Celebrate Black History Month in Minneapolis
Black History Month is a time to reflect on the past, present and future of the Black experience throughout history. In Minneapolis we have many different ways to celebrate and learn about Black culture all month long. From special events and discussions to musical performances, museum exhibits and more, here are some ideas for things to do during Black History Month.
Museums/Exhibits
Minnesota African American Heritage Museum and Gallery
This museum is dedicated to celebrating the history of African Americans by giving visitors a look at the achievements, contributions and experiences of Black people throughout the history of Minnesota.
Unbreakable
Celebrate the resilience of African Americans in Minnesota with this exhibit which explores African American early settlers and pioneers in the 1800s. Here you can learn about the struggles and successes of African Americans who moved to Minnesota from the South during the "Great Migration."
Reviving Forgotten Treasures, Reviving Memories
This exhibition showcases jewelry created by participants in the course “Reviving Forgotten Treasures, Reviving Memories.” Taught by COMPAS teaching artist Amy Wilderson, the course explored the art of wirework, guiding students to transform their old jewelry into new, one-of-a-kind pieces. Throughout the classes, participants shared personal stories and memories associated with their original jewelry, as well as the new pieces they created.
The 10-week course, held at the Minnesota African American Heritage Museum and Gallery (MAAHMG), was free to attend, with materials provided. The exhibition serves as the culmination of the course, where participants will showcase the jewelry they’ve crafted during the workshops.
Somali Museum of Minnesota
The Somali Museum of Minnesota celebrates the traditions and heritage of the Somali people in a collection of more than 700 pieces of craftwork, paintings and sculptures, ranging from nomadic objects and a model nomad’s hut to contemporary art. This space gives young Somalis who have grown up in the United States a way to connect with their culture, as well as Minnesotans of other ethnic heritage to encounter Somali art and traditional culture for the first time.
The Dirios Exhibit
Showcasing many works from collector and preserver of Somali ethnography, Dr. Mohamud (Dirios) Mohamed's. The exhibit will feature his personal collections and artifacts from Somalia & the Somali Culture and Research Center.
Mia
The True America: Photographs by Ernest Cole
This exhibition is the first to present South African photographer Ernest Cole’s images of Black lives in the United States in the late 1960s and early 1970s. Created during a consequential period in American history, these photographs were rarely released during Cole’s lifetime and were believed to have been lost until they resurfaced in 2017. Brought together for the first time in this exhibition, the pictures reflect both a new-found hope and freedom that Cole felt in America, as well as an incisive eye for inequality and systemic racism in the United States. Seen through the eyes of a man who fled the apartheid regime in South Africa, this trove of images provides a revealing window into late 20th century American society. On view February 1 - June 22, 2025.
Weisman Museum
Seeking for the Lost
Seeking for the Lost views the details of often overlooked histories with an artistic lens. Featuring portraiture by contemporary artist Christopher E. Harrison, this exhibition explores the unbreakable familial bonds expressed through ads in the St. Paul newspaper The Appeal; presents the post-Reconstruction goals of Minnesota’s Black press; and shows how literacy informed the lives of Black Americans after the Civil War. On view until February 16, 2025.
Local Black-Owned Businesses
Black-owned businesses need your support and Minneapolis is filled with plenty of opportunities to do so.
Events
Check back soon for more events happening during Black History Month in Minneapolis!
February 1, 2025
1pm-6pm
56 Brewing
Come by to celebrate Black History Month with community, enjoy delicious food and beverages, and shop the (always fantastic) lineup of local
Black-owned businesses, artists, and makers! Everyone is invited to this FREE, family-friendly event and leashed-dogs are always welcome at 56 Brewing.
February 1, 2025
5pm - 6pm
Black Garnet Books
Join us as we celebrate Black History Month with the launch of "Flooding The River" with the author and get your copy signed!
February 2, 2025
Minneapolis Institute of Art
This special program, part of the Black Europe Film Festival, pairs two films that explore the representation of Black individuals in European art and culture. Looking at artwork featuring Black characters, Vanus Labor and We Were Here urge us to take notice of a longer history of Black presence in Europe. Directors Salad Hilowle and Fred Kuwornu will be in conversation following the screening.
