Art & Sculpture #1: Pyramid Hill Sculpture Park Plus 4 More Midwest Sculpture Parks

Exposing children to art can be so much more than giving them a box of crayons and paper.  Why not immerse them in art such as taking them to a play, concert, or sculpture park?

Pyramid Hill Sculpture Park, Photo by Krenda

I count my children fortunate to have lived near Hamilton, Ohio - (a small town north of Cincinnati).  In 2000 the Ohio govenor declared Hamilton "The City of Sculpture".  You'll find sculptures throughout the city.  My kids and I especially enjoyed "Lentil" in the downtown.  It's a sculpture of a boy marching through town with his harmonica and dog created by Nancy Schon.  It's extra special because it has a local connection - it's based upon a 1940's children's book by Hamilton native Robert McCloskey.  To see other sculptures around town, check out the Hamilton city website:

http://cityofsculpture.org/Sculptures.aspx

I counted Pyramid Hill Sculpture Park, a 265 acre park filled with trees and sculptures, as Hamilton's hidden treasure.  It's up a hill right off State Route 128, don't give up on finding the entrance.  Check out the website for address & contact info I especially enjoyed the large sculpture "Cincinnati Story" by George Sugarman.  Not only is it beautiful art, it is also located in a beautiful spot at the top of the hill with a view.  George Sugarman's first sculpture was considered radical because each form was painted a different color.  The sculpture in Hamilton was built later in his life in the 80's.  I think it's inspirational with it's cheerful multi-colors.  

 

Lesson Idea

Find a sculpture park near you and discuss the artist and their inspiration to make the sculpture.  You don't need to live near Hamilton to immerse your kids in sculpture.  Here's five Sculpture Parks in the Midwest:

1.  Pyramid Hill Sculpture Park - Hamilton, OH (pictured above)

http://www.pyramidhill.org/aboutthepark.php?pid=1

$8 adults, $2 children age 5-12

2.  Laumeier Sculpture Park - St. Louis, MO, one of the first and largest in the U.S. with 60 sculptures on 105 acres, free and open daily

3.  John and Mary Pappajohn Sculpture Park - Des Moines, IA

4.  Martin H. Bush Outdoor Sculpture Collection - Wichita, Kansas

5.  Georgia and David K. Welles Sculpture Garden - Toledo, OH

For sculpture parks in Illinois, see my article about The Sculpture Park Schaumburg.

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".