Minneapolis Cityscape an Artist View

by Ilga Eglistis

8.5" x 11" format, with this book generally featuring a left-hand page of written background, history and infomation concerning each building and the building is seen in a full-page line drawing on the ajoining right-hand page. However, often as not, the first drawing is accompanied with a second drawing of a special feature or a different aspect of the building. In a real sense this volume is both a history of Minneapolis and a history of it's city architecture. - “As you explore, use this book Let its words and sketches guide you along to the standing landmarks and remind you of some that no longer exist...Along the way, you’ll leam about some of the people who...built a city — a good city — and named it Minneapolis.” Barbara Flanagan, Minneapolis Star and Tribune - “This book delights and informs anyone interested in the rich panorama of historic places and memorable buildings of Minneapolis.” Russell W. Fridley, Director, Minnesota Historical Society - “Forum Cafeteria, the Metropolitan Building, the West Hotel are gone, but Craig Maclntosh has captured them for us in his charming pen-and-ink drawings.” Linda Mack, Editor, Architecture Minnesota

146 pages, Paperback

First published June 1, 1986

Reviews

[CTEP]

I found this book browsing through library shelves, and thought it looked interesting enough to check out. From 1986, "Minneapolis Cityscape" pairs Ilga Eglitis' descriptions of historic Minneapolis buildings with Craig MacIntosh's line drawings of the structures. It's an inviting read, and surprisingly extensive, with entries on over 70 buildings. The illustrations are the highlight, faithful without being obsessively so, and nicely sketched. Many of the buildings in the book no longer exist.



In the introduction, Eglitis and MacIntosh--who both worked at the "Minneapolis Star and Tribune" at the time--write "what we wanted to do was gather a collection of sketches and words that would recreate a city's character." While the book fails in some respects--more on that in the next paragraph--it provides a nice history of each building. Many of them are somewhat dry, but there are nuggets to be found. For example, Wilbur Foshay was indicted for mail fraud, but only served three years after receiving a pardon from Franklin Roosevelt. The tower that bears his name was the tallest building in Minneapolis until 1973, including during his jail stay.



I mentioned the book's failings earlier, which are sins of omission. Not including St. Paul seems arbitrary, and I found myself wondering about how the book might have handled some of my favorite buildings in St. Paul. However, I'm troubled that North Minneapolis is completely absent from the book. Only one building included, the Grain Belt Brewery, is even north of downtown, and that's in Northeast. The absence of North Minneapolis certainly reflects a longstanding neglect of the area by the city, but if Eglitis and MacIntosh couldn't find a single building worth covering in North, they probably weren't looking hard enough.