GRAND RAPIDS, MI: Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park

Location: Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park
Address: 1000 East Beltline Avenue NE, Grand Rapids, MI 49525
Website: meijergardens.org

Have you ever been walking in nature and thought, “I wish there was artwork along this path, too”? If that was ever your thought, then you should consider the Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park. This garden and sculpture park in Western Michigan has indoor and outdoor exhibits that span a 158-acre campus. It’s filled with beautifully manicured botanic gardens and LOTS of sculptures. When you are exploring the indoor botanic gardens you might get lucky and even spot some of their birds, like the Chinese painted quails! In the outdoor gardens some of the sculptures are over 42-feet tall, like Aria by Alexander Liberman. It can be really cool to see a sculpture this tall to some people, but for others with megalophobia, like myself, it can be jarring. Honestly though, even if you have mild megalophobia this is still a great place to check out!

Getting There

It’s very easy to get to the garden and sculpture park by car. It’s just off Interstate 96 and has huge parking lot.

Map of Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park in Grand Rapids, MI

Tips

Make sure to check the park’s website before going so you have an idea of what you want to see and where everything is located on the grounds.
After you check the website determine how much time you need. Do this by deciding if you want to take your time strolling around the park or if you want to go quickly and see everything.
I would recommend at least 3-4 hours to see both indoor and outdoor gardens and exhibits at a comfortable pace.
To avoid crowds go first thing in the morning on a weekday. We went early on a Wednesday and didn’t feel overwhelmed by crowds.
Bring snacks!
If you plan on spending time outside, check the weather first. When we went there was a light rain towards the end of our excursion.
The American Horse sculpture seems to be one of the more popular pieces. I recommend getting to the park early and going to that first before it gets too crowded for photos.

My Favorites

Below are my favorite sculptures and garden. I could have spent a while at the beautiful, peaceful Japanese garden. I felt very classy when I realized I had seen sculptures by two of the artists before. Cabin Creek is in the same series as the sculpture found in Evanston, IL on the Northwestern University campus. I saw another spider sculpture by Louise Bourgeois at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C. Hopefully I will stumble upon more of these artists’ work in the future.