Bob Dylan’s American Journey 1956-1966

Bob Dylan’s American Journey 1956-1966 opened at the Weisman Art Museum on the University of Minnesota at Minneapolis campus on Friday, February 2, 2007. This exhibit, created by the Experience Music Project in Seattle, charts Bob Dylan’s transformation from folk troubadour to rock innovator during the turbulence of the 1960s.

Jasen Emmons, producer for the Experience Music Project, spent time at the Hibbing Public Library in 2004 gathering information, ideas, and artifacts from the Bob Dylan Collection and Exhibit. In addition, he acquired enough red ore rock to create a large "wall of iron" that is used as a backdrop for showcasing items pertaining to Bob Dylan’s teenage years on the Iron Range. This exhibit contains more than 150 artifacts and features five different films exploring different facets of Dylan’s career.

Colleen Sheehy, curator at the Weisman Art Museum, was successful in bringing Bob Dylan’s American Journey 1956-1966 to Minnesota. Colleen had traveled to Hibbing in 2005 and 2006 looking for artifacts to expand upon the Hibbing and Dinkytown sections of the exhibit. Among the items she secured were the original Lybba Theater marquee from Zimmy’s and a 16" x 20" color photo by Chuck Perry of the Hibbing High School Auditorium courtesy of the Bob Dylan Collection at the Hibbing Public Library. All of the additional Hibbing items are displayed at the entrance to the main exhibit.

This multimedia exhibition which brings Bob Dylan back home to Minnesota will be on display at the Weisman Art Museum thru April 29, 2007. It will be the only presentation of this national traveling exhibit in the Upper Midwest.