Art & Sculpture #4: International Sculpture Park and 4 More Sculpture Parks in IL

Smithsonian Magazine lists "Six of the World's Most Spectacular Sculpture Parks...from New York to Norway". (Jennifeer Nalewicki, May, 6, 2019) and I've only been to one of them, twice (Olympic Sculpture Park, Seattle, Washington).

Even with travel restrictions, if you live in Illinois, you can share the joy of sculpture art with your kids.  For our staycation, we planned visits to places that felt connected to other countries.  We chose the International Sculpture Park in Schaumburg, IL.  A partnership between The Chicago Anthenaeum Museum of Architecture and Design and the Village of Schumburg turned this 20 acres of meadow, forest, and prairies into a park for art lovers.  Then we connect to Greece.  Ioannis Karalias, a Greek architect, planned the garden.

Here's good news for moms - no admission fee, no parking fee, open from sunset to sunrise, and the open space makes it easy to socially distance.

You'll enter the grounds of the Robert O. Atcher Municipal Center with free parking at the Prairie Center for the Arts.  You likely won't see the sculpture garden entry sign from the lot.  Take the prairie trail back towards the entrance.  You will see the entrance sign and "Together", an 18 foot sculpture by Jerry S. Kenar.

You can connect back to Greece with "Chairs" sculpture by Argyro Konstantinidou showcasing Greek themes and images from the history of Mexico, Egypt, and Greece.  "Athys" by Charles de Montaigu provides another connection to Europe since it represents contemporary art in Switzerland.  "Touch Heaven" connects you to Israel designed by Oded Italahmy and inspired by Judaic culture and iconography.  "Vinland" intrigued us so much that we looked up more about the sculpture by Jarle Rosseland of Oslo, Norway.  The sculpture commemorates the 1,000 year anniversary of the Viking explorer, Leif Eriksson and his discoveries of the Americas.  With that background, we could see the ship form.  Another favorite was "Thought Rise in Vacuum" by Hans-Christian Berg, combining the numbers "zero" and "ones" in a cloud-like pattern.

Fortunately we researched the park ahead.  My daughter knew we missed sculptures, even though the path seemed to end near a road.  Trace back to the parking lot and walk across the street for other sculptures.  We had a picnic lunch near the prairie and now we found lots of other picnics near the small lake.

My daughter particularly wanted to see "Awaking Muse" by Don Lawler.  It takes a lot of horizontal space at 40 feet across.  The female figure inspired by Greek mythology appears to awaken from her sleep.  Keep walking and you'll find the colorful "Ecceltora" meaning "Behold the Hour".  May you enjoy your hour at the sculpture park.

Here's four additional sculpture parks to consider visiting in Illinois:

1) West Street Sculpture Park, Galena, IL, 2 acres

2) Goldman-Kuenz Sculpture Park at Cedarhurst in Mount Vernon, IL (Southern IL)

3) Scovill Sculpture Park in Decatur, IL near zoo and museum

4) Koehnline Sculpture Park, part of Koehnline Museum of Art on Oakton Community College campus- Des Plaines, IL (north of O'Hare airport), 25 sculptures

For more sculpture parks in the Midwest, visit my article "Pyramid Hill and 4 More Sculpture Parks in the Midwest".

State Park #7: Historic Mill Creek Discovery Park - Mackinaw City, Michigan

Historic Mill Creek Discovery Park

Demonstration

Timber can help build and rebuild.  For history and adventure, visit the Historic Mill Creek Discovery Park in Mackinaw City Michigan.  Formerly called the Historic Mill Creek State Park, this park has rebuilt historical buildings and more.  Knowing that the rest of my Michigan itinerary listed multiple Mackinac State Historic Parks, my first task was to buy the Mackinac Family Heritage Pass for $85 at the visitor center.  The pass covers entrance fees for the entire family for one season.  I also paid the extra $9.50 per person for the Adventure Tour.  It includes zipline and if you compare prices vs. commercial ziplines, the park offers quite the deal.  If you don't buy the season pass, you'll also need to pay a $9 admission fee for the park per person.  The visitor center also provides a gift shop and short film "The Power of Water."

