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Reasons to Love Minnesota No. 136: Sheridan Memorial Park

A riverside tribute to local veterans

Sheridan Memorial Park in Northeast Minneapolis recently underwent a $500,000 transformation — a makeover that includes a new playground, basketball court, picnic shelter, and public art.⁣

While the grand reopening isn’t scheduled until spring, the park — which is built on an old Grain Belt site — is accessible now. ⁣In fact, the work showcased above, Ethos, has been there since summer 2014. That’s when the ribbon was first cut on the striking riverside memorial honoring Minnesota veterans from 10 separate conflicts.⁣

⁣Local artist Robert Smart created the 35’ x 35’ x 35’ sculpture, an internally illuminated steel and cast iron sphere of protective shields that’s almost Kubrickian in its otherworldliness. A closer look at the walkway lining the sculpture’s perimeter reveals quotes about peace engraved in granite — and steel markers with harrowing reminders of wars we seem all too doomed to repeat. ⁣

Go there. Take a moment. It’s hard not to be moved.

Sheridan Memorial Park
1300 Water St. NE, Minneapolis, MN; 612-230-6400.