From the cornfields of the Heartland to the threshold of our nation's capital, the award-winning public artwork of Karl Unnasch adorns educational facilities, banks, theaters, libraries, businesses and public gathering spaces across North America.

Honored with mentions on NBC’s Today show, Reader's Digest and Voice of America, and with appearances in the esteemed Experience Art textbooks, these whimsical creations evoke a sense of quirky familiarity, combining beauty and invention to resonate both locally and with the broader audience of the world at large.

Begin your browse below.

Slumgullion
(The Venerate Outpost)

Tulsa, Oklahoma

This reclaimed antique log cabin installation on the grounds of Tulsa's Philbrook Museum of Art features stained glass, art glass, resin-bonded textiles, and more.

★ AFTA Public Art Network Year-in-Review Honoree ★

MORE ABOUT SLUMGULLION

Burnt Matchstick

Lake Wobegon Trail, Holdingford, Minnesota

A groundbreaking sculpture of fabricated steel and backlit stained glass, this 40-foot-tall work debuted in Rochester, Minnesota; was exhibited at length in Newport Beach, California; and now has its permanent home along the Lake Wobegon Trail near St. Cloud, Minnesota.

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Ruminant (The Grand Masticator)

Reedsburg, Wisconsin

Originally a temporary installation for a festival in the rural town of Reedsburg, Wisconsin, popular demand kept this stained glass harvesting combine around. A local grassroots movement was begun to acquire the work and create a space for it, and thus it became a centerpiece in the brand new Harvest Park.

★ AFTA Public Art Network Year-in-Review Honoree ★
★ Honored with mention in Davis Publications school art textbook ★

(photo: courtesy of Aaron Dysart)

MORE ABOUT RUMINANT

Write On

St. Cloud, Minnesota

This 8-foot-tall sculpture of fabricated steel and backlit opalescent glass in the form of a worn pencil nub is sited in front of the Paramount Center for the Arts in St. Cloud, Minnesota.

MORE ABOUT WRITE ON

Three Sisters

Coon Rapids, Minnesota

This set of three figurative sculpture installments of welded stainless steel and backlit "tchonk" glass was created for Anoka-Ramsey Community College in the Greater Twin Cities community of Coon Rapids, Minnesota.

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Rustician (hunt & gather...seek & find)

Montevideo, Minnesota

This antique tractor bedecked with original backlit stained glass for the rural town of Montevideo, Minnesota tells a tale of local and regional history through the imagery on the panels.

★ AFTA Public Art Network Year-in-Review Honoree ★
★ Honored with mention in Davis Publications school art textbook ★

(photo: courtesy of Kristi Fernholz)

MORE ABOUT RUSTICIAN

Near-Mint Condition

Minneapolis, Minnesota

This tractor illuminated with backlit stained glass panels in and upon the chassis was created for the 2010 Minnesota Biennial at the Soap Factory in Minneapolis.

The work represents Small Town/Rural values and is simultaneously a beacon of boyhood fantasy, as all of the stained glass images represent popular-culture ‘country boys’ from the Artist’s childhood musings.

(photo: courtesy of Gene Pittman)

MORE ABOUT NEAR-MINT CONDITION

Operant (An Oldowonk Cataract)

Boston, Massachusetts

SPRING - FALL 2019

On exhibit at the Rose Kennedy Greenway in 2019, this mixed-media installation based on a red dump truck acknowledged construction workers and laborers while celebrating the concepts of 'building' and 'making' in its stained glass imagery.

★ Honored with mention in Davis Publications school art textbook ★

MORE ABOUT OPERANT

Bloodroot

Burlington, Ontario, Canada

Made of fabricated steel inset with backlit opalescent glass, this 25-foot wildflower was commissioned for the Dan Lawrie International Sculpture Collection at Royal Botanical Gardens in Burlington, Ontario.

(photo: courtesy of Chris Farias)

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Sunset Wave

Huntington Beach, California

This original steel and stained glass sculpture evoking sunshine and ocean waves can be found on Main Street in "Surf City".

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Husk

Most recently exhibited in Fargo, North Dakota

A sculpture of fabricated steel and backlit opalescent glass, this work referencing a crushed beer can was created for an exhibit at the Plains Art Museum and explores the myriad cultural implications of rural American experience while poignantly reflecting upon pollution.

(photo: courtesy of Cory Jacobson)

MORE ABOUT HUSK

XOXO

Minneapolis, Minnesota

A ten-foot-high sculpture of Corten steel and backlit 'tchonk' glass, this "heartening" work graces the head of the JROW Sculpture Trail in the Northeast Minneapolis Arts District.

MORE ABOUT XOXO

Just Jest Your Gesture

St. Paul, Minnesota

This hand-gesture-themed stained glass window set was installed in 2022 at Can Can Wonderland in St. Paul, Minnesota.

MORE ABOUT JUST JEST YOUR GESTURE

Playtime in Indy

Indianapolis, Indiana

A luscious blend of color and fun, this 50-foot holiday ‘tree’ was crafted entirely of toys and has been installed on the grounds of Newfields - formerly known as the Indianapolis Museum of Art - every holiday season since 2015.

