLLECTION ARE NOT OTHERWISE AVAILABLE IN MINNESOTA. THE LIBRARY IS NON-CIRCULATING AND DOES NOT REQUIRE MEMBERSHIP OR APPOINTMENTS IT IS ENTIRELY FREE AND OPEN TO THE PUBLIC. BECAUSE OF THIS UNIQUE ACCESSIBILITY, THE LIBRARY HAS BECOME A POPULAR DESTINATION FOR STUDENTS, ACADEMICS, ARTISTS, WRITERS, CURATORS, AND VISITORS TO THE TWIN CITIES. UNTIL THE PANDEMIC, OUR LIBRARY WAS NON-CIRCULATING. IN THE SUMMER OF 2020, WE BEGAN A CURBSIDE LENDING PROGRAM THAT WAS EXTREMELY SUCCESSFUL. LIBRARY MATERIALS ARE FEATURED PROMINENTLY ON OUR WEBSITE, MAKING IT EASY TO BROWSE NEW ACQUISITIONS FROM ANYWHERE; PATRONS WERE ABLE TO REQUEST UP TO THREE BOOKS VIA EMAIL, SCHEDULE A TIME FOR CURBSIDE PICK-UP, AND RETURN THEM AFTER TWO WEEKS. SINCE REOPENING THE LIBRARY IN ITS TEMPORARY SIXTH ST. SE LOCATION FOR IN-PERSON USE IN SPRING OF 2021, WE HAVE CONTINUED TO PROVIDE CURBSIDE LENDING FOR THOSE WHO PREFER TO BORROW BOOKS FOR AT HOME USE." VISUAL ARTS FUND:"THE VISUAL ARTS FUND IS A GRANT PROGRAM ESTABLISHED IN 2016 BY MIDWAY CONTEMPORARY ART WITH GENEROUS SUPPORT FROM THE ANDY WARHOL FOUNDATION FOR THE VISUAL ARTS. MINNEAPOLIS ST. PAUL IS ONE OF THIRTY-FIVE METRO AREAS INCLUDED IN WARHOL'S REGIONAL REGRANTING PROGRAM, WHICH IS AIMED AT PROMOTING VIBRANT ARTISTIC ACTIVITY IN CITIES ACROSS THE UNITED STATES. THE VAF SUPPORTS THE DEVELOPMENT OF PROJECTS AND INITIATIVES HAPPENING OUTSIDE OF ESTABLISHED VENUES THAT ENGAGE THE PUBLIC WITH VISUAL ART AND MIGHT NOT OTHERWISE OCCUR.AFTER OFFERING A SERIES OF EMERGENCY AND COMMUNITY RELIEF GRANTS DURING 2020, WE RETURNED TO THE VISUAL ARTS FUND'S REGULAR GRANTMAKING CYCLE. IN DECEMBER 2023 WE AWARDED SIX $10,000 GRANTS TO PROJECTS INCLUDING BLUESKY PHOTO WORKSHOP, A SEASONAL 6-WEEK LONG PHOTO WORKSHOP; ERA EDITIONS, AN EMERGING ARTIST RUN PUBLISHING PROJECT; PAIR (PILOT ARTIST IN RESIDENCE), AN ARTIST-RUN RESIDENCY PROGRAM; PIZZA AND PUPPETS, A LIVE, POP-UP PUPPETRY PERFORMANCE SERIES; TEMP/REVIEWS, AN ONLINE PLATFORM FOR REVIEWS OF TWIN CITIES-BASED VISUAL ART EXHIBITIONS; AND WHY DON'T YOU WA/ONDER?, A TRANSFORMATIVE PUBLIC INSTALLATION PROJECT CENTERED IN NORTH MINNEAPOLIS. "