North Art Tour
Welcome!
Beginning at the corner of Roberts Alley and 2nd Ave N, the Northern Art Walking Tour includes 24 unique pieces ranging from sculptural bike racks to interactive murals. It is a 1 mile loop that takes an average of 25-35 minutes to complete. We suggest parking in the Roberts Commons parking garage, or along Broadway.
Navigate the tour and read about the artwork by clicking through the map legend. When artist interviews are available for a tour stop, it will be mentioned in the map description! Use the hashtags to support these awesome artists and this project!
Looking for a place to stop for a snack or a drink on the way? Check out this collection of Sweets and Sips!
Printable PDF Map Available or for an interactive experience, try the Geocaching Adventure we helped develop!
Map is up to date as of July 2021.
1) Rain Drops
#RainDropMural
Look up higher on the wall to see it as it's up above like real rain!
More info coming soon!
Described by the artist as "patriotic eagle wings," strike a pose in front of this interactive mural! This piece brightens up the VFW building to match Roberts Alley and the renovations inside the VFW.
3) Silver Lining Creamery Angel Wings | 2021
#SilverLiningCreamery; #SLCangelwings
Like several other pieces around town these wings are vinyl, not painted. Office Sign Company printed this work and many others. These new designs were created by Emily Brooks (Large Wings) and Morgan (Little Wings) in 2021. The blue and white wings were the original design installed in 2018, but were replaced due to weathering.
Pet friendly stop - They sell dog treats and have a set of small angel wings for your dog to have a photo with you too!
The ASL bike racks are a great example of collaboration. Artists Jeff Knight and Brittany Sickler wanted to create a public artwork that served a purpose, and the community suggested a bike rack. They worked with local cyclists to ensure the functionality of the design, and a local welder, Betty Homme, manufactured the work.
This piece is 55 ft long and 11 ft tall. The original painting which was scanned and then printed onto perforated panels was 9 ft long! A quote from Emily is available on the website.
6) Fargo Skyway Mural | 2005 | Scott Gunvaldson
#FargoSkywayMural
A collage of Fargo's most iconic locations, the mural was financed by money generated through parking ticket fees. Quote from the Artist Partnership.
Directions: This mural is located in the skyway that crosses 2nd Ave. Enter through 123 Broadway and follow the skyways east and then north across 2nd Ave. For elevator access, enter through 500 2nd Ave N.
Skyway Hours: Monday-Friday: 7am-6pm; Saturday: 10am-5pm
(Hours may be different due to Covid-19)
7) Art Alley Free Wall | 2015
#FargoArtAlley
Open to all artists! Art Alley changes frequently, come back often to spot new works.
Art Wall Rules:
Everyone is welcome to paint this wall
Respect the space - no garage doors, ground, or apts.
No obscenities or explicit imagery
This side of alley only - between the red lines
Pick up your trash
Take pictures - nothing lasts forever
You are on camera - violators will be prosecuted
8) Sunny Brook Mural | 1949, Charles Selberg | Restored 2003, Chandler O’Leary
#SunnyBrookMural
Charles Selberg was 17 years old When he painted this mural in 1949. "A week after he finished it, a temperance group had the painting whitewashed, inadvertently preserving the work for years" (NDSU Archives).
In 2003 artist E. Chandler O’Leary was given permission to restore the work.
Featuring the iconic Mario World I, level one, this is perhaps the most popular mural in Fargo. The first row of bricks float six feet off the ground- the perfect position for an interactive photo-op! Listen to the Dark Elvis interview to hear the answer to the most common question the artists receive: "where are the clouds?"
10) Downtown Heart | 2003
#DowntownFargoHeart
Found on the North side of the Loretta building, the Downtown Heart was a way for owners Kevin and Karli Hanson to add a little something special to their rooftop patio. Created by the couple and Karli's father, the heart has been lighting up downtown Fargo since the building's renovation in 2003. (Inforum)
Standing at 2.5 stories high, the Bob Dylan mural was inspired by the history of the building. The building owner, Tony Coronato, noted that Bob Dylan used to hang out in the hotel lounge in 1959 when he lived in Fargo. Impressively, it only too Muck around 2 hours to complete the whole mural on June 9, 2022. (Inforum)
For more details, check out the full article on Inforum.
