I have wanted to visit the deCordova Sculpture Park and Museum for ages, about two years in fact! We finally made it there this week, and it was definitely worth the trip.
The Sculpture Park is located in Lincoln, MA and is set in 30 acres of beautiful gardens and parkland. Large sculptures and art installations are located within the landscape, as well as in the Museum.
Providing a constantly changing landscape of large-scale, outdoor, modern and contemporary sculpture and site-specific installations, the Sculpture Park hosts more than 60 works, the majority of which are on loan to the Museum. Inside, the Museum features a robust slate of rotating exhibitions and innovative interpretive programming.
We arrived not long after it opened at 10am. A few minutes later than intended thanks to the satnav dying 2 miles out!
After a quick wander around the museum we were ready to take a walk around the park. We set off, following the mapped route around the grounds.
The first major piece we loved was this one, Beacon by Stephanie Cordon. The blue sky really set it off.
We continued to follow the wonderful stepping stone path, before finding ourselves in the central area of the gardens.
I love the 6yo’s expression here, my husbands was much the same when he saw the photos of this amazing installation, Lincoln by DeWitt Godfrey. The beautifully serene statue is Eve Celebrant by Marianna Pineda.
My three are always in search of a rest and a snack, and this day was no different. Given the heat, I indulged them! We had a wonderful view for this particular rest (including Tower (DC) by Sol deWitt) :)
Next up was Tower by Monika Sosnowska, and one of my favourites, ence pence by Ursula von Rydingsvard.
We then discovered this amazing tree that you could walk inside. The main trunk had been carved with initials and hearts and it was really quite magical.
Deciding it was time for lunch, we headed back towards the museum cafe, discovering this fabulous glass box on the way (Crazy Spheroid-Two Entrances by Dan Graham). The kids loved this one :)
A quick musical interlude (The Musical Fence by Paul Matisse) and a rather cool car (Requiem for the 20th Century by Nam June Paik)…
… were followed by a very nice lunch in the cafe, which had wonderful decor and brilliant illustrations all over the walls.
Suitably refreshed (although the kids selection could be better) we left the Museum via the Sculpture Terrace and walked back down through a beautifully landscaped garden area with sculptures dotted through it.
We all loved this sculpture, Venusvine by Richard Rosenblum, which looks like tangled branches but is in fact a bronze.
Another moment of rest was followed by the last section of the garden, featuring Mobius by Robert Perless, Humming by Jaume Plensa and Two Big Black Hearts by Jim Dine.
After a quick trip to the shop (and the discovery of a rather good education space for the kids) we made a last stop for a moment of quiet next to a rather lovely water feature hidden among the trees. Curtains of water fell from rough stone arches in to stepped pools of water. A lovely find to end our visit.
I then attempted (when will I learn?) to get a photo of all three looking at me… I even tried a trick suggested by a fellow blogger (getting them to say bum and catching the laughter…). All I really got was a moment of embarrassment as I realised another family had appeared beside us, but I quite like these photos anyway :)
The deCordova Sculpture Park and Museum is right up my street, I absolutely loved it here. I was a little surprised by how much the kids enjoyed it too. I knew they would love running around in the gardens, but they also loved discovering the sculptures in the landscape, running from one to another, excited to see what came next. They declared the day very cool and awesome. There are Family Activity Packs available, although we didn’t do this, and lots of suggestions dotted around for how to get the kids thinking about the art work and the landscape.
They have already asked when we can go back :)
[This is not a sponsored post, I just really loved our visit! Entry is $14 for adults, and kids under 12 are free. Entry is free on the first Wednesday of the month too… I will definitely return!]
I’m linking up with the wonderful Country Kids at Coombe Mill, as always. Click on the badge to see what everyone else has been up to and be inspired to get outside!
Wow looka like a fab place. Love all your pictures as well
It is wonderful, absolutely loved it!
