Open Field will be over on September 5, but there is an awesome and diverse slew of events and opportunities left to experience.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WWx-ugY3uzg[/youtube]
1. mnartists.org Field Day on Thursday August 19 will bring the Open Field to life. When else do you have the opportunity to play camera tag, listen to campfire songs, and paint in the plein air? In addition to mingling with Minnesota artists, all mnartists.org members recieve free gallery admission.
2. Human Chess on Saturday August 21 will bring together fashion, strategy, and a local chess club. At 12pm on Saturday, I want to be wearing an avant-garde costume and simultaneously strategizing how to get to checkmate.
3. The ecosomatic dancer Olive Bieringa will be Rewilding the Commons on August 26. The event will be interactive, environmentally conscious, and full of wild and graceful movement.
4. Speed-Submissions [pitch your idea to the editor] with Coffee House Press. You can explore the Open Field’s Tool Shed collection of Coffee House Press books for inspiration. For two hours on Thursday August 26, Coffee House Press awaits your ideas (and future masterpiece).
5. The acclaimed “commoner” Lewis Hyde will be here on September 2 to discuss his recent book Commons as Air: Revolution, Art, and Ownership. As Open Field draws to a close, it is going to be invaluable to reflect on the (personal) ideology of the commons and how we can stay involved with issues relating to the cultural commons, intellectual property, and personal creativity.
6. Trading Flowers for Love Stories with local artist Amanda Lovelee at noon on September 3 is going to transform the Open Field into a romantic salon. It is quite tempting to share a love story for a photograph of a wildflower.
7. The Harvest Picnic on the evening of September 3 will be an opportunity to reflect on this experimental summer of “cultural commons” at the Walker. The final potluck picnic is for anyone who came to the Open Field, anyone who missed the Open Field, or anyone who wants to discuss the Open Field of the future.
8. The Futurefarmers Auction on Free First Saturday September 4 is going to a be a poetic and personal day of storytelling, bidding, and auctioning off meaningful (but everyday) objects. I am still deciding on which objects I’d be willing to part with…
9. The Drawing Club Finale on September 2 will be close the curtain on one of our most popular and beloved Open Field events. You can finally analyze the plethora of communal drawings created, collaged, and constructed throughout the summer in this Drawing Club showcase.
10. And before Open Field is over, I will enjoy one last burger from the Open Field Grill.
As the Open Field project winds down, we are reflecting on issues of the commons and highlighting special events. Check back for more views from the Open Field.
Get Walker Reader in your inbox. Sign up to receive first word about our original videos, commissioned essays, curatorial perspectives, and artist interviews.