Grandview Pedestrian Bridge

An early rendering of the Grandview pedestrian bridge. (Note: this is not one of the proposed design options.)

The City of Edina is requesting the public's feedback for decorative options for a new pedestrian bridge in the Grandview District. These preliminary concepts were prepared by three different artists in response to focus groups consisting of Edina residents, nearby property owners and nearby employees.

This survey will be open from Feb. 28-March 13, and the winner of the popular vote will be recommended to the Edina Housing and Redevelopment Authority (the property owner) for confirmation.

Once the artist and general design is selected, it will be further refined to fit the context of the area and to be constructible.

Below are the three preliminary concepts - each has two images along with an artist statement. (To view larger versions of each image, right-click and select "Open Image in New Tab"). Scroll to the bottom - voting takes place under the "Survey" tab at the bottom of the page.

Concept 1: Plants for a sense of place

Artist Statement:

This design features a series of panels with designs of plants native to Minnesota. Each metal panel will feature a cutout of a different native plant, accompanied by its common name. From a distance, the irregular panels will catch the eye of passers-by, and encourage them to come closer and walk on the bridge in order to see all the details of the artwork. The panels would range in size in squares and rectangles, and I imagine they will be inside the structure of the walkway so that people on the bridge get the best view of them.

In the focus group's the idea of place-based artwork and green space came up frequently. Learning about native plants deepens one’s sense of place, and my hope is that this can function both as a beautiful piece of artwork and a learning tool.

Concept 2: Community, flow and connection

Artist Statement:

The concept for this piece focuses on interpersonal connection. Community, walkability, and flow appeared to be the primary ideas that people in Edina wanted to focus on for this new bridge, so I centered the design around that. This bridge will connect one piece of land to another, and the various shapes, sizes, and interconnections of hands in the design represent people connecting to one another in the community. This is especially fitting for the current climate in a post-Covid world, where people are finally being allowed to make connections with one another again. I hope for this design to make the bridge that kind of place for community and relating with one another.

When creating on the final design for the bridge, the community could be invited to create templates of their hands of all sizes, kids, adults, elders... which could be included in the final design. The metal forms would be inside and outside of the bridge structure for an interesting view from afar and an immersive view from within.

Concept 3: Horse, Wind, Clover and Bridge

Artist Statement:

My concept consists of four large panels with cutouts of abstract shapes, fitting together like a puzzle. Each shape represents the history of the area: Horse, Wind, Clover and Bridge. The Horse shape is Dan Patch – the horse the railway was named after. The Wind represents the horse running forward, a concept of changing times. The Clover is Edina’s city symbol and represents its long heritage. Lastly, the Bridge is the last transformation of the area, the present.

I have decided to keep the design the same on each side, but the views will be the opposite of each other. Symmetry is important to me. During the focus groups, I learned about Edina’s history and heritage. There was an emphasis on elegance and green space – in which, I chose to use lines, swirls and floral elements. There was also a desire for interesting shadows. To achieve this, I wanted to make sure the light coming through between the shapes is just as important as the shadows being cast by the shapes. Even though the designs are on four different panels, I wanted the negative space to move among the designs and give the illusion it is seamless.