Grand Rapids Art & Historic Sites
Grand Rapids Art
Grand Rapids Art 2020
A quick overview of the fantastic art around the beautiful city of Grand Rapids Minnesota! Find out more about the locations and details of these amazing art sites below.
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1
Grand Rapids Library
Image 1: Flight of Knowledge
Created by artist Thomas Page. Commissioned in 2000 for the new library. The contributors to the new library are listed on this bronze sculpture piece.
Image 2: The Year the Roses Died
Created by artist Leah Yellowbird. This mural depicts the Ojibwe story “The Year the Roses Died” and was installed to recognize Indigenous People’s Day in 2016.
Image 3: Revolving River Batik
Created by artist Diane Rutherford. This represents the Mississippi River and depicts different aspects of the river. Edge: grasses and bulrushes. Shore: rice and arrowhead. Surface: water lilies and smartweed. Submerged: crowfoot and pondweed. Bottom: rocks, sand, shells, and junk.
Image 4: Our Future
Created by artist Adam Swanson. This larger-than-life chickadee, a hearty little animal who enjoys all of Minnesota's seasons. I included a family in the distance, enjoying some time outdoors near one of the northland's precious bodies of water.
3
Grand Rapids Post Office
Life in Grand Rapids and the Upper Mississippi
Created by artist James S. Watrous. One of many public art pieces commissioned as part of the New Deal in the 1930s and 1940s, this mural was created through the Treasury Department’s Section of Fine Arts. A study of this mural is included in the collection of the Smithsonian American Art Museum.
4
Central School
Created by artist Ted Tinquist. In the north stairwell at the Central School there are five paintings that were originally connected as one piece for a float in a parade and one smaller painting displayed in the historical museum. After the parade the mural was separated into separate pieces and then displayed at the Itasca County Courthouse. During the time when the courthouse was renovated the paintings were moved and are now in the Central School. These paintings are scenes/subjects that are relevant to this area displaying cultural significance.
5
Blandin Foundation
Niibii
Created by artist Leah Yellowbird. The mural was commissioned by the Blandin Foundation to celebrate the Itasca County area. It depicts an underwater scene with fish, otters, beavers and other creatures with different themes important to the Itasca area woven into the design, like forests/timber, the four seasons, recreation, and local symbols.
6
Chalupski Building
Created by artists Tom Page, Sherry El-Nashaar, Paula Swenson, and students from Grand Rapids, Deer River, and Bovey/Coleraine. Funded in part by the Minnesota State Arts Board, these murals brought students together with professional artists to design and create a mural representing some of the communities in the region MacRostie Art Center serves.
7
Brewed Awakening
Created by artist Peter Gordienko. The mosaic was created strictly for a decorative purpose during the renovation of the building after it was purchased by Brewed Awakenings. Peter, the mosaic artist, is a painter living in rural Remer, MN.
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Northbank Building
Nigigwag (Otters)
Created by artist Leah Yellowbird. This mural was commissioned by the nonprofit Grand Rapids Arts in 2016. This piece will be relocated in 2020 and replaced with a new larger art installment.
9
MacRostie Building
Created by GoodSpace Murals and Ashagi Studio. This mural was commissioned by the City of Grand Rapids Arts and Culture Commission as part of an initiative to acknowledge and honor either: the significant relationship that historical and contemporary Ojibwe and/or Dakota people have with this area.
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MacRostie Building
We Make This Place
Created by GoodSpace Murals. Designed and painted by the members of the Grand Rapids community, this mural was a collaboration between MacRostie Art Center and the Minneapolis College of Art and Design.
13
Water Sculpture
The Memory of Water
Created by Milligan Studio. This triptych brings the rapids back to the center of Grand Rapids through three sculptural pieces placed throughout the downtown.
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Water Sculpture
The Memory of Water
Created by Milligan Studio. This triptych brings the rapids back to the center of Grand Rapids through three sculptural pieces placed throughout the downtown.
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Water Sculpture
Created by Milligan Studio. This triptych brings the rapids back to the center of Grand Rapids through three sculptural pieces placed throughout the downtown.
