Kelly Thorson, Karen Traulich, Kathy Van Roekel, Mayor Kathleen Backer, and photographer Josh Madson were at ribbon cutting at downtown collage.

NEW ULM — A ribbon cutting was held Thursday for a 30′ by 10′ collage featuring hundreds of New Ulm faces installed on the exterior of the Thimble Box building.

Many of the New Ulm residents whose faces graced the collage were on hand to witness the ceremony, along with the Downtown Action Team, The Willkommen Committee of the New Ulm Chamber, the mayor and photographer of the exhibit.

The photos were taken by Josh Madson, who primarily works out of Los Angeles, New York and Tokyo. Madson’s photography has been featured in such publications as L’OREAL, Clairol, Target, amongst many others.

Madson spoke at the ceremony, saying that he was “excited to bring communities together when we feel so divided.”

Madson’s photoshoot was held in the spring of 2024, and he collected photos with over 200 individuals and groups in the community. The New Ulm Downtown Action Team’s purpose for the collage is to celebrate the heritage of all community members, and capture a snapshot of the New Ulm community.

Mayor Kathleen Backer cut the ribbon at the ceremony and was optimistic of the reception and depiction of the locals in the community featured.

“To bring the community together, when you look at all the different faces, it’s not just you and me, its all of the other people.” Mayor Backer said. “It’s validating people, of all walks of life, not just a certain few. Bringing community together is the important piece of the project.”

In the summer of 2023, Madson photographed over 800 individuals and families in Mankato for a similar exhibition called the “Mankato Community Collage.

“Basically, to be human we want to be seen and heard and acknowledged and feel like a contribution. It could be as simple as just saying like hey, you know what? Who you are is beautiful,” Madson said.

The collage can be viewed on the Center Street side of the Thimble Box Building on 2 South Minnesota Street