Welcome to Grandview
Welcome to Grandview
Please help with a donation to Grandview
About Grandview
In 1937, after his children were grown, Nick Engelbert began to build an elaborate arched porch of concrete around the front entrance of his farmhouse, ultimately covering every inch of the outside surface of the house with concrete inlaid with shards of china, glass, beads, buttons, and sea shells. Over the next 15 years, Nick created more than 40 concrete sculptures in his yard, combining patriotic themes with imagery from history, fairy tales, mythology and his own imagination. At the age of 70, no longer able to make sculptures, he turned to painting, producing over 200 oils before his death in 1962.
The Grandview site is now owned and operated by the Pecatonica Educational Charitable (PEC) Foundation, Inc. Many of the statues have been restored or recreated. The house, now a museum, contains many Engelbert artifacts, family memorabilia, and copies of Nick's paintings.
Featured In.....
Chicago Tribune
St. Paul Pioneer Press
Capitol Times
Wisconsin State Journal
Isthmus
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Wisconsin Trails
Bibliography
Sublime Spaces and Visionary Worlds
Sacred Spaces and Other Places
Eccentric America
Weird Wisconsin
Midwest Marvels
Backyard Visionaries
Wisconsin Curiosities
Miracles of the Spirit
Awards/Recognition
Standing Up for Rural Wisconsin Award - State Superintendent Libby Burmaster
Governor’s Award in Support of the Arts - Governor Scott McCallum, Wisconsin Foundation for the Arts
Wisconsin’s Top Rural Development Initiatives - Governor Tommy Thompson, Wisconsin Rural Partners
Community Development Organization of the Year - Wisconsin Community Development Society
Success Story, WISC-TV, Madison