What a great day out and I love all the photos of the different sculptures. That hollowed out tree sounds amazing and the musical fence sounds like a lot of fun too. Great tip for getting the kids to all look at the camera although I can see that it was a little embarrassing being overheard! :-)
The tree was amazing and the kids really loved the musical fence. And, yes, just a little embarrassing :)
It always amazes me how much children love art exhibitions. I always imagine they will be bored, but they never are. This looks such an interesting place to visit. Even more wonderful that your children want to go again. #CountryKids
It was such a lovely place, and the kids really loved it. They are so keen to go back, it’s wonderful x
Park looks amazing and I can imagine it being one of those places the kids unexpectedly love visiting. Yesterday I made the mistake of visiting the GoMA in Glasgow with my eldest. Won’t be rushing back. The exhibits were all about sex and hardcore femimism which was a bit hard to explain to a six year old! #CountryKids
Ha! I can imagine :) We took the boys to the MFA in Boston and had to beat a hasty retreat from some rooms where the nudes caused way too much hilarity :)
I’m never sure about modern sculptures but I really like the ones you show here, I think perhaps having so many they start to fit in and look right. In fact the more modern and bizare the better! It looks good value too and a lovely place to go and explore. I really want to have some sort of outdoor music area here in time. Thank you for sharing with me on Country Kids.
I think that art installations within landscape work really well, and the more interesting the sculpture the better. This is a really wonderful collection x
Wow it looks really cool! The park sounds great! Lovely photos too :) #countrykids
It was very cool :)
I wish we could visit, this looks like a brilliant place! I don’t blame you for wanting to go back :)
It is brilliant, I definitely want to go back x
What a beautiful place to visit Sara, I love to see sculptures outdoors and that tree looks amazing x
The tree was fabulous, the branches grew like curtains around the outside, it was amazing!
I love the look of this place, so beautiful and full of fascinating things to see. That tree looks amazing.
It is a fabulous place, and the tree was really quite special x
That would be my idea of heaven too, can’t decide which is my favourite but I do like the pipes #CountryKids
I had quite a few favourites :)
Oh wow, those sculptures are amazing! What a wonderful place for kids to explore x
It really was brilliant, so pleased that the kids enjoyed it so much x
This looks amazing! We have a sculpture trail fairly close by in the Forest of Dean, but it is nowhere near as impressive as this one!! Gorgeous photos too. #CountryKids
It is amazing, the sculptures are fabulous and the grounds are beautiful x
This sounds so much fun – I’d never heard of it so was expecting to read about somewhere in Spain ;) #countrykids
It does sounds like it should be, doesn’t it! It’s such a great place x
What a great park! I wish we had more sculpture parks here in the UK #whatsthestory
It was well worth the visit x
This looks totally fab – I wish I lived nearer! Love the glass box and the musical fence! I keep meaning to go to Yorkshire sculpture Park which keeps popping up on my Fb feed this summer. I love the idea of kids seeing this sort of huge tactile art. Xx #magicmoments
Oh, you should. The kids absolutely loved this outing x
This place looks amazing Sara! So much to see. Love the shots of the kids in the glass box, brilliant xx
Thanks Caroline, it was brilliant :)
Wow! Not surprised this was on your wishlist to visit. If I’m ever near there, I’d definitely visit. So many interesting sculptures. #LetKidsBeKids
It is definitely worth a visit, so glad we finally made it!
Popping back, thanks for linking #LetKidsbeKids
My pleasure :)
Love your son’s expression at the big tubes. What the what?
I know, it’s brilliant isn’t it :)
awww Sara this looks like a super place to visit! i would love those sculptures! … hope you get to squeeze in some more trips out before the kids go back to school! xx
Thanks for linking up with #MagicMoments
Thanks Jaime, it was a lovely visit x Thanks for hosting x
This is a fabulous place to take the kids! I love the size of the installations, great for the kids to discover and explore. I wish we had something like this near us. It certainly does look hot, no wonder they’re always hungry and thirsty!
A fantastic place to visit, thanks for linking up to #Whatevertheweather :) x
The installations are fabulous, and the kids really did love it. Even if they are always looking for a snack :)
What a beautiful place and such a fun day out. Oh my I have so many favourites, the first sculpture looks so beautiful in the sun, but the glass one I would explore for so long and then there is the magical tree!! I’d love to see inside the tree, it looks so incredible. Please feel free to send us over some of your weather haha. We’re having a really bad summer. Thank you so much for linking this up to #whatevertheweather. x
I wish I had taken a photo inside the tree, but another group arrived just as we did and I couldn’t get a clear view :( I’ll just have to go back!
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