A couple of weeks ago the Mayor received a letter from the Nicollet Mall Advisory Board (that’s in Minneapolis for my out-of-town readers) asking if our City would be interested in serving as the new home to piece of public art that they were interested in retiring. The piece of art is known as the “Northern Lights”. It was created by a Norwegian artist named Carl Nesjar. It was installed in the Nicollet Mall in 1991.
The art is essentially a fountain that become more of a sculpture during the winter when the water it spouts freezes. Nesjar has designed the freezing to occur in a particular form so that, when you put colored light behind it, it looks like this:
This is a photo of a similar piece of art by the same artist in Anchorage, Alaska.
The Nicollet Mall Advisory Board is looking for a good home for their art. They are retiring the art because, in its current location, the over-spray from the fountain causes ice and slipping problems on nearby sidewalks and streets. It just doesn’t work well in the current site.
They are offering it at no cost to the acquiring community. There are, of course, costs to prepare the receiving location, plumbing, transporting, etc. This is not a “no cost” offer to whatever city gets this art.
But it might be nice. We’re taking a look at it.
