THEMESCAPES, INC.

Walk through an amusement park in the United States and you’re likely to see mountains, statutes of wild animals or other hardscape sculptures that represent natural settings and the creatures that inhabit them. Chances are those realistic settings were designed by St. Paul-based Themescapes, Inc.

Experienced since 1971 as a concrete services leader, Themescapes’ owners have developed Themescapes into one of the country’s premier artistic concrete businesses, specializing in offering clients customized works that are not only realistic, but functional.

“We still do a variety of concrete work, but in a different vein,” said Controller Hai Tieu, who also serves as a part-time Project Manager. He’s part of a management team that includes President Peter Nasvik and his sons, Director of Operations Ole Nasvik and Director of Product Distribution Kaarl Nasvik. Peter Gunnarson is Director of Art & Design and Michael Carlson is Lead Drafter/CAD Designer and Project Manager.

Themescapes’ specialties include making a variety of rock-like structures such as these, which are part of the Moose Mountain Golf project in the Mall of America.

“Since 1997, our emphasis has been specialty concrete work that involves themed concepts, such as replicating nature,” Tieu explained.

The concepts are varied and include everything from tropical scenes with volcanoes and jungle settings to sculptures of polar bears on an ice field and dinosaurs. Themescapes designs can not only be seen in amusement and water parks, but hotels, casinos, restaurants, zoos and museums.

No two jobs the same

“Just about anything someone can dream up, we can do,” claimed Tieu. “Most of our work comes from customers who have an idea in mind, but don’t know how to make it come to life. They give us some basic information, such as what theme they want, the size of the location and a budget. We work with them to either put together a full design or to tweak something they already have. We’ll do whatever it takes to suit their needs.

“There really is no limit to what we can produce, and that’s one of the benefits of working for the company,” he added. “The work is never the same. Occasionally, we’ll get similar ideas, but there are differences in each one that make them unique. We never do the same thing twice.”

But Themescapes often works for repeat customers, such as the Rain Forest Café restaurants around the country, or clients with similar interests such as Mystic Lake Casino near Minneapolis and Treasure Island Casino in Las Vegas. They’ve also worked with Six Flags theme parks, and have done numerous projects in the amusement area inside the Mall of America.

“Millions of people have seen our work,” said Tieu. “When you think about it, that’s quite an accomplishment, but at the same time it’s a responsibility. Realizing that many people are going to see your work means we have to be very conscientious and detail-oriented so that it looks as authentic as possible. We don’t want it to have a negative impact.”