1000 X's & O's — a note from the curator

Selected views from the People's Museum for Prince, Minneapolis 2026. All images by Daniel R. Pratt.

Dearly beloved,

A month has passed since we closed the museum, and I find myself still dwelling in its rooms. This is a short reflection and a call for you to share your experience. Whether you are museum participant or a visitor who joined us last month in Minneapolis, or someone following with interest from home- we would love to hear from you.

My deep thanks for your support for the museum and for your participation. Whether you sent work from across the world or came through the doors in Minneapolis to join our celebrations and events, you were part of something very special that we created together.

Your participation is what created this project.  

I wish I could write to everyone individually right now, as I think of all our interactions and experiences together.  Please know I am thinking of you and full of gratitude for your participation and support.

Right now I'm sorting through the documentation (see above, more soon!), preparing to write about what we made together, and thinking about what comes next. 

By now, you know The People's Museum is an unusual kind of institution. We don't exist in an ongoing building and we don't have any of Prince's artifacts. We are literally built from love - weaving the testimonies of Prince's audience into the substance of a museum that testifies to the power of this artist and all he gave us. My vision has always been to show how the audience is a vital part of an artist's legacy. We are all part of Prince's legacy.

Paisley Park, Prince's home and studio, with all its instruments and artifacts and lived history, will always be a sacred space — a place to bathe in the genius of Prince Rogers Nelson. And yet, without the audience to receive it, the artist's genius is somehow incomplete, like an unanswered call. There is also a need to celebrate how this artist changed our lives, why his art mattered, how he lived within us and beside us, and continues to live in many hearts. I believe deeply in the power of this collective testimony, and I was moved beyond words to see this vision come to life last month and experience it with you.

Sharing your experience

While it's fresh, I'd love to hear about your experience of the museum — what it meant to you to be part of it, what you witnessed, what you felt, what, if anything, you took away. If you were able to be there in person, I'd love to hear more about that. If you weren't, I'm curious how it unfolded for you from a distance.

You can share directly in our guest book. If you had friends or family who visited with you, please encourage them to share their experience too, the guest book is open to everyone.

Upcoming- a gathering and an Online Archive

I'm planning an online gathering for participants — a chance to reflect together, see some of what was documented, and think about what might come next. I'll share details soon.

On that note: as part of the documentation phase now underway, we're building an online archive so that the 2026 contributions can be seen and experienced beyond those who made it to Minneapolis. The archive will help create a more public presence for the museum online. We have a vision for this to be a living archive.  More soon.

The 2026 edition of the Museum was so much more than I could have dreamed, and I am deeply grateful for your trust, your goodwill, and your loving participation, however you contributed.

Thank you for co-creating it with me. I look forward to hearing from you soon.

With gratitude,

Emma

Founding Curator

Recent Press

Two international press moments this month:

NHK World Japan (July 15, 2026) — Japan's national broadcaster featured the 10th anniversary of Prince Rogers Nelson's passing with coverage of Prince's Minneapolis and the People's Museum, including artwork from the museum and interviews with curator E.C. Balázs and opening day visitors. NHK produced an expanded English-language cut with additional museum coverage from the original story first broadcast in Japan on June 11. Watch on YouTube →

ABC Radio Melbourne (July 11, 2026) — Curator and filmmaker Emma Balázs joined ABC 774's Saturday Breakfast with Brian Nankervis to discuss the museum and the Melbourne premiere of short film Dearly Beloved at Melbourne Documentary Film Festival, Cinema Nova. Listen →

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