Saturday, September 12
5-10pm
Everyone Welcome!
The first half of the event will be a community BYO picnic in our beloved Brackett Park, next to the rocket. Bring food and beverages and join your neighbors on the lawn. We will host yard games and enjoy a special visit from guest artist, Randy Walker, who converted the playground strcture into the public sculpture that it is today.
At dusk, there will be a creative performance to celebrate the community treasure, Return Journey!
36th ART's Rocket Lighting Event– LIFTOFF!– is a one-night community celebration that brings neighbors together to experience Return Journey, the iconic rocket sculpture in Brackett Park, in a new light. Held during the Greenway Glow festival on September 12, 2026, the event invites the public to gather for a community picnic, family-friendly activities, storytelling, and a participatory art experience that honors the sculpture's remarkable history—from a beloved 1960s playground rocket to a restored public artwork made possible through grassroots community advocacy. As night falls, the celebration culminates in an immersive performance featuring lights, sound, fog, and youth performers led by TigerLion Arts, creating the illusion of the rocket lifting off once again. By connecting public art, local history, intergenerational storytelling, and creative participation, the event celebrates the power of community action while highlighting one of Minneapolis's most distinctive public artworks ahead of its planned restoration in 2027.
Eva is a Minneapolis-based multi-media artist who specializes in puppetry and interactive art installations. I work primarily with theaters, parades, and festivals, including Twin Cities favorites like the Art Shanty Projects, In The Heart Of The Beast, Northern Sparks, Big Animal Productions, and Barebones Puppets. Her work often incorporates themes of nature, grief/ healing, friendship, and magic. I believe in the power of art to bring diverse communities together, and strive to create joyous, community-focused environments with my art. As an art teacher at Articulture, Heart of the Beast and Art Start, she has worked with public schools across the metro, as well as partnering with organizations the People Serving People shelter and Touchstone Mental Health.
Paige Dansinger is an XR artist, curator, educator, and community builder working at the intersection of immersive media, public art, and emerging technology. She is Director of the XR Women Museum and Founding Director of Better World Museum and Horizon Art Museum. Her work explores how XR, AI-assisted media, digital storytelling, and participatory art experiences can expand access to creativity and community engagement. Paige has presented and collaborated internationally through organizations and events including MIT, Meta Connect, TEDx, the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, Augmented World Expo (AWE), and Miami Art Week.
Coming soon!