Close Menu
Eden Prairie Local News
    Facebook X (Twitter) Instagram
    Tuesday, August 26
    • About
      • About EPLN
      • Team
      • EPLN in the News
      • Policies
    • Contact
    Facebook X (Twitter) Instagram Threads LinkedIn
    Subscribe
    Eden Prairie Local News
    • Home
    • Schools
    • Business
    • Sports
    • Public Safety
    • City
    • Calendar
    • Subscribe
    • Donate
    • More
      • Construction
      • Outdoors
      • Politics
      • Health
      • Spirituality
      • Community Service
      • Legacy
      • Obituaries
      • Arts
      • Family
      • Holidays
      • Letter to Editor
      • Listen
      • Jobs
    Eden Prairie Local News
    Home»Arts»Canoes make big splash at The Fox & The Grouse apartments
    Arts

    Canoes make big splash at The Fox & The Grouse apartments

    EPLN Guest WriterBy EPLN Guest WriterAugust 26, 20255 Mins Read
    Artist Ramon Byrne (front) and sculptor Rude Calderon pause while installing canoes near the Fox and Grouse apartments.
    Artist Ramon Byrne (front) and sculptor Rude Calderon pause while installing canoe sculptures near The Fox & The Grouse apartments. Photo by Pat Thompson

    Editor’s note: This article was written by Pat Thompson, a longtime journalist and Eden Prairie resident.


    It is not surprising to see clusters of people stop and stand in awe of two sculpted canoes at The Fox & The Grouse apartments in Eden Prairie, just a few steps from the Golden Triangle light rail station, scheduled to be in operation in 2027.

    The recently opened 237-unit The Fox & The Grouse apartments and its developer, Greco Properties of Minneapolis, commissioned sculptor Rude Calderon and associate Ramon Byrne to create the canoes in conjunction with the City of Eden Prairie’s public art initiative, described by Eden Prairie Local News last March.

    “When a large-scale development project like The Fox & The Grouse goes through its process with the city, there is a portion of the project that gets earmarked for public art of some kind,” said Lori Brink, the city’s recreation services manager. “The city assists the developer by facilitating a Request for Qualifications (RFQ) that gets advertised nationally and explains the project, scale and budget. 

    Advertisement
    Ad for Washburn McReavy

    “Interested artists then submit samples of their work from other communities and state their interest in the project.”

    Enter Calderon and Byrne of Art City Studios in Ventura, California.

    “A committee made up of representatives from the city and the developer rates each application based on a set of criteria, and, usually, three to four finalists are selected,” Brink said. “Those finalists are then invited to submit a full proposal of what they would create for the site. The committee reconvenes to consider the final applications, but in the end, it is the developer who makes the final decision for their property.”

    Justin Flynn, property manager of the 237-unit Fox and Grouse apartments in Eden Prairie, near the Golden Triangle light rail station.
    Justin Flynn, property manager of the 237-unit The Fox & The Grouse apartments in Eden Prairie, stands near the canoe sculptures along the walking path between the complex and the Golden Triangle Station. Photo by Pat Thompson

    Justin Flynn, The Fox & The Grouse property manager, said, “After reviewing several thoughtful and creative ideas, we were ultimately drawn to the travertine stone canoe sculptures that Rude presented. The colors and materials of the canoes complemented the natural setting and the exterior of the building, while also functioning as benches along the pedestrian path.”

    Advertisement
    Ad for The Goddard School - Goddard is where Extraordinary Awaits

    Calderon delivered the canoes in late June and placed them along the walking path between the apartment complex and the Golden Triangle light rail station.

    “The canoes are made of onyx travertine, a sedimentary rock used in construction and decoration from Meyers, Arizona,” Calderon said. “The sculptures took approximately four months, although it took a little longer before we could install them because of the weather. We waited until the spring to deliver.”

    Calderon said the project gave him his first opportunity to visit Minnesota.

    “The beautiful green landscape, crisscrossed with streams, rivers and lakes, greatly inspired the sculpting of the canoes,” he said. “The main inspiration, of course, was to pay homage to the history of the region’s Ojibwe people and their ancient masterful art of birch bark canoes going back many centuries.”