16
Blandin Foundation
The Papermaker
Created by artist Ray Wattenhofer. This statue wears the traditional uniform for those working in the paper mill during the turn of the century: buttoned shirt, pants with trousers, and is barefoot. This man, who seems to closely resemble a tall and thin Scandinavian man, holds a slab of paper in hand, and has a wrench in his pocket which would indicate that part of his job included turning of valves. The statue weighs approximately 1,000 lbs and the mold for the statue was destroyed after it was produced.
17
Blandin Foundation
Grinder Man
Created by artist Thomas Page. This sculpture piece was a tribute to the 100 year celebration of the Blandin Paper Mill and to the employees from the past and present. Most employees at Blandin started their careers in the grinder room, where logs were fed into hydraulically operated pockets of wood were pressed against a 13 ton imported abrasive wheel that combined with water pulp that was passed on until it became suitable for paper making. Rough math indicated enough wood was processed into pulp this way to equal the labor required to build the great pyramids: a significant amount of human labor. Pete (Harold) Petersen was the model for the grinder man, a third generation paper mill worker with over 40 years of experience.
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Central School Sidewalk
Created by artists Renee Trunt; Ashley Kolka-Lee. In celebration of National Poetry Month, the Grand Rapids Area Library held a poetry contest. The winners were awarded a place in the City’s inaugural sidewalk poetry installation.
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Mississippi
Metal Canoe
Created by artists Aaron Squadroni and Leah Yellowbird.
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Grand Rapids State Bank
Whitetail Deer
Created by artist Bill Davis. Steven Wilcox from the Grand Rapids State Bank was at the Sahara Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada, where the artist was joking with him to buy a statue of a sheep. Instead he insisted he would buy a statue of a whitetail deer. He found that the whitetail deer is more meaningful for the community of Grand Rapids in northern Minnesota because of the abundant whitetail deer population in the region.
Grand Rapids Historical Sites
Grand Rapids Historical Sites
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1
Pokegama Hotel
First built in 1982, building burned down in 1893 rebuilt by Daniel Gunn in 1894, who owned and operated it until 1919. Today it serves rental units and retail businesses.
2
Kremers
Hotel Gladstone was built in this location in 1893, it burned down in 1908 to be replaced by the Hughes Corporation. It became a Ben Franklin store which was called Kremers. Business closed down in 1991 and the building was torn down in 2001.
3
Central School
This was the first school in Grand Rapids built in 1888. It was moved to Cohasset in 1894 and replaced with Central School which opened in 1895. Central School was put on the National Historic Registry in 1978.
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Acheson Tire
Originally started by J.W. Acheson as the Tire Company in 1916. By 1929 it grew to be Acheson Motor Company. Upper floor was the Odd Fellows Hall. Only building in town to offer a drinking fountain on the outside.
5
The Downtowner
Steven’s Hotel was removed in 1907 to become the Riverside. It was leased to Herman Bolin by the Stevens. In 1941 George H. O’Brien became the new proprietor during which he renamed it the Downtowner. In August of 1982, the building was torn down to be replaced by the new Blandin Foundation building.
6
Steam Boat Landing
In the 1880’s the best way to arrive from the south was the river boats coming in from Aitkin. The rapids stopped the steamboats right here before the bridge across the river. The Oriole, Gibson, and Irene were the three main steam boats that would take up to 15 days travel from Aitkin. Once the Railroad was connected with Deer River, the steam boat travel slowed down and stopped in the early 1900’s.
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Marr Building
C.H. Marr is among the businessmen of Grand Rapids. He was for some years in business in Aitkin. He opened this store in 1891 with a large and assorted stock of dry goods, clothing, boots, shoes and gent’s furnishing goods. In 1921 the C.H. Marr building housed 2 stores, S.L. Sather Jewelry and the Vogue Shop (Millinery & Women’s ready to wear).
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Red Owl
Opened its doors in 1927 next to the Itasca Dry Goods. Stayed there until December of 1950 when it moved into this building. Manager was Vern Takua. In 1968 the business was purchased by James Shay who then managed the store until the sale in August 1979.
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Geroge B. Aiton Bank
Aiton family built this building in 1930. It was the George B. Aiton Bank. It went into bankruptcy in 1933. George’s daughter married a Rossman who owned the local newspaper and nothing was ever printed about the bankruptcy. Building has housed many businesses through the years and stands as an example of what happened during the Great Depression.
