Franconia Sculpture Park — Attraction in Franconia Township

Franconia is stunning. Like in all the ways of abstract art appreciation, nostalgia, and deeply meaningful pieces with well written descriptions by the artist. I had heard this place was a gem and so I placed it in my "Minnesota bucket list" for 2020. Well worth the short 1 hour drive from the Twin Cities

We were especially fortunate to visit on the day we did because I learned it was also opening day of their brand new Visitor Center, Museum shop, and bathroom facilities. I had read earlier reviews about lack of bathroom facilities onsite but this has now been remedied! :) The museum shop is small but has some lovely handcrafted pieces.

The reason for visiting Franconia is, of course, the sculptures. I can't quite put into words the unique but highly relevant and relatable pieces displayed. There are so many sculptures sprinkled throughout the property - plan for a couple hours in order to fit everything in. I was pleasantly surprised to see such diversity in artist background. I had the wrong notion that Franconia would just show local area work - we saw artists from Asia and the Middle East represented. We saw commissioned work that had travelled from other cities where it had been spotlighted before arriving in Minnesota. I think what really stirred my soul was to experience all of this outdoors in nature, especially on a beautiful fall day. I think Minnesota is really lucky to have something like Franconia AND the fact that this is free is mind blowing! We made sure to show them some love by spending $ in the gift shop but please donate online as well. They offer plenty of free parking, picnic tables, and a food truck was onsite when we visited - how much more family friendly can you get, seriously?

Do yourself a favor. Get this place on your Minnesota bucket list. I plan to visit...

This was a fantastic place to walk around and bring kids to run freely around without having to tell them not to run in an art gallery! There were so many different, varied art exhibits with thought provoking forms and made with very interactive media.

If you explore each exhibit (assuming you may have kids too) and allow kids to explore, there are easily 2-4 hours of time spent here. We have four kids, 2.5 y, 5y, 7y, and 8y (male and female) and they LOVED it! There are two different playground sets for the kids to climb explore and test they abilities on and most of the exhibits were explorable by all kids. We walked over 2 miles and talked about the art and what it was trying to convey, there are some signs that explain the pieces but found that the internet was helpful in adding context.

There are bathrooms and a visitors center as well. The place is free but it would be good to donate if you can because it's worth it. We will likely go back again.

Notes: I went in the spring, so it was pretty busy but not over whelming. There is a lot of standing water so wear some boots... I have three kids with muddy wet feet. (parenting note). Bathrooms are at the front so ensure you go, before you go. Bring snacks, at least when I went, all that running around stirred appetites!

We will definitely be going...

A long-time follower of Franconia from the days when they were on just a little plot of land south from where they are now. It's been awesome to see their growth. I grew up looking at their sculptures ranging from fun, to seductive, to gory, and bizarre. There is always a new rotation of sculptures, so even if you go there once, it could be different the next time you're there.

The people that are saying that the property is unkempt don't understand that there is a purpose as to why: they are utilizing unoccupied space not for weeds as some people seem to think: but for indigenous wild flowers to help with the pollinator population. There's goldenrod, echinacea, thistle - just to name a few, so they mow and keep the trails clear for you to walk while encouraging the fauna to flourish (what a weird complaint for people to have). I even noticed a lot of their mowed plots use dutch clover for additional wildflower coverage, smart thinking!

Yes, sometimes the art is inappropriate, that's always been something Franconia has had at it's core. Art is definitely subjective and sometimes makes bold statements to make you ask yourself 'why' you feel a certain way about a piece. If you don't dig deeper than that - that's on you.

Their bathrooms and commons area is nice and clean and a good place for a break if...