Featured Stories

Big Table's Big Ideas

Camille LeFevre Wednesday, January 18, 2012

It's a hip hybrid of retail poster shop, design studio, and coworking space where some of Saint Paul's most entrepreneurial artists gather around--yes!--a big table. And it's a bold move to help build up downtown, too.

Arts and Culture, Coordination/Collaboration, Creative Economy, Creative Leadership, Design, Entrepreneurship

Downtown

Big Table Posters: A Slide Show

Bill Kelley Wednesday, January 18, 2012

The Twin Cities poster scene is flourishing, and one of its epicenters is Big Table Studio in Saint Paul, which Camille LeFevre profiled a couple of weeks ago. Herewith are Managing Photographer Bill Kelley's images of some of his favorite posters on display and for sale at Big Table, by various local artists, celebrating love, evil, beer, bikes, bands, and other exciting facts of life.

Arts and Culture, Creative Economy, Design, Entrepreneurship

Downtown

Revisiting Lunalux: Where fine printing is hip, funny, and fashionable

Jon Spayde Wednesday, January 18, 2012

One of the major influences on Big Table Studio (see feature above) has been Jenni Undis' Lunalux print shop and paper-goods store in Minneapolis. So we thought it would be opportune to re-run our Lunalux feature from 2011, in which we describe how Undis combines charm and cool, tradition and innovation. (By the way, the other major influence on Big Table is the CoCo coworking space--check out our Big Picture feature below for more on that.)

Arts and Culture, Creative Economy, Design, Entrepreneurship, Shopping

Downtown/Lowertown

The Big Picture 11: Jeff Heegaard on the Next Economy

Jon Spayde Wednesday, January 11, 2012

In a season of economic gloom and doom, the veteran business developer and partner in the CoCo coworking spaces sees a hopeful future in the bright eyes and collaborative ethics of young entrepreneurs.

Creative Economy, Creative Leadership, Emerging Technology, Entrepreneurship, Philanthropy, Strong Local Economy

Downtown, Downtown/Lowertown

2011: The year of "coopetition"

Jon Spayde Wednesday, December 21, 2011

"Coopetition"--cooperation among competitors or potential competitors--was a force to be reckoned with in the Twin Cities during 2011. Our politics may be gridlocked in partisanship, but the smartest entrepreneurs and civic officials locally are embracing a wider vision than the zero-sum game.

Coordination/Collaboration, Creative Economy, Creative Leadership, Emerging Technology, Entrepreneurship, Philanthropy, Regionalism

Local makers redefine, and refine, holiday chocolates

Susan Klemond Wednesday, November 30, 2011

A couple of distinguished local boutique chocolatiers, one big and one small, are helping holiday chocolate lovers forget the foil-wrapped Santa--with high-cacao-content, eco-conscious, elegant bonbons and truffles.

Creative Economy, Design, Shopping, Strong Local Economy, Sustainability

University, Midway

The Big Picture 10: Craig and Patricia Neal on Transformative Conversations

Jon Spayde Wednesday, November 16, 2011

What's the purpose of meetings, meetups, networking? New ideas, new opportunities, certainly. But for Craig and Patricia Neal, face-to-face gatherings can have a deeper purpose: the transformation of consciousness and, ultimately, of the way we live and do business. Their Heartland company was founded to prove the point.

Coordination/Collaboration, Creative Economy, Creative Leadership, Entrepreneurship, Philanthropy, Sustainability

A City Camp session on social media - Bill Kelley

The City Camp "Unconference": Rewiring the system for change

Julie Kendrick Wednesday, November 16, 2011

With no agenda, no speaker list, and a very relaxed schedule, Minnesota's first City Camp "unconference" brought geeks and government-heads together for a radically democratic exploration of how we might design Democracy 2.0.

Coordination/Collaboration, Creative Economy, Creative Leadership, Philanthropy

Cedar - Riverside/West Bank

The Rebirth of Rachel Swardson

Julie Kendrick Wednesday, November 09, 2011

When her husband left her, her innovative postnatal-care company, her finances, and her hope for the future hit the skids. But then, with courage, savvy, and some high-powered help, she came back, big time.

Creative Economy, Entrepreneurship, Healthcare

RangerOnCall: a high-tech tour of the mighty Mississippi

Anna Pratt Wednesday, November 02, 2011

Did you know that there's a National Park right in the middle of the Twin Cities metro? It's long and narrow, and it's called the Mississippi River. The National Park Service and its local ally, the Mississippi River Fund, want you to know more about our stretch of the river. Get your cell phones, tablets, and laptops out.

Arts and Culture, Coordination/Collaboration, Creative Economy, Creative Leadership, Emerging Technology, Energy, Regionalism, Strong Local Economy, Sustainability

Vikas Narula probing the networks - Bill Kelley

Who really runs your company? Keyhubs can help you find out

Elizabeth Millard Wednesday, November 02, 2011

Vikas Narula learned early that informal networks of power and influence may be more important to a business than its official org chart. So he started a consultancy to help companies identify their unofficial movers and shakers.

Coordination/Collaboration, Creative Economy, Creative Leadership, Emerging Technology, Entrepreneurship

Southwest

Bruce Corrie Talks with Jon Spayde - Bill Kelley

The Big Picture 9: Bruce Corrie on the power of "ethnic capital"

Jon Spayde Wednesday, October 26, 2011

Often, says Concordia University economist and biz-school dean Bruce Corrie, our minority and immigrant communities are seen solely through the "problem" lens. Their struggles are real, but their contributions to our prosperity and potential for growth are greater than most majority Minnesotans realize. And Corrie's got the figures to prove it.

Arts and Culture, Coordination/Collaboration, Creative Economy, Creative Leadership, diversity, Entrepreneurship, Higher Education, Strong Local Economy, Talent Dividend

North End, Greater East Side, Dayton's Bluff, Central Avenue, Phillips, Midway, Cedar - Riverside/West Bank, West Side, Lake Street, North Side, Seward, Thomas - Dale/Frogtown, Payne - Phalen, Powderhorn, Summit - University

Anna Bonavita's "chocolate revolution"

Susan Klemond Wednesday, October 05, 2011

The Twin Cities-based importer of hard-to-find European chocolate sees it as much, much more than a confection. For her, the finest chocolate, like the best wine, has the power to change our lives for the better. That's why she's passionate about issues like cacao percentages, and why she pairs yoga and tai chi classes with chocolate tastings.

Arts and Culture, Creative Economy, Creative Leadership, Entrepreneurship, Sustainability

Our favorite Minneapolis public art: a slide show

Bill Kelley Wednesday, October 05, 2011

Following our selection of some favorite public artworks in Saint Paul two weeks ago, here is our take on the beautiful and the quirky in Minneapolis outdoor art--minus the Spoonbridge and Cherry, which is terrific but a little overexposed. It's just a taste of the richness available, designed to get you outside looking at art before the snow flies.

Arts and Culture, Creative Economy, Design

Phillips, Downtown, Lake Street, Longfellow, Calhoun - Isles, Warehouse/North Loop

My View: Minneapolis needs a mural arts program

Elissa Cedarleaf Dahl Wednesday, September 28, 2011

Muralist, public-school teacher, and MCAD professor Elissa Cedarleaf Dahl has a big idea for Minneapolis: a mural program that would engage at-risk kids, create beautiful public art all over the city, and celebrate our neighborhoods and the people who live in them.

Arts and Culture, Creative Economy, Creative Leadership, Design, diversity

North Side

creative economy : Featured Stories