A young woman poses with "The Friendly Frog" at Genesee Valley Plaza

A young woman poses with "The Friendly Frog" at Genesee Valley Plaza

Animal sculpture--20th century.
Bronze sculpture, American--20th century.
Fredericks, Marshall M., 1908-1998
Frogs in art
Terrazzo

Fredericks designed this large friendly appearing frog as a children’s slide. The original cast of this sculpture was located at the Hudson wing of the Genesee Valley Shopping Center in Flint, Michigan for 16 years where children did use it as a slide.

In 1986 the mall donated it to the Flint Children's Museum. When they moved to their new quarters (1602 W. Third) in 1993, the building’s floor was not strong enough to support the frog’s 6,600 pound concrete and terrazzo weight, which forced the frog to be stored offsite. In 2004, the Ruth Mott Foundation purchased the frog from the Flint Children’s Museum for $35,000 where it now resides permanently on the 30-acre Applewood Estates in Flint.

Marshall M. Fredericks Papers
Series V, Box 13 Folder 30

n.d.

Use of this image requires permission from the Marshall M. Fredericks Archives.

V-13-30

image/jpeg

Image

Flint (Mich.)

Color print

8" x 10"