    “Working with the City of Eden Prairie and Greco developers was very smooth and amicable, and I am very grateful to them for this opportunity.”

    Flynn said The Fox & The Grouse residents acknowledged Calderon’s special skill.

     “We have received a handful of compliments to the attention to detail and making the style flow throughout the community,” Flynn said. “People enjoy the uniqueness of the artwork and appreciate our dedication to the arts.” 

    Two pieces of wood before they were carved into the canoe sculptures now installed at The Fox & The Grouse apartments in Eden Prairie. Photo courtesy of Rude Calderon
    The finished travertine canoe sculptures installed at The Fox & The Grouse apartments in Eden Prairie. Photo courtesy of Rude Calderon

    While Calderon would have liked to stay longer in Minnesota, he had other commitments.

    “Our ride home to California was smooth,” Calderon said. “We stopped at a huge stone yard in Arizona and picked up some more onyx. I come from a family of sculptors on my father’s side and have been immersed in art since I was a child. That led me to art school at Cal State University, Los Angeles, where I studied sculpture and painting.

    “Stone as a medium inspires my appreciation of its dynamic and intrinsic natural beauty, and its perpetual place in human history,” he added. “The materials and methods used are those that resonate most with my nature and thoughts.”

    For the two canoe sculptures in Minnesota, Calderon began with travertine stones weighing 3,200 and 3,600 pounds. The finished pieces weigh about 1,500 and 1,700 pounds.

    “My lifelong interest in geology, sculpture and mystical philosophy stirred my vocation in art,” Calderon said. “It’s a living natural material that provides me with the dynamics required for concepts that ponder and question our state of consciousness and the essence that unites us as human beings. Being one of a handful of professional sculptors in Los Angeles working and teaching this ancient medium moves me to explore and impart the endless and expressive possibilities inherent in it.”

    The Fox & The Grouse certainly admire Calderon for that journey.

    “We love the canoes,” Flynn declared.


    Pat Thompson

    About the author: Pat Thompson was an award-winning journalist with The Associated Press and the St. Paul Pioneer Press during the 1960s, ’70s and ’80s. He followed his news career with more than 30 years shaping internal and external communications strategies for the State of Minnesota, Koch Industries, IBM, the National Marrow Donor Program and Xcel Energy.

    He is a longtime participant in senior baseball in Eden Prairie. More recently, he has served on the board of the West Metro Senior Softball Association, which has 10 teams playing summer games at Round Lake from April through September and early October.

    Comments
    We offer several ways for our readers to provide feedback. Your comments are welcome on our social media posts (Facebook, X, Instagram, Threads, and LinkedIn). We also encourage Letters to the Editor; submission guidelines can be found on our Contact Us page. If you believe this story has an error or you would like to get in touch with the author, please connect with us.

    Be Informed
    Sign up for the FREE email newsletter from EPLN
    Subscribe
    Share. Facebook Twitter Pinterest LinkedIn Tumblr Email
    Previous ArticleWith the low-hanging fruit already picked, Capitol security focus moves to guns

    More to READ

    4 Mins Read

    Eden Prairie’s top voices take the stage

    August 21, 2025
    4 Mins Read

    Riz Ahmed boldly leads taut thriller ‘Relay’

    August 20, 2025
    4 Mins Read

    ‘Nobody 2’ lazily celebrates violence

    August 13, 2025
    Subscribe to get EPLN in your inbox for FREE!
    Recent Articles

    Canoes make big splash at The Fox & The Grouse apartments

    August 26, 2025

    With the low-hanging fruit already picked, Capitol security focus moves to guns

    August 26, 2025

    Alexander ‘Alex’ Michael Petersen

    August 25, 2025

    Eden Prairie girls golf program welcomes new head coach

    August 25, 2025

    Two EPHS students participate in summer business camp

    August 25, 2025
    • Facebook
    • Twitter
    • Instagram
    • LinkedIn
    • Threads
    INN Network Member Guidestar Gold Seal Tiny News Collective
    Eden Prairie Local News is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization EIN 85-4248265 | Copyright © 2020-2025
    • About
    • Policies
    • Jobs
    • Contact
    • Advertising
    • Subscribe
    • Donate

    Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.