File Photo Australian artist Guido van Helten paints on the side of a former grain elevator in Minot on Aug. 6. The giant Union Silos mural was completed at the end of September.

An Australian artist’s work on a giant mural on a former downtown Minot grain elevator in 2025 concluded at the end of September.

“It looks beautiful,” said Chelsea Gleich with the commissioning group. “It’s better than what we imagined.”

The images portray legacy, hard work, grit, resilience and a sense of community in scenes that include agriculture, the oil industry, family and youth.

Guido van Helten is recognized internationally for his large-scale mural installations and street art. Minot’s Union Silos mural represents the North Dakota piece of his project to create a public art piece in each state. The Minot piece was uniquely created in that van Helten used rope access to reach the higher portions of the elevator canvas when a lift and scaffolding no longer provided suitable reach. He started the actual work in March after previously getting to know the community and creating a vision for the project.

With the completion of the $350,000 Union SIlos, van Helten has moved on to his next project, but the commissioning group has invited him to return next year to hold an art show featuring the community photos he took as he worked on the theme and design for his mural. A book featuring those photos also is in the works as another next phase of the project.

The commissioning group has continued fundraising and expects to use any extra funds to produce the photo books and site signage to document the project.