December 2025 - We had a great year

Dear friends of the Charles E. Gagnon Museum and Sculpture Garden,

Thank you for your support of our beautiful museum that continues to offer the fine art of bronze sculpture created by Rochester, Minnesota sculptor, Chuck Gagnon.

We want to thank the Carl and Verna Schmidt Foundation for their generous grant to maintain and renovate the wetlands in the Southwest corner of the sculpture garden. This year, we have seen the development of a new garden within the sculpture garden. It features two of Chuck’s religious sculptures, St. Francis and The Open Cross. This garden was originally used as an area for raising sheep before we owned the land during the 1980’s. We are very fortunate to have Kara Vig design and plant beautiful new flowers, shrubs, and trees that complement and enhance the bronze sculptures. Flowers will change with the seasons and exhibit rare and exciting colors for everyone to enjoy. In choosing a name for this new garden, it seems fitting and appropriate to call it the Lamb of God Garden. Because art is a universal language, it is my hope that our intelligent visitors from all over the world will make the connection and derive the meaningful language of hope and peace that they can take with them.

We also installed the Seated Bather near the pond next to the boardwalk. The wetlands are being maintained and enhanced with Chuck’s beautiful and meaningful sculptures.

Early in 2025, we discovered Chuck’s sculpture graphics. He passed away in 2012 and left these original works of art on paper without signing or numbering them. Michelle Krona came to Rochester from Minneapolis to work on this special project. We created, stamped, and numbered editions of all three sculpture graphics: St. Francis, Spirit of Peace, and String Quartet. Chuck based all three sculpture graphics on his original bronze sculptures. We made the sculpture graphics available for sale as a fundraiser for the museum in the August exhibition called Discovery. They are available for $800 each and may be seen at the museum. Please call to make an appointment: 507-282-5202.

One of the highlights of this year was working with 4 high school interns during the summer. They proved to be ambitious, energetic, and creative. Much was accomplished to their endless work and I extend my gratitude and thanks to each of them. They were Lucy Fulton, Marie Nosier, Avery Thome, and Katherine Tchumperlin. We wish them well in their new school year.

Ron Hanson, a museum volunteer, and his wife Jody donated $500 in memory of his daughter, Ashley Marie Hanson. His kind and generous donation was used for two scholarships, given to our two museum interns who graduated from high school and were about to enter college: Katherine Tchumperlin received a $250 scholarship and is studying art at Boston University. Avery Thome received a $250 scholarship to study Biology at Iowa State.

If any of you plan to travel to South Carolina this winter, please add Brookgreen Gardens to your must-see list because you will find one of Chuck’s life-size String Quartet bronze sculptures on display in this historic sculpture garden, which features American sculptors of international acclaim.

In closing, I would like to thank everyone who has volunteered in so many areas of the museum because I could not do this without you. I continue to give tours to visitors from all over the world. They tell me that our small museum is the kind of museum they have been looking for, and they continue to enjoy the peace and serenity in our amazing sculpture garden. We have joined art and nature in a language that communicates to everyone.

With all good wishes for a happy and healthy new year to you and your families.

Cheers!

Arlyn