Minneapolis Sculpture Garden

On our recent trip to Minneapolis/St. Paul, we stopped by the fabulous Minneapolis Sculpture Garden.  It was a glorious, cool day, perfect for strolling around this wonderful, free park.  Here are a few of the sculptures which we particularly admired.

Spoonbridge and Cherry by Claes Oldenburg and Coosje van Bruggen is the most famous and most photographed sculpture in the park.  It is impressive.  And large! According to the park literature, the spoon is 52 feet long, and the cherry weighs 1,200 pounds!  That's a heck of a cherry!  In the background of my photo, you can see the dome of the Basilica of St. Mary.  I think that makes an interesting composition -- the old and the new.

Spoonbridge and Cherry

I think my favorite sculpture was this one by Henry Moore, Reclining Mother and Child, made in 1960-1961.  I love the simplicity of it.

Reclining Mother and Child

We always enjoy seeing the Barry Flanagan hare sculptures.  I had never seen this one, Hare on Bell on Portland Stone Piers from 1983, but there is another at the Toledo Museum of Art, which we have visited a number of times.

Hare on Bell on Portland Stone Piers

Without Words by Judith Shea (1988) was intriguing.  I love the empty coat.  I'm not sure I "get" the connection to the broken marble head, but still found the sculpture a fascinating one.

Without Words

Finally,  Molecule by Mark di Suvero, completed in 1983.  My husband thought it was too much of a Alexander Calder knock-off, but I liked it.  I especially liked seeing the red-painted steel against the bright blue fall sky.

Molecule

What a Zoo!

These will make your tail wag!

Look at these cute dog prints I found at Michael’s.  I put them in inexpensive clip frames, and voila! bathroom art.  They are by Ken Bailey, an artist from Washington.  You can see more of his art at www.kenbailey.com. 

A golden retriever always adds class

What is it with me and animal art?  I love it!  It all started with a print of chickens.  The original was painted by an acquaintance of my mother’s, a lady named Elsa Lockert, who ran a gallery and frame shop in Ashland City, Tennessee some thirty years ago.

We have a lot of windows and not a lot of walls, so we put artwork up above.

Close-up of the originals

Over the years, the kitchen barnyard increased by two more chicken prints, bought at art shows, and a chicken painting my daughter bought from a street artist in London’s Hyde Park.   All this fowl artwork is set off by chicken wire wallpaper, which I love for its whimsical graphic punch. 

I have two more fabulous chickens, painted by a friend, in my dining room. One of these is painted on the seat of a chair.   

The dining room also houses two bucolic sheep prints, both of which were done by an Iowa artist, Connie Bieber.  Looking at her peaceful sheep makes me want to be a shepherd!  Aren't these beautiful?

Both sheep prints have been cropped here to straighten
 them up.  I had to angle the  frames to reduce glare from the glass.

The collection of advertising signs in our family room also adds to the critter count with a Crow’s rooster, a Pilch DeKalb chicken, a Finck's pig, and a Red Goose Shoes goose.

Then there are the jointed wooden animals.  Two chickens (natch!), two frogs, a cat, and a zebra.

On the landing window sill

This pretty much rounds out the menagerie for now.  But I’m always on the lookout!