Minneapolis Sculpture Garden

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Spoonbridge and Cherry is a centerpiece of the park

The Minneapolis Sculpture Garden is an 11 acre (45,000 m²) park in Minneapolis, Minnesota, in the United States. It is located near the Walker Art Center, which operates it in coordination with the Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board. They claim that it is the largest urban sculpture garden in the country, with 40 permanent art installations and several other temporary pieces that are moved in and out periodically. The park is also in proximity to Loring Park and the Basilica of Saint Mary. It was once connected to Loring Park, but the construction of Interstate 94 in the 1960s split the area into two parts. ^[1]

The land was first purchased by the park board between 1903 and 1935, when it was known as "The Parade" because it had been used for military drills. It became known as the Armory Gardens after park superintendent Theodore Wirth created a formal design that included a U.S. National Guard building. That structure was demolished in 1933. After the highway was put in, much of the land was used for sports playing fields. Parade Stadium, a small baseball field was also built on the site. Some of the fields were reclaimed in 1988 when the park board and the Walker Art Center collaborated to make the new sculpture garden. It was expanded from 7½ acres (30,000 m²) to its current size in 1992.

One of the Sculpture Garden paths with Spoonbridge and Cherry in the background

The centerpiece of the garden is the Spoonbridge and Cherry water fountain by Claes Oldenburg and Coosje van Bruggen. The grounds also include the Cowles Conservatory, which has more flora and sculpture inside, such as Frank Gehry's Standing Glass Fish. A pedestrian bridge, the Irene Hixon Whitney Bridge, designed by Siah Armajani now crosses I-94, once again connecting the sculpture garden to Loring Park. ^[2]