Photos by Caitlin Abrams
Prince mural
A new Prince mural, featuring three shots of the Minneapolis musician located on Parking Ramp A near First Avenue and Target Center, is a complement of sorts to the towering Bob Dylan mural that was completed in 2015 by the street artist Eduardo Kobra. The new mural is being unveiled Thursday as part of a weekend of events in celebration of Prince’s life, who would have turned 64 on June 7.
The Crown Our Prince project has been the driving force for the mural, which has been in the works for seven years (Prince even had an active role in its development before his death). The $500,000 Minneapolis project was made with contributions from the Minnesota Twins, U.S. Bank, Target, and Best Buy.
Painting began in mid-May, and the mural was completed by the 33-year-old artist Hiero Veiga, a street painter from Florida who created the piece on the exterior wall of Miami’s Museum of Graffiti. Veiga was one of 60 artists considered for the project, and was handpicked by the Prince estate.
The weekend of events starts with a free Purple Block Party at 7 p.m. Thursday at Ramp A outside First Avenue, featuring performances by DJ Mickey Breeze and Doctor Mambo’s Combo, and a purple light show to officially unveil the mural. On Thursday night, there will be a private party for Celebration attendees at the W Minneapolis - The Foshay (one of Prince’s favorite local haunts). There, Prince's personal DJ Lenka Paris will spin songs on the dance floor, alongside signature cocktails and a photo booth.
Celebration events will continue into Friday with concerts at Paisley Park and Q&A sessions with artists who’ve collaborated with Prince (including his former wife and New Power Generation dancer Mayte Garcia, photographer Randee St. Nicholas, the actress Jill Jones, and Paisley Park’s studio engineer Tom Garneau).
Paisley Park is also airing an unseen video of a 1992 “Live at the Big Screen” concert where he’s joined by members of the New Power Generation. There will be a curated exhibit of St. Nicholas’s photographs, while “The Beautiful Collection” of Prince’s shoes remain on display. The night will be capped with a performance by BrownMark with members of the Mazarati. Sunday morning will hold a VIP Jazz Brunch at the Dakota Jazz Club and a concert by Prince collaborators and Twin Cities gospel legends The Steeles.
Lest we also forget, the Schmitt Music mural of musical notes that Prince was famously photographed in front of is threatened to be overshadowed by a development set for construction on the adjoining parking lot. The other Prince mural downtown can be spotted in the North Loop near Crisp & Green.
The Minneapolis City Council also recently approved renaming a one-block stretch of First Avenue between 7th and 8th St. as Prince Rogers Nelson Way, with a celebration set for Tuesday.
