As every learned art-lover knows, “ sagacious” means wisdom, good judgment, showing insight. Visitors to the Minneapolis Sculpture Garden understand the term from the two giant, pyramidal bronze forms that Polish artist Magdalena Abakanowicz calls Sagacious Head 6 and Sagacious Head 7 that rise out of the ground like a pair of mysterious beasts or ancient, scarred mountains. For Abakanowicz, known for her haunting groupings of abstracted figures, the head has a special significance: it is “first to see, to react, to inform the whole body,” but more importantly, it is “first exposed to the unknown.”
What could show better judgment or insight than exploring outdoor art this summer? The folks at Hearst Magazines understand. That’s why they included a review of sculpture parks around the country in their new publication, Weekend.
Authored by Jaime Gross, the story entitled “Outsider Art” features seven of his “favorite unstuffy spots for sculpture across the United States” (p. 96, Weekend, May/June, vol. 2, no. 1), including the Minneapolis Sculpture Garden.
Mr. Gross paints a pretty picture for visiting sculpture parks: “Art created for the outdoors is a wondrous thing: the shock of color against the open sky, the way a piece’s curves or angles relate to the surrounding landscape (mountains, meadow or city skyline) the changes brought from hour to hour with subtle shifts in the light and weather.”
Mr. Gross recommends these additional sculpture park destinations, each of which make for an inspirational daytrip if you find yourself in the area:
DeCordova Sculpture Park, Lincoln, MA; 20 miles northwest of Boston
Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park, Grand Rapids, MI; 150 miles east of Chicago; 150 miles west of Detroit
Huntington Sculpture Garden at Brookgreen Gardens, Murrells Inlet, SC; 70 miles north of Charlston
di Rosa Preserve, Napa, CA; 40 miles north of San Francisco
Storm King Art Center, Mountainville, NY; 50 miles north of New York City
Grounds for Sculpture, Hamilton, NJ; 35 miles northeast of Philadelphia; 70 miles southwest of New YorkCity
What could be more sagacious than visiting a sculpture park this summer?
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