Art shanties moving to Minneapolis in 2018

The Twin Cities' art-infused homage to ice fishing is headed to the City of Lakes next year.

The Art Shanty Projects announced Friday that its annual festival will move to Lake Harriet in south Minneapolis in 2018. The display of artistic ice fishing houses, held this year on White Bear Lake, moves west just in time for the Super Bowl — happening around the same time.

Organizers said the event, which began in 2005, will likely continue on Lake Harriet until 2020. The first Art Shanty Projects were exhibited on Medicine Lake.

The move is fitting. The organization's executive director said 70 percent of their artists have hailed from Minneapolis, and more than half their visitors live there.

"A centrally located venue will further reduce barriers to engage new artists with our program and provide greater accessibility for audiences through public transport," Bentley said in a statement.

The festival's record attendance was 19,000 in 2012, the last year it was held on Medicine Lake. It moved to White Bear Lake in 2014. The shanties, including a structure just for dancing, a human carwash, and a large slumber party, were open for about three weeks this year.

A call for 2018 artists will be released this summer, along with details about the dates and hours of next year's event. It will begin in mid-January.

Eric Roper • 612-673-1732 Twitter: @StribRoper