A giant spoon and cherry sit in a Minneapolis park that never charges admission

A Cherry the Size of a Car

The Minneapolis Sculpture Garden sits on 11 acres right next to the Walker Art Center, and it holds more than 40 permanent artworks spread across open lawns.

Flat, paved paths let you stroll at your own pace, and you get downtown Minneapolis rising in the background the whole way. Best part is you never pay a cent.

Gates stay open every day from 6 a.m. to midnight, which makes this one of the biggest city sculpture parks in the whole country, and the biggest surprise waits under one giant piece of silverware.

From Parade Grounds to Flower Beds

Thomas Lowry donated this land to the Park Board back in 1906, and for years the military used it for drills, calling it simply “The Parade.”

Flower gardens took over the space for about 50 years after that, long before anyone thought to put sculptures here.

The garden as you know it today opened to the public in 1988, then closed for a major rebuild and reopened in June 2017 sharing its campus with the Walker.

That history explains why the grounds feel more like a park than a museum lawn.

The Spoon Everyone Photographs

Spoonbridge and Cherry is the piece you already know, even if you did not know the name.

The spoon runs about 52 feet long and stands roughly 30 feet tall, weighing in at 5,800 pounds, and the cherry on top adds another 1,200 pounds of bright red fiberglass.

Water actually sprays from the cherry stem, so the whole thing doubles as a fountain.

Artist couple Claes Oldenburg and Coosje van Bruggen built it, and with the skyline framed right behind it, this spot ends up in more vacation photos than anything else in the garden.

Meet the Giant Blue Rooster

Right near the spoon, a bright blue rooster named Hahn/Cock stands close to 25 feet tall counting its base. German artist Katharina Fritsch made it, and it joined the garden in 2017 during the big reopening.

You can spot its color from clear across the lawn, which makes it an easy landmark if you get turned around.

Most people snap a photo here right after the spoon, since the two pieces sit close enough to hit both in one loop around the grounds.

Cross a Bridge That Hides a Poem

The Irene Hixon Whitney Bridge stretches about 375 feet and carries you on foot straight into Loring Park next door.

Look down as you walk, and you will find a full poem by John Ashbery spelled out in metal letters running across the beams.

Staff have joked it might be the longest poem in the world, simply because of how far the letters stretch.

Minnesota artist Siah Armajani designed the bridge so its two arches meet in the middle, forming what looks like a handshake above the road below.

Chimes That Play Themselves

Somewhere in the garden, an artwork called Wind Chime hangs from a tree, and dozens of individual chimes ring whenever the breeze picks up.

The notes come from a piano piece by composer John Cage, so what you hear is not random noise, it is music with no one playing it. Since the wind decides the timing, no two visits sound the same.

This piece moves around the grounds from time to time, so you might find it in a different spot than your last trip.

Say It With the LOVE Sculpture

American artist Robert Indiana created a sculpture that simply spells out the word “LOVE” in bold, stacked letters.

You have probably seen this design before without realizing where it came from, since it even appeared on a United States postage stamp. There is nothing complicated about this stop.

You walk up, you stand next to the letters, and you get a cheerful family photo without needing to know a single fact about the artist or the piece.

Step Into a Space for Reflection

A tall black cylinder waits for you to walk inside, and once you do, you find a life-size statue of a saint standing in the quiet.

Artist Theaster Gates built Black Vessel for a Saint for the 2017 reopening, and it marked his first permanent outdoor sculpture anywhere in the world.

The piece works less like a photo stop and more like a pause button.

You step in, the noise of the garden drops away, and you get a minute to just stand still before heading back out.

Hunt Down the Playful Hidden Pieces

Beyond the big names, smaller sculptures wait for you to stumble across them.

Barry Flanagan balanced a bronze rabbit on top of a bell in Hare on Bell, while a clapperless bell called For Whom… swings soundlessly at the top of every hour.

Mark di Suvero built a swinging steel piece named Arikidea, and Deborah Butterfield shaped a wooden-looking horse called Woodrow.

None of these sit front and center, so part of your visit becomes a scavenger hunt as you wander the paths looking for each one.

Slow Down in the Gardens

A flower arbor stretches about 300 feet through the grounds, and the plants, trees, and shrubs along it pull in butterflies and birds throughout the growing season.

Open lawns give you plenty of room to spread out a blanket, and benches sit scattered around if you just want to rest your legs for a bit. Pack a lunch before you come.

Between the greenery and the quiet, this corner of the garden works better for a picnic than for checking sculptures off a list.

A Garden for Every Season

Summer brings green lawns and blooming plants, which explains why it is the busiest season here. Fall cools things down and drops colorful leaves across the paths, making for an easy stroll without the heat.

Come winter, snow settles right on top of Spoonbridge and Cherry, sitting there like an ice cream sundae.

The garden never closes for the season, so whatever month you show up, you will find something different waiting than you would have the last time.

Getting Here Costs You Nothing

The garden sits about one mile southwest of central Minneapolis, close enough for a quick trip from downtown. Public restrooms are available right on the grounds, so you do not need to plan around that.

The Walker Art Center sits next door if you want to head inside after your walk, and the bridge across to Loring Park adds even more green space if you are not ready to leave yet.

With free entry the whole time, this ranks among the cheapest ways to spend an afternoon in the city.

Visiting the Minneapolis Sculpture Garden in Minnesota

You will find the garden at 725 Vineland Place in Minneapolis, right next to the Walker Art Center. Gates open daily from 6 a.m. to midnight, and admission does not cost you anything at any point in the year.

The paths stay flat and paved, so you can bring a stroller or just wear regular shoes without worrying about the terrain.

Give yourself at least an hour if you want to catch the major pieces, longer if you plan to hunt down the smaller hidden ones too.

This article was created with AI assistance and human editing.

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