We arrived at the right time and season.  From May to September, you may see costumed interpreters who tell the history lessons.  Mill Creek established in 1790 to provide timber.  It operated as a farm and orchard too.  In 1984, the creek dam and sawmill was rebuilt and the park opened to the public.  The British workshop was rebuilt in 1994.  The Millwrights house was rebuilt in 2005.  We also timed the visit to see the pit saw method of cutting timber.  The speaker's enthusiasm and engagement of his audience made everyone want to listen and follow him.  We followed him right into the reconstructed sawmill and watched timber cutting using the power of water.

Educational Talk

The "more" refers to the adventure component of the park.  We all suited up for the bridge and zipline.  You'll see nature from up high as you walk across the Forest Canopy Bridge.  The bridge gives you a good view of others on the zipline too.  At 425 foot high, the Eagle Flight Zip Line provides a good thrill for teens and big kids too.  If your kids have not experienced a zip line, this provides a good introduction too.  You can watch your kids fly over the water from a viewing deck.  We heard a lot of laughter over the water too.

Zipline Survivor

The bridge to Zipline fun

The kids also wanted to climb the climbing wall.  The five-story Treetop Discovery Tower stands close to the zipline.  The kids raced to the top.  Before promising a climb up the wall, note the minimum 4 feet tall requirement and 50-250 pound requirement.

Don't stop walking once at the tower.  Hit the trails and you will gain the reward of an amazing view of Mackinac Bridge and Mackinac Island.  You can even see the Grand Hotel from the wooden deck.

 

State Park #3: Wailu River State Park - Kauai's Fern Grotto

My parents first took me to Hawaii and I fell for the tropical, natural beauty of the state...like every other tourist. I particularly fell for the island of Kauai.  Not many restaurants or stores, the waterfalls, parks, and beaches stood out as the main attraction.  The people didn't seem hurried.  They wanted to tell you their story.  On the Fern Grotto boat, a guide told us about the Wailua River, the only navigable river in Hawaii, and how we would pass the wettest place on earth.  Another guide told his personal story.  He explained with pride that he stared in the 1961 movie Blue Hawaii with Elvis.  We needed to watch the movie because he blows the conch shell near the hotel entrance.  Some stories draw you back to a place.  Someday I would return.

A little over a decade, we returned.  More people this time because we expanded our family.  We eagerly returned to the Wailua River State Park for another open-air boat ride by the Smith family.  This park has the only navigable river in Hawaii and contains two waterfalls (Opaeka'a Falls and Wailua Falls)  After the nature hike and songs played at the grotto, we boarded the boat back to the marina.  Dancers taught us the hula while moving on the river.  Then a guide took the microphone and explained that he stared in the 1961 movie Blue Hawaii with Elvis.  We needed to watch the movie because he blows the conch shell.  I watched the movie after returning home.

I'm not the only one impressed with the friendly local people.  Author Patricia Schultz lists "Kauai" in Hawaii as a must see site in her book 1,000 Places to See Before You Die.  She notices the people, "Kauai's people are known as the friendliest in the fiftieth state, and tend to live a rural and unrushed old-time Hawaiian lifestyle, in which natural beauty and not overly plush Maui-style resort life is the focus."  

Dance can tell you stories too.  In ancient Hawaii, hula was used to keep history.  Watch the hand gestures.  The missionaries suppressed the hula, but King David Kalakaua restored hula.  The biggest hula festival and competition is the Merrie Monarch Festival held in Hilo, Hawaii.  If you want to get see hula and learn more about the Hawaiian culture without the long flight, consider taking the family to the following festivals:

1) Heritage of Aloha; Heritage Park in Santa Fe Springs, CA; May
Hawaiian and Polynesian music and dance with free admission

2) 3 Days of Aloha in the Pacific Northwest; Vancouver, WA; July
Hula competition and workshops on language, chant, and outrigger canoe paddling

3) Hawaiian Hula Days; Itasca, IL; Oct.
Held by the Hula Association of the Midwest; registration and workshop fees