Destination Up North UpNorth-Spring_20_030920_B | Page 26

Angel Sculpture on Holy Angels Catholic Church, Moose
Lake, MN made out of stainless steel and copper. -
Photo submitted by Jeff Kreitz
bald eagle that was installed in the Staples
Veterans Park in Staples, Minn.
Hockey Player metal sculpture of Frank Brimsek in downtown Eveleth, MN made out of steel and brass. - Photo
submitted by Direct Metal Sculpture Artist Jeff Kreitz
“I love the Iron Range because I’ve always really
liked metal ever since I was a kid. My dad taught
me how to weld when I was really young. He
did metal sculpture so I always liked the Range,
the iron mines. That’s where a lot of my material
comes from.”
Both of his parents are artists. At seven years old,
Jeff learned how to weld from his father, who
Life-size majestic bald eagle in Staples Veterans Park,
Staples, MN made out of stainless steel, brass, and
bronze. - Photo submitted by Direct Metal Sculpture
Artist Jeff Kreitz
26 destinationupnorth.com
Kreitz was highlighted on KSTP’s On the Road
recently and he has received a Master Artist
Award from the Five Wings Arts Council. The
award honors artistic excellence, respect of
peers and the public, and those who contribute
significantly to the community in which they
live.
was creating metal sculptures. His mother is an
oil painter.
A 1980 graduate of Pequot Lakes High School,
Jeff spent one year in college and then went to
welding school. In his twenties, he was a factory
welder at a couple of different companies in
Minneapolis. Though interested in exploring
metal sculpture, he did not think he could
make a living as a sculptor. The quest for a
way to support a family ultimately led him to
becoming a skilled metal artist and successful
small business owner.
ABOUT
Here is a list of some of Jeff Kreitz’s
public Minnesota sculptures that
you can visit:
Sculpture of hockey player Frank Brimsek
outside the U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame in
Downtown Eveleth.
In 1991, Jeff opened his first metal art studio
on Route 66 in Crosslake, Minn., where he
developed a reputation as a prominent metal
artist by creating metal sculptures for residential
and commercial properties in the Brainerd Lakes
area, and later throughout Minnesota and the
entire U.S. He has made metal beds in 25 states
and has now been creating art for 27 years. One
of Kreitz’s favorite sayings is: “We’re mere mortals
working with used equipment.” Angel sculpture on the Holy Angels
Catholic Church in Moose Lake.
Kreitz is generous with his talents and has
created meaningful sculptures for causes that
touch the region, such as a metal sculpture
called “Changing Lives” at Camp Knutson in
Crosslake, Minn., and most recently a life-size Bronze praying hands created for Our
Savior Lutheran Church in Pequot Lakes.
Two sixteen foot tall Pequot Lakes signs
fabricated out of copper and steel
located on Highway 371 going into and
out of Pequot Lakes.
Stainless steel moose sculpture on the
north side of County Road 11 in Breezy
Point.
Steel bear sculpture located in Bob
Cahlander Park in Brooklyn Center.