Local Artist Turns Back Time with Eagan Fire Department Painting

For Eagan resident Larry Landis, it was uncharted territory.

A hobbyist painter all his life, Landis honed his skill creating still life portraits and commemorative retirement prints for local firefighters.

Never had he attempted something as ambitious as the painting Eagan Fire Chief Mike Scott proposed last year. Looking for a local artist to create a 50th anniversary piece for the Eagan Fire Department, Scott approached Landis and asked him to paint a scene straight out of Eagan's history:

The department's first fire engine, nicknamed Jenny, cruising past the old Trinity Lone Oak Church at the intersection of Hwy. 149 and Lone Oak Road.

The catch? The painting had to be set in the early 1960s, long before the development of any of the hulking commercial or industrial developments that now populate the area. The fire department was founded on July 13, 1963.

So Landis did what any good artist would. Working with Scott and other community members, the artist tracked down old photographs of the church and that street corner he could reference for his painting. He chatted up retired firefighters and city officials for more information. He visited the current street corner in late afternoons—when the light was just right for beautiful photgraphs.

He even asked the fire chief to pull Jenny out of its position of honor in the Eagan Fire Safety Center so that he could sketch it—along with two Eagan firefighters—in the parking lot of the facility.

The end result, which took dozens of hours to complete, is a rich tribute to the Eagan Fire Department's 50th anniversary.

I was very impressed with Larry’s work and like the tie in that the painting was done by an Eagan artist. I think this will forever preserve the 50th anniversary of the Eagan Volunteer Fire Department," Scott said.

The painting was lauded at the Eagan State of the City address earlier this month. Prints of the work are available for purchase on the city's website.

The painting, Landis said, helped develop his skills and push his envelope as an artist. But the research he conducted in advance of the work also gave him a deeper appreciation of Eagan's history.

"It was really profound how, all of sudden, I became attached to my own city," Landis said. "I got to meet some older folks and some old fire chiefs. It was really exciting, it was like a little adventure."

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