UROC Gallery
Current Exhibit
Creative Lives: Ten Years of Arts & Aging at CommonBond— Through October 26
Opening reception: Thursday, September 24, 2026, 2:00–4:00 p.m.
Location: UROC Gallery
Explore paintings, photographs, textiles, sculpture, writing, and more by artists from CommonBond communities across the Twin Cities. Creative Lives celebrates ten years of learning, experimentation, and creative community through Arts & Aging. Some artists are beginning a new practice. Others are returning to an earlier interest or developing work they have pursued for years. Together, their work offers different experiences, materials, and ways of seeing.
CommonBond’s Arts & Aging program has brought free arts classes, materials included, into the communities where people live. Led by professional teaching artists, the program gives adults 55 and older opportunities to learn techniques, build skills, experiment with materials, and follow their own creative directions. Creative Lives marks the program’s tenth year by bringing original work by CommonBond resident artists from across the Twin Cities into one shared public exhibition at UROC Gallery. The exhibition includes work created through many different practices, materials, subjects, and levels of experience. Some artists are showing work from a long-established practice. Others discovered or returned to art through an Arts & Aging class. The work is varied because the artists and their creative lives are varied.
The program began in 2016 with a storytelling class at Riverview Senior Apartments through an EngAGE Heartland pilot supported by E.A. Michelson Philanthropy. It grew to include more CommonBond communities, professional teaching artists, and forms of creative practice. During the COVID-19 pandemic, classes continued through Zoom, phone calls, and materials sent through the mail. More recently, Arts & Aging expanded beyond senior communities to include adults 55 and older living in CommonBond’s family and supportive housing.
The exhibition also recognizes the professional teaching artists, site staff, program staff, partners, funders, friends, and family members who have sustained Arts & Aging over the past decade. Their contributions have made it possible for classes to remain free, materials to be included, and creative learning to take place within CommonBond communities.
Past Exhibits
100 Years of Black Freedom— Through August 29
Celebrate a century of Black history and storytelling at UROC. As part of the 100th anniversary of Carter G. Woodson’s Black History Week, The Givens Foundation for African American Literature is presenting a special community exhibit featuring the Givens Collection of African American Literature and Life. Through literature, archival imagery, and live performance, the exhibit highlights Black Freedom Tradition across generations. Stop by UROC for the opening exhibit and live performance on June 20, from 10:30 a.m. to 12 p.m. The exhibit will be on display at UROC through August 29, 2026.
Inspired Generosity: Minneapolis — Through May 25
Inspired Generosity is a living showcase that amplifies powerful stories from the Muslim American community, highlighting how spirituality inspires acts of service and positive change. Through a dynamic collection of digital storytelling, the project captures real experiences of generosity in action. Select stories from this growing archive will be thoughtfully curated into a touring exhibit, bringing these impactful narratives to wider audiences and communities.
Looking Back Moving Forward - UROC Then, Now, Next —Through March 18
The UROC Then, Now, Next exhibit looks at over 15 years of UROC’s community-engaged research, people and partnerships that have shaped its history and progress, while centering the organization’s ongoing strategic planning process. The exhibit traces UROC’s journey and evolving vision for the future, highlighting key projects, transformative events, and the students, staff, researchers, and community members who have shaped its work. Join UROC on Tuesday, February 24, from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m.
新年, Xyoo Tshiab, ปีใหม่ (Pii Mai), Tết: Through Her Lens — Asian American Women Photographers Celebrate New Year Traditions
Date: December 8th, 2025 - January 29th, 2026
Location: UROC Gallery
50 Years In Retrospect — Through November 29
Exhibition Reception
11:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m., Saturday, November 8
The event is free and open to the public.
This exhibit features over 150 pieces of history, art, and culture—from artifacts dating back to the 1850s to modern-day stories of the Vietnamese community in Minnesota. Together, they portray the remarkable journey of Vietnamese generations as they acculturated, contributed, and thrived in Minnesota.
Looking Back Moving Forward: UROC Throughout the Years—Through October 31
Stop by UROC for an interactive exhibit that celebrates over 15 years of community-engaged research, partnerships, and progress. This exhibit highlights UROC’s journey and vision for the future, showcasing key projects, groundbreaking events, and the students, staff, researchers, and community members who have played a part in shaping its story. Visitors are invited to imagine the path and leave their visions for the future of UROC to help strengthen the mission and goals of the organization going forward.
Creative Communities: Cultural Connections through Art Education—Through June 30, 2025
Experience a powerful exhibition celebrating cultural identity through art, presented by UROC, COMPAS, SEWA-AIFW, and the Minnesota African American Heritage Museum and Gallery. This exhibit features work from community members led by COMPAS Teaching Artists Amy Wilderson and Shakun Maheshwari, highlighting African American and South Asian creative traditions. This enriching initiative was made possible in part by the Minnesota Humanities Center (MHC) through funding from the Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund.
Soulforce: The Movements of Memory—Through February 28, 2025
Artist James Curry’s exhibit explores the ways African Americans, Indigenous peoples, and other people of color have led and shaped vital conversations about the ways race, class, and gender frame the way systemic oppression works and leads to community formations. He writes that the exhibit is guided by these thoughts: What can we learn when we think about these movements together?
Investing With North Minneapolis
September 3 through October 22
Exhibition Celebration
4:30 to 7:30 p.m., Thursday, September 26
Program at 6 p.m. The event is free and open to the public.
UROC’s Investing With North Minneapolis exhibit highlights community-informed student projects in support of an equitable and green North Minneapolis.
The Play Project: Photography by Eric Melzer
Through July 18