The Frederik Meijer Gardens and Sculpture Park - Grand Rapids, Michigan

Patricia Schultz, author of 1,000 Places to See Before You Die, put together a list of 30 "must-see" museums for Delta Airlines' Sky Magazine.   In it, she included the Frederik Meijer Gardens and Sculpture Park in Grand Rapids.  We had heard about the museum during our visit to Grand Rapids last fall but didn't have time to see it.  This year, we made time.  It's well worth a trip - even if you have no other interests in Grand Rapids.


I approached the place as a garden.  You can see why when you see the large conservatory and wander through the arid cactus room or the Orchid wall.

Come For the Horse, Stay For the Whimsy

The sculpture part of the Gardens and Sculpture park soon gets your attention.  Especially when you find the horse.


Here Linda adds some size perspective to the horse.  There are actually three different sizes for you to explore.


Some of the art is massive and abstract like this piece by Alexander Liberman.  It was originally produced for a bank that ultimately didn't pay the bill.


Some is whimsical.


Some is classical.


Some is educational.


And some, I would call "political."


"So," you may ask, "who was Frederik Meijer?"

You probably know the answer if you live in Michigan.  His Meijer name appears above the entrance to a chain of hypermarkets and on top of a great many gas stations.


And he now sits with his wife, cast in bronze, on a bench watching the museum patrons walk by.