A Michigan sculpture park is currently at the top of the USA Today's "Readers' Choice 10Best" awards for the best sculpture park across the country. Last year, the Michigan park already won the reader-decided poll and it is in form to repeat the win this year.
Michigan's Bet for USA's Best Sculpture Park in 2024
USA Today encourages its nominees' communities to vote daily until the end of the voting period on Feb. 19. As per its website, the winner will be announced on March 1 at noon EST.
The publication itself is the one that nominates the 20 parks included in its polls, spaces that it describes as capable of blending "the beauty of nature with the ingenuity of human creation" and areas that offer "visitors a unique journey through large-scale masterpieces."
At the front of the "race" out of all the nominees is Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park, located at a 158-acre-big property within Grand Rapids in Michigan.
The park itself hosts a variety of outdoor gardens alongside its five-story-high, 15,000 square-foot Lena Meijer Tropical Conservatory that houses differing species of exotic plant selections across rocky landscapes and even a waterfall.
Its outdoor gardens feature cultivated plants that can be enjoyed in all four seasons, all year long.
However, the Michigan park not only offers a horticultural and nature-focused experience but is also home to over 50 major works by master sculptors like Auguste Rodin, Henry Moore, Barbara Hepworth, Louise Bourgeois, Mark di Suvero, Richard Serra, Roxy Paine, and Ai Weiwei, among others.
Of course, the park also embraces the ever-changing nature of art through its rotating roster of exhibitions comprising premier contemporary sculptures from across the world.
The other nominees currently belonging in the top five within the "10best" poll include South Carolina's Brookgreen Gardens, New Jersey's Ground for Sculpture, The Virginia B. Fairbanks Art & Nature Park in Indiana, and Tippet Rise Art Center in Montana.
If you're interested in voting or exploring all about the 20 nominees in USA Today's reader polls, visit their online polling by clicking here.
