USA TODAY 10Best
From coast to coast, these are the 10 best sculpture gardens
Best Sculpture Park (2022)
These 10 sculpture parks and gardens across the USA allow you to appreciate art al fresco. Now’s the perfect time to get outdoors and enjoy one near you.
- Storm King Art Center - New Windsor, New York
- Olympic Sculpture Park - Seattle, Washington
- Minneapolis Sculpture Garden - Minneapolis, Minnesota
- Tippet Rise Art Center - Fishtail, Montana
- National Gallery of Art Sculpture Garden - Washington, DC
- Michigan Legacy Art Park - Thompsonville, Michigan
- Laumeier Sculpture Park - St. Louis, Missouri
- Brookgreen Gardens - Murrells Inlet, South Carolina
- Nathan Manilow Sculpture Park - University Park, Illinois
- Sydney and Walda Besthoff Sculpture Garden - New Orleans, Louisiana
Photo courtesy of Gary Stoller, USA TODAY
No. 10:
One of the world's best sculpture parks, the Storm King Art Center occupies 500 acres of rolling hills in the lower Hudson Valley – a scenic setting for its collection of more than 100 sculptures by some of the world's top artists.
Photo courtesy of Benjamin Benschneider / Seattle Art Museum
No. 9:
The free Olympic Sculpture Park at the Seattle Art Museum features nine monumental works along the downtown waterfront. The nine-acre green space — the largest in downtown — offers not only art, but stellar views of the Olympic Mountains and Puget Sound.
Photo courtesy of Mike Krivit / Meet Minneapolis
No. 8:
This free sculpture garden at the Walker Art Center exhibits modern and contemporary works from the museum’s collection. Visitors can see more than 40 pieces displayed within the 11 landscaped acres, including the iconic Spoonbridge and Cherry.
Photo courtesy of James Florio
No. 7:
The spectacular Beartooth Mountains of Montana create a backdrop for the sculptures on display at the Tippet Rise Art Center near the town of Fishtail. This 12,000-acre working sheep and cattle ranch hosts large-scale outdoor sculptures that visitors can see by exploring 10 miles of hiking and biking trails.
Photo courtesy of National Gallery of Art
No. 6:
The National Gallery of Art Sculpture Garden opened in 1999 as a place to share fine works of art with the public. The space, centered around a fountain, features nearly two dozen pieces by some of the world’s top sculptors (including Joan Miró). In the winter, the fountain gets converted into an outdoor skating rink.
Photo courtesy of Michigan Legacy Art Park
No. 5:
This 30-acre wooded preserve in northern Michigan features a collection of more than fifty sculptures, as well as rotating exhibits. The park hosts drop-in programs for both adults and kids to encourage connection with art, nature and history.
Photo courtesy of Mike Venso/Laumeier Sculpture Park
No. 4:
Laumeier Sculpture Park was founded in 1976 as one of the first dedicated sculpture parks in the US. The St. Louis sculpture park features more than 70 large-scale works of outdoor sculpture, scattered amid the 105-acre area. Entrance to the park is free.
Photo courtesy of Lydia Schrandt
No. 3:
Founded in 1931, the 300-acre Brookgreen Gardens in Murrells Inlet is part sculpture garden, part wildlife sanctuary occupying the site of four former rice plantations. The National Historic Landmark houses one of the best figurative sculpture collections in the world.
Photo courtesy of Guy Rhodes
No. 2:
This sculpture park at Governors State University in Chicago’s Southland features a collection of 30 large-scale sculptures displayed across 100 acres of prairie landscape. The free outdoor museum also hosts programs to help connect visitors with art and nature in a more meaningful way.
Photo courtesy of Richard Sexton
No. 1:
The sculpture garden at the New Orleans Museum of Art (NOMA) includes more than 90 works displayed on 12 acres of City Park. Visitors can enjoy these works of art amid a landscape of mature pines, magnolias, live oaks and two lagoons.
A panel of experts partnered with 10Best editors to pick the initial nominees, and the top 10 winners were determined by popular vote.
Congratulations to all these winning sculpture gardens!
About 10Best Readers' Choice Awards
Nominees are submitted by a panel of experts. 10Best editors narrow the field to select the final set of nominees for the Readers’ Choice Awards. Readers can vote once per category, per day. For any questions or comments, please read the FAQ or email USA TODAY 10Best.
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10Best Local Experts provide users with original, unbiased, and experiential travel content of top attractions, things to see and do, and restaurants for top destinations in the U.S. and around the world. No business pays to be listed. Our Local Experts are well-traveled and well-educated group who are not only experts in their fields - and their cities - but discriminating in their tastes. These local experts live in the city they write about, with constantly updated content.
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USA TODAY 10Best provides users with original, unbiased and experiential travel coverage of top attractions, things to see and do, and restaurants for top destinations in the U.S. and around the world.
