Art Shanty Projects On-Ice Program 

About

Dear friends,

We had an INCREDIBLE opening weekend at the shanties, greeting over 10,000 visitors over two days and engaging with visitors through joyful & thought-provoking, weird & wonderful art.

We have been tracking the weather and lake conditions - and while the ice still measured 12” in the village as of yesterday afternoon, the forecast is not in our favor moving forward and we have made the decision to get the shanties off the lake and close early.

Staff members had unified clarity in making this decision, however we know it brings disappointment for everyone. It also leaves us in a precarious financial position, as we rely on donations from visitors to fund our program. People have already shown up with generosity, offering $33,000 in contributions towards our $99,000 goal for individual donations. While this would have been a great start to a full run of the program, it now leaves a significant gap we need to close in order to end this year successfully and begin planning for next time. We usually see upwards of $70,000 from community members donating at the gate, with the remainder through our membership program and online giving.

If you love the shanties and the creative community we foster, please make a donation today. This is a make-or-break situation — our future depends on it. An organization our size does not have the cushion or means to recover from this without community support.

A full State of the Shantyverse message is on our website if you want additional context and a bigger picture of the situation. Link in bio!

ADVANCE GRATITUDE for your consideration in giving and BIG THANKS to those of you who have already supported us this season!

With much love,
on behalf of staff and board,
Erin Lavelle (she/her/hers) Artistic Director

Art Shanty Projects is a four-weekend winter art festival on a frozen lake in the Twin Cities. Artists create temporary structures and interactive, engaging art experiences and performances, turning a barren, frozen lake into a vibrant, colorful winter village.

Due to the rapidly deteriorating ice on Bdé Umán / Lake Harriet, Art Shanty Projects’ annual program will be presented as “Plan Beach” this year instead of "On-Ice".

Stay tuned for more details to come soon. The ‘visit’ section of the Art Shanty Projects website will be updated as decisions are made, new maps are drawn, and amenities are adapted.

Be kind to one another!

Keep safe & warm!
We encourage you to wear a mask!
We hope to see you there!

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