1175 - Alley Wags by Karl Unnasch
Artist Karl Unnatsch is known for blending rugged craftsmanship with a surreal, whimsical imagination. With decades of experience across wood, metal, stone, and stained glass, his public art installations appear throughout North America and beyond. Located in Rochester, Minnesota, Alleywags reflects his signature approach to storytelling through material and form. Here, Karl Unnatsch shares the story behind the work.
Alleyways. Around the corner from the historic Chateau Theatre in the Arts district of downtown Rochester, Minnesota, in an otherwise mundane alleyway, unsuspecting passers-through may get the feeling that they are being watched. Anyone daring to check may be lucky enough to spot one of five whimsical figures clinging to the walls, peering down on them from various vantage points on perches high above.
In a world where everybody is bent over looking down, there is occasionally a rare treat for those taking the time to look up. Inspired by grotesques and gargoyles, and in the spirit of those types of architectural decorations, this set of five sculptures of castile and chunk glass by artist Carl Unnasch keeps watch over passersby and, if spotted, calls out to them in his characteristic style. Look. Look again.
A rugged farm upbringing streaked with a penchant for the surreal, this has been the driving force behind the work of Karl Unnasch. With decades of expertise in wood, metal, stonework and stained glass, phantasmagorical combinations of media have become his hallmark. Backed by a comprehensive education in the arts, his notions morph into works that knit together sources of collective memory, while ringing with an element of his own whimsy.
Unnasch's smaller scale work has been exhibited as far as Europe and acclaimed in publications such as the New York Times and Art in London Magazine, while his larger scale, award winning public art has been featured on the likes of NBC's Today Show, Reader's Digest, and the Voice of America. Notably, his work has also been included with multiple mentions in the esteemed Davis Publications School art textbooks, paving the path toward the enduring iconic incorporation of his work into the American art timeline, consciousness, and culture.