12) Zoo Animals | 1986
#FargoAnimalWall
This mural was made possible with support of the Fargo Optimist Club and a Fargo Public Schools Summer Art Program. This is the oldest mural in its original form on the tour!
This building was painted as a collaboration between 5 regional graffiti artists, including local artist Paul Ide. This unique style can be found in other murals downtown including the Peacock mural and the Penguin Mural on the South Art Tour.
Walk around the entire building to experience the entirety of the work!
Commissioned by Jon Wanzek - Building Owner
Building owner Jon Wanzek was inspired to rename the building after seeing Knutson's painting of a meadowlark. He then reached out to Knutson to see if he would recreate a 40ft+ version of the original piece, which now adorn both sides of the building stairwell.
"My whole goal with my art is to kind of give this new spin, this new idea of our state. Not kind of this windswept wasteland that people sometimes think it is." Quote from Inforum.
Commissioned by Jon Wanzek - Building Owner
The wild prairie rose is North Dakota's State Flower. This piece fits perfectly next to the mural of ND state bird on the adjacent building, the meadowlark.
This work is based on the book "A Day in the Life of Marlon Bundo" by Jill Twiss. The original Illustrations were done by E.G. Keller.
In 24 hours, artist Tristan Pollock found a site, got permission, designed, and painted this work to prove public art can happen quickly, which he talks about in TEDxFargo. Check out Tristan's artist page to watch his TEDx Talk for Cubes!
19) Greetings from Dillard Alley | 2020 | Adam Wiedman
#GreetingsFromDillardAlley
Check out this link for the full story until we can update our info: Dillard Alley Story
Quotes by Paul Ide from Inform:
"The wear and tear of the years and the weather is kind of what makes it so interesting and why it makes it so fun to paint."
"It's a step out of most people's comfort zone to see that. It's an assault on your eyes - a pleasant one, but it gets your attention."
Check out the time lapse video showing the painting of this mural on the artist page!
21) Big Fish | 2021
#BeerAndFishBigFishMural
While you're here, check out the cool old radio vinyl and the painted garage door!
More info coming soon!
22) Guinness Mural | 2021
#GuinnessAtDempseys
More info coming soon!
Allyson Gaughuan, graphic designer at ABOVO, drew the Fargo Postcard piece to add ABOVO's mark to Roberts Alley. ABOVO is a marketing and branding business, and the postcard combines the most iconic elements of Downtown Fargo. Did you spot all the icons while downtown today?
Fargo Postcard Mural Transcript:
Welcome to downtown Fargo: The home of incredible people, fun shopping, great restaurants, homemade ice cream- and - the home of Abovo, a small creative and marketing agency. Abovo, whose door is located in Roberts Alley, wanted to contribute to the energy of downtown found in nearly every turn, alley and wall. We partnered with downtown convenience and grocery store, Daily's Market, to produce our "Fargo Postcard." The artwork for this postcard was hand-drawn and illustrated by Team Abovo's Allyson Gaughan and features some of our favorite places and scenes of downtown Fargo. The design can be seen (and photographed with!) near our door in Roberts Alley and for those who want to take a piece of downtown with them, purchase the postcard version at Daily's Market (located at 216 Broadway). As you take a close look at the design, what do you find, see and recognize?
This piece was made for earth week and part of an initiative to celebrate Fargo's alleys. To use the space fully, and create more of a mural appearance than a sign, the traditional painted letters and white background design of a sign was flipped. The letters were left white and pop against the bright red of the background. Check out the video on Upper Hand Signs Artist page to see the process from paper to mural.
Along the Way...
Painted Bison Statues
Map available if you want to find them all!
Prairie Public video "Herd About the Prairie: A Visual Art Stampede" about the painted bison on YouTube.
Vinyl Wrapped Benches
Painted Utility Boxes - For more information check out the Utility Box Project and The Story of Casey and the Utility Boxes
Still looking for more art? The South Art Tour has an additional 10+ unique art pieces! We also have a tour of works that are Off the Main Path (you might want to drive) and a collection of retired murals to appreciate the art that has come and gone.
Comments? Questions?
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Photographs by Emily Hopfauf and DeAnna Hurley unless noted otherwise.