(photo: courtesy of IMA and Eric Lubrick)

MORE ABOUT PLAYTIME IN INDY

Annual Holiday Trees for Downtown Silver Spring

Annual Holiday Trees for Silver Spring

Silver Spring, Maryland (A Metro D.C. Community)

Beginning in 2013, Karl Unnasch created the annual holiday trees for the Reinventing the Holidays celebration by Downtown Silver Spring, Maryland, often in collaboration with other artists.

★ Honored with multiple ICSC U.S. MAXI Awards ★

MORE ABOUT DTSS HOLIDAY TREES

RCTC Installations

Rochester, Minnesota

This series of installations for the Health Science Wing at Rochester Community and Technical College includes a stained glass window bay, stained glass light fixtures and sculptural vitrines — all health and medically themed.

(photos: courtesy of Cat Thisius)

MORE ABOUT THE RCTC INSTALLATIONS

See Us Now

Anchorage, Alaska

This stained glass window installation featuring Alaska-native animals was created for the hallway at Turnagain Elementary School in Anchorage.

MORE ABOUT SEE US NOW

Seasonal
Hide-and-Seek

White Bear Lake, Minnesota

This stained glass puzzle is located in the children’s play corner of White Bear Lake Public Library.

(photo: courtesy of Eric Walton)

MORE ABOUT SEASONAL HIDE-AND-SEEK

Commonweal Stash

Lanesboro, Minnesota

This series of architectural art installations for the lobby area of the Commonweal Theatre in Lanesboro, Minnesota consists of suspended and interactive sculptural elements, dioramas and vitrines — based on a combination of the detritus of local culture and the Theatre’s own history.

MORE ABOUT COMMONWEAL STASH

Bluffland Highlights

Preston, Minnesota

This regionally-themed, 4x6-foot stained glass window “puzzle” finds its home in the main lobby of F&M Community Bank in Preston, MN.

MORE ABOUT BLUFFLAND HIGHLIGHTS

John Marshall High School Installations

Rochester, Minnesota

This series of stained glass windows adorning John Marshall High School incorporates reclaimed glass and dishware. It was created together with the local student body as an integrative learning project.

(photos: courtesy of Cat Thisius)

MORE ABOUT JMHS INSTALLATIONS

Glassicles

Minneapolis, Minnesota

A series of sculptural art-glass installations on display at various locations including the Weisman Art Museum and the New Century Theatre in Minneapolis, Minnesota, the Glassicles were chandelier-like in design, blending color, light and form.

MORE ABOUT GLASSICLES

Florid and Droll

Madison, Wisconsin

This series of gardening-themed sculptures with backlit stained glass was featured at Olbrich Botanical Gardens in Madison, Wisconsin.

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Tessellated Mosaic

Harmony, Minnesota

This expanding iron tile mosaic was created via a series of workshops for and with Fillmore Central High School students and staff.

(photo: courtesy of Eric Walton)

MORE ABOUT TESSELLATED MOSAIC

Public Art in Lanesboro

Lanesboro, Minnesota

A trio of cast iron and aluminum directional signs, a series of cast iron medallions (positioned throughout town for the “Discover Sculpture”
walking tour), and a stained glass trout "weathervane" by Karl Unnasch all adorn the streets of Lanesboro, Minnesota.
Indoors, the Commonweal Theatre is also home to Unnasch's extensive Commonweal Stash installation, and Sylvan Brewing is laden, inside and out, with Unnasch's touch (see the Sylvan Spotlights page).

PUBLIC ART & SCULPTURE

Look. Look again.

Slumgullion(The Venerate Outpost)

Tulsa, Oklahoma

Burnt Matchstick

Lake Wobegon Trail, Holdingford, Minnesota

Ruminant (The Grand Masticator)

Reedsburg, Wisconsin

Write On

St. Cloud, Minnesota

Three Sisters

Coon Rapids, Minnesota

Rustician (hunt & gather...seek & find)

Montevideo, Minnesota

Near-Mint Condition

Minneapolis, Minnesota

Operant (An Oldowonk Cataract)

Boston, Massachusetts

Bloodroot

Burlington, Ontario, Canada

Sunset Wave

Huntington Beach, California

Husk

Most recently exhibited in Fargo, North Dakota

XOXO

Minneapolis, Minnesota

Just Jest Your Gesture

St. Paul, Minnesota

Playtime in Indy

Indianapolis, Indiana

Annual Holiday Trees for Silver Spring

Silver Spring, Maryland (A Metro D.C. Community)

RCTC Installations

Rochester, Minnesota

See Us Now

Anchorage, Alaska

Seasonal Hide-and-Seek

White Bear Lake, Minnesota

Commonweal Stash

Lanesboro, Minnesota

Bluffland Highlights

Preston, Minnesota

John Marshall High School Installations

Rochester, Minnesota

Glassicles

Minneapolis, Minnesota

Florid and Droll

Madison, Wisconsin

Tessellated Mosaic

Harmony, Minnesota

Public Art in Lanesboro

Lanesboro, Minnesota

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Look.
Look again.

Slumgullion
(The Venerate Outpost)

Seasonal
Hide-and-Seek