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Presbyterian Church
The Grand Rapids Presbyterian Church was the first to organize in this community in 1890. It was built here on 4th Street and 1st Avenue Northwest. Same style of building was then built in 1920-23 3 blocks north on 7th Street and Pokegama Avenue and changed its name to Community Presbyterian Church.
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Itasca Mercantile
Or better known as Itasca Dry Goods. Built in 1891, it was the premiere women’s clothing store for many decades. The buyers would travel to the New York Fashion Week to purchase the latest fashions. The store was closed and reopened as Sylvester’s. The building was condemned and torn down to create the new Highway 169 turn lane in 2004.
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Grand Rapids City Hall
The original town hall was built in circa 1888. It had a bell tower. It has been reconstructed inside and out through the years. At one time it had a stage in the main room on second floor where many concerts and dances were held. It remains a focal point for city business today.
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Grand Theater
The New Grand Theater of Grand Rapids was opened to the public April 7, 1917. This building was erected especially for a theater and is of brick and concrete constitution. The stage was 18x23. The managers and owners of the New Grand are Fred Bentz, operator; Mrs. Fred Bentz, cashier; Mrs. Frank Gumm, musical director, and Frank Gumm, manager, which makes an efficient and high class combination for serving the theater going public of Grand Rapids and its territory.
14
Train Depot
Great Northern Railway established the building in 1890, made of wood and last used as a depot in 1953. Currently is leased to the city and houses the Grand Rapids Area Chamber of Commerce.
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Itasca Paper Mill
Was built in 1901 with paper making machine number one. C.K. Blandin purchased the business in 1916 and it became a windowless paper mill. It still operates today with paper machine number six and is now owned by a Finish Company.
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Original Itasca County Courthouse
Built in 1895 along the upper banks of the Mississippi River. In 1947 the county decided to build a new courthouse 2 blocks north. The building was torn down in 1953.
17
Libbey Funeral Home
William W. Libbey arrived in Grand Rapids in 1910 where he worked for the Kremers. He then started his own funeral business in the upstairs of a bank. He moved it to this location in 1936 after his son joined the business in 1933. It moved from here in circa 1960.
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Sheriff's House
This house was built next to the Itasca County Courthouse and was connected to the jail building.
19
Itasca County Hopsital
Itasca County built this hospital in 1917. It changed shape and names through the year until in 2005 the new hospital on the Golf Course Road was built called the Grand Itasca.
20
Pokegama Bridge
The State of Minnesota had the highway engineers come in from Duluth to install a new bridge over the river. They designed it to go over the river on 1st Avenue NE and 1st Avenue SE. The material arrived and was unloaded on 1st Avenue NE. During the night, volunteers from the Town moved the equipment and materials to Pokegama Avenue where the workers came the next morning and started putting the bridge in one block west of the original engineers design. Grand Rapids people can be very determined in what they wanted!
21
Indian Joes
Herbert Brier sold this building and it became Indian Joes. An Indian statute stood out front for many years. Tourists and locals went there for beading supplies, postcards, Indian outfits and visitor information.
22
Briers Clothing
1937 Herbert B. Brier opened the first Brier Clothing & Shoes on Pokegama Avenue, Bill Brier, Herbert’s son took over in 1954 and ran it until Wendy Green his daughter took over in 1994. Three generations of Briers have operated the store for over 83 years!
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Eilers Grocery
In 1912 Arthur and Carl Eiler opened the Eiler’s Grocery Store on the corner of 1st and 5th Street NW. Through the years, they also opened 2 other Cash Grocery and Delicatessen’s in Grand Rapids.
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Grand Rapids State Bank
Started in Warba in 1916, moved to Grand Rapids in 1932 to this location.
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McAlpine Building: Bob's Bakery, Crippa Music, Mickey's Cafe
Bob’s Bakery, Crippa Music, Mickey’s Cafe were some of the retail businesses that have occupied this building through the years. Mike McAlpine a local logger built the first building out of wood, after a fire broke out he replaced it in 1910 with bricks.