February 3, 2025
7pm
Target Center
Wolves vs. Kings. Feb. 3. Be there to see the Kings get dethroned live. Don’t miss this exciting Monday matchup!
February 4-6, 2025
Orchestra Hall
Who and what created the American sound? This concert sheds light on some of the lesser-known composers whose musical contributions led to the creation of a unique American flair. Alongside the well-known George Gershwin, great composers like Florence Price, William Grant Still, and Margaret Bonds were all quintessential in building what we now recognize as the American orchestral sound.
February 8, 2025
2pm - 6pm
The Lab
The Black Market is a marketplace where people may sell and purchase goods, learn about services, connect with community, enjoy live entertainment, and, taste a multitude of foods from around the cities. Our mission is to assist in increasing the visibility of black-owned businesses in MN. We provide a vibrant, unique space for community to gather, eat, shop, and connect. From shopping to family fun, The Black Market has it all!
February 9, 2025
10am-5pm
Minneapolis Art Institute
Celebrate Black History Month at Mia and find inspiration everywhere. Let your imagination soar with Danielle Daniel, one of Minnesota’s best storytellers. Feel the beat with a stellar dance performance from the Somali Museum Dance Troupe before trying out moves yourself! Make your own artist book with Essence Enwere and bold, colorful paintings with Hibaaq Ibrahim. Enjoy a special gallery hunt that is sure to get your feet moving and your hands clapping.
February 16, 2024
2pm
Minneapolis Institute of Art
Join Leslie Wilson, Academic Curator and Director of Research Programs at the Art Institute of Chicago, as she explores the complexities of South African photojournalist Ernest Cole’s documentary work in the United States.
Soon after his arrival in 1967, Cole began work on a project to document Black communities across the nation, from his base in New York to the West Coast and Southeastern United States. Throughout his travels, Cole wrestled with his expectations of America–ones powerfully shaped by his reading of magazines like Ebony, Life, and Look–and the cultural realities of his experiences. Wilson’s talk expands upon her curatorial work in the exhibition on view in Mia’s Harrison Gallery,
“The True America: Photographs by Ernest Cole,” the first exhibition to present Cole’s photojournalism work from across the United States in the pivotal era of the late 1960s and early 1970s.
February 18, 2025
7pm
The Dakota
“All Sweet Things: A Celebration of Black Love” explores the passion, emotions, social depictions and challenges of modern relationships. Here, they do this through the
diverse sonic landscapes of R&B, neo-soul, folk and pop music. This celebratory experience showcases the extraordinary vocal, songwriting and arranging prowess of three of the Twin Cities’ most soulful singers!!
February 20, 2025
5-9pm
Minneapolis Institute of Art
This Black History Month, experience the vibrancy of the Black community in the Twin Cities and beyond. Multi-hyphenate Kprecia Ambers shows that art is accessible to all through the art of tracing. Explore the Black Power movement of the 1960s and ’70s through film, then take a tour of African American art in Mia’s collection.
February 21, 2025
7:30pm - 9pm
Ordway Center for the Performing Arts
DRUMLine Live following the Historically Black College and University (HBCU) marching band tradition, has riveting rhythms, bold beats, and ear-grabbing energy and has been featured in programs with superstars Beyonce and Shaq. You don’t want to miss this musical roller coaster full of hip-hop, pop, American soul, gospel, jazz, and more with choreographed routines and heavy doses of drum riffs, cadences, and tributes to some of the greatest artists of our time (including Minnesota’s very own Prince!)
February 22, 2025
2:00pm
Minneapolis Institute of Art
In this thought-provoking documentary, scholars, activists and politicians analyze the criminalization of African Americans and the U.S. prison boom.
Now through February 22, 2025
Alliance Française
Code Noir was a decree passed by King Louis XIV of France in 1685 defining the conditions of slavery in the French colonial empire. Skin color played a massive role in the culture and quality of life a person of African descent could expect to experience during the French colonial period.
At the occasion of Black History Month, join us for a exhibition featuring artwork by Samuel Fleming and (re) discover important black figures in French history.
