If you ever needed proof of the increasing interest in sculpture parks right now consider the fact that Charli XCX chose one of the best sculpture parks in the world, Storm King Art Center—an hour’s drive from NYC in the Hudson Valley—over a sweaty nightclub as the site to relaunch her remix album last fall, declaring to her fans, “We’re fine art bitches now!”
Sure, displaying sculpture in an outdoor setting has existed ever since Neanderthals would arrange rocks to create ring-like sculptures in caves; but the emergence of outdoor sculpture parks in the 1960s and 1970s was in part a response to finding a setting to display abstract and often monumental work by artists such as Richard Serra and Alexander Calder. By moving to an open-air environment, sculpture was freed from the confines of the traditional white cube gallery setting and a merging of art and nature started to take place.
Today, there are over 300 sculpture parks in the US alone which saw an uptick in popularity during the Covid pandemic that has only increased in the years since. The opportunity of viewing art in a natural landscape democratizes the viewing experience as well as challenging us to see it anew. As an ambitious new sculpture park opens in Spain this month, we take a look at some of our favorite sculpture parks around the world.
Storm King Art Center (New Windsor, New York, US)
Photo: Getty Images
Opened in 1960 as a showcase for the Hudson River School of painters, the 500-acre property now boasts an impressive collection of artists including Magdalena Abakanowicz, Mark di Suvero, Alice Aycock, and Maya Lin. Last month the institution unveiled its $53 million Capital Project reimagining how visitors arrive, explore, and interact with the art and the landscape—marking its first major renovation since its founding in 1960. The 2025 season kicks off with newly commissioned works from artists Kevin Beasley, Sonia Gomes, and Dionne Lee, as well as new acquisitions from Lee Ufan and Arlene Shechet.
Louisiana Museum of Modern Art and Sculpture Park (Copenhagen, Denmark)
Photo: Courtesy of Louisiana Museum of Modern Art and Sculpture Park
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Art doesn’t have to shock
Art doesn’t have to shock
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