Like every visitor to "The Great Minnesota Get-Together," experienced photographers gravitate towards a particular aspect of Fair culture. Despite an appetite for everything in the amazing sensory spectacle of the Fair, you have to pace yourself, and come back for more another day. The thirteen photographers represented here have considered many aspects of life and physical culture of the fairgrounds, during the twelve days of its season and afterwards, a landscape mothballed for most of the year. This collection of 92 images depicts moods, sensations, animal behavior, and the parade of humanity that each day populates one of the state's largest, though temporary, and most distinctive cities. The photographs show faces, figures, objects, twilight, raking sun, rides, exhibits, and stuff galore. The combined effect of these images is a tasty, virtual walk-through, a free pass to wander the grounds of the Minnesota State Fair.

Viewing the Collection
The Fair collection is arranged for viewing in three ways:
1. Click on one of the photographers listed below, and see all of his or her work in a group (check the Overview for a statement about each artist).
2. View all 92 pieces image by image, working through it in reverse chronological order, by clicking on the Contents tag to the right.
3. Go to the "Fair Culture" subhead below, and click on a topic to pull up a sub-collection. Though I normally don't like to reduce photographs to their content, in the case of this catalogue of the Fair I want to make an exception. People go to the Fair, after all, to both witness the new and unfamiliar and see particular things that they count on from year to year. So, I thought visitors here, on the virtual Fair grounds, might like to find familiar subjects right away, and compare their own versions with these.

I hope you enjoy your visit.

The Photographers
Eric Altenberg
Tom Arndt
Dan Beers
Chris Faust
Glenn Halvorson
Kristine Heykants
Stuart Klipper
Peter Latner
Peter Martin
Robert Meier
Ellen Rutchick
Alec Soth
Valerie Youngquist

The Curator
George Slade is the Artistic Director of the Minnesota Center for Photography in Minneapolis, and administers the McKnight Photography Fellowships program at the University of Minnesota's Department of Art. He is a regular contributor to mnartists.org. He served as the photography juror for the 84th Fine Arts Exhibition at the 1995 Minnesota State Fair. He is a St. Paul resident and an avid Fair-goer (at least twice a year) who is dedicated to taking his two daughters to the Fair every year until they can drive themselves.

Fair Culture (an index)

Agriculture/Horticulture building

Barns (interior views)

Booths

Butter, as sculptural medium

Carnies

Children's Barnyard

Cows

Crowds

Dairy princesses

Dancing

Dogs

Dumpsters

Empire Commons

Food

Food, impaled

Games of skill/chance

Gourds

Grain, as art medium

Grandstand building

Hats

Heritage Square

Horses

International Bazaar building

Lines

Machinery

Marching bands and drill teams

Merchandise

The Midway

Oxen

Parade Floats

Pigs

Politics/politicians

Poultry

Prizes and ribbons

Radio personalities

Reptiles

Rides

Royal American Exposition gateway

Scarecrows

Shadows

Sheep

Sideshows

Signs and banners

Snake Zoo

Strollers and wagons

Tattoos

Visitors Plaza building

MN State Fair, Photography