The Senior Expo will take place on May 24 at the Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park. (Courtesy, Frederik Meijer Gardens)
In many ways, a walk around the building and grounds of the Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park is the perfect place for a bit of physical and mental health “me time” for local senior community members.
And what better time to visit than the return of the free-to-the-public West Michigan Senior Expo at Meijer Gardens on Wednesday, May 24, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Registration to the expo also offers free admission to the Meijer Gardens indoor and outdoor art and gardens.
The range of senior — and senior caregiver — advocacy and service groups attending the Senior Expo is expected to include more than 50 Grand Rapids and West Michigan organizations that specialize assisted living, Alzheimer’s information, home care, Veterans benefits, mobility solutions, Medicare and much more.
More than 50 local and regional organizations will be present at the West Michigan Senior Expo at Meijer Gardens. (courtesy, Meijer Gardens)
For one local health-care organization, Pine Rest Christian Mental Health Services, attending the expo and serving the senior community is a calling as much as a business opportunity.
“We view the seniors who turn to us for care as our friends, our grandparents, and our neighbors because that’s who they are,” Matt Hiskes, spokesperson for Pine Rest. “We value and offer a full continuum of services for seniors because they are an essential part of the community that makes West Michigan great.”
Hiskes also stressed that mental health is as important as physical health for seniors.
“Individuals often face some of the most challenging aspects of life during their senior years: housing changes, loss of family members and friends, individual medical concerns, loss of mobility, and changing family dynamics,” Hiskes said. “These issues can be incredibly impactful on a person’s mental well-being, yet many individuals never seek the help they need.
“It’s important for seniors to know that help is available, that there is no shame in seeking mental health care, and that people can live better, longer lives when they focus on caring for their mental health.”
Health care screenings and a stroll through art, nature
The “rain or shine” expo will be held in-doors and will offer a variety of free health screenings — not to mention hourly prize drawings, giveaways and complimentary refreshments.
Among the groups and businesses expected to attend are BP Realty, Baldwin House, Battle Creek VA Media Center, Boichot Insurance Agency, Care Resources PACE (GR), Center for Vein Restoration, Eden Home Care, Estate Planning Legal Services, Grand Brook Memory Care, Health Alliance Plan, Hearing Life, Life EMS Ambulance, Lincoln Square Senior Living Holiday by Atria (GR), McDonald Hearing Services, National Benefit Plans, Neptune Society, Sentinel Pointe Retirement Community, St. Ann’s Home, United Healthcare, and Victory Financial Insurance Agency.
After the event, attendees can enjoy the recently opened indoor exhibit of “Cristina Iglesias: Under and In Between”. Running through September, the exhibition surveys 20 years of work from one of Spain’s most renowned artists. The exhibit includes the artist’s “Pozo XI”, recently installed in the Tassell–Wisner–Bottrall English Perennial Garden as part of Meijer Garden’s permanent sculpture collection.
And if you haven’t been on the grounds lately, a somber but powerful stop should be Jerusalem-born artist Ariel Schlesinger’s “Ways to Say Goodbye” located in the Holocaust Memorial Garden.
Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park is located at 1000 East Beltline Ave NE, Grand Rapids. For more information visit meijergardens.org
The Frederik Meijer Gardens and Sculpture Park will present the exhibit “Double Take: Mel Chin an Elizbeth Turk” from Nov. 18 through March 26.
Elizabeth Turk, Evaporated River (detail)2, 2015, marble and limestone, dimensions variable (Photo courtesy of Frederik Meijer Gardens and Sculpture Park)
This exhibition presents works from these two award winners of the MacArthur Fellowship—sometimes referred to as a “genius grant”—in a variety of techniques and media, including wood, stone, aluminum, water, and sound. Chin and Turk’s work selected for this exhibition focuses on sculpture dealing primarily with the natural world.
Environmental issues have been central to Mel Chin’s work for many years. Most notably is his 1990 Revival Field, a pioneering project in “green remediation,” which uses plants to extract toxic metals from soil. Two pieces tied to this ongoing project are included in the exhibition: Revival Field diorama and Revival Ramp etching. Themes of revival and recovery are often present in Chin’s work, including many shown at Meijer Gardens.
Elizabeth Turk is also inspired by the natural world, most recently in her Tipping Point: Echoes of Extinction series that brings light to extinct and endangered birds through a series of totemic Sound Columns. These sculptures visualize the voices of lost or threatened birds. Her Evaporated River installation similarly gives form to an absence within nature, here showing the diminished water that used to flow freely through our nation’s riverbeds.
Together, the art of Mel Chin and Elizabeth Turk provides new takes on important issues of the day, including environmental hazards, endangered species, memorialization, and lost or hidden histories.
(Courtesy, Fredrik Meijer Gardens and Sculpture Park)
Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park is now accepting entries for the annual Ray and Nancy Loeschner Art Competition.
Celebrating its 21st year, the annual competition welcomes artists from around the globe to respond to the beauty of Meijer Gardens in their work. Through the generosity of the Loeschner family, the winning entries (one each in two-dimensional and photography) will receive $5,000 purchase awards in addition to becoming a part of the renowned Meijer Gardens permanent collection. The competition is open to all artists 18 years old and older who are working in a two-dimensional format.
Artists are encouraged to submit original two-dimensional works (e.g., drawing, print, pastel, painting or photography) inspired by Meijer Gardens. To participate, artists may register online at MeijerGardens.org/award by Friday, Nov. 11. The winner will be chosen and announced in January 2023.
Since 2002, the Loeschner Art Completion has sought outstanding artwork inspired by Meijer Gardens, with the objective of collecting high-quality work that celebrates the beauty and inspiration Meijer Gardens provides. For more information and to view past winners, visit: MeijerGardens.org/award
The “Chrysanthemums & More!” exhibit will feature a number of displays highlighting fall colors. (Photo by Johnny Quirin)
Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park will host the annual fall horticulture exhibition, Chrysanthemums & More!, Sept. 16 – Oct. 30.
A perennial favorite and the largest of its kind in Michigan, this annual fall exhibition spans thousands of blossoms across 158 sprawling acres. Chrysanthemums & More! will surprise and delight, with a focus on abundant autumn plantings arranged in intriguing and uncommon color combinations.
Both artful and natural, the palette of vivid complementary colors and subtle tone-on-tone pairings —bringing awareness to texture and shape—is sure to pique your interest and catch your eye. As you explore the gardens and grounds, indoors and out, take time to enjoy all the rich and striking detail of this year’s exhibition theme: Unexpected Color.
Plentiful plantings in the Grand Entry Garden, Welcome Center, and Gunberg and BISSELL Corridors showcase the chrysanthemum through the artistry of many designers, among them Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park horticulture staff.
In the BISSELL Corridor, a different local floral designer each week will create a singular arrangement highlighting the chrysanthemum as its primary element. Local florists include Hyssop Floral, Horrocks Market, Overgrowth Floral, Kennedy’s Flowers & Gifts, Dahlia Acres Farms, and Eastern Floral.
Of equal note are stunning displays in the Grace Jarecki Seasonal Display Greenhouse, Earl & Donnalee Holton Victorian Garden Parlor, and Lena Meijer Tropical Conservatory, each lush and lovely.
Outdoors, treat your senses with a trek into the crisp fall air. Venture onto the Stuart and Barbara Padnos Rooftop Sculpture Garden, with its seasonal wetland views, then make your way to the Lena Meijer Children’s Garden and its cornucopia of chrysanthemums, intermingled with nontraditional autumn plantings to form a quilt-like tapestry. Continue to Michigan’s Farm Garden, where the abundant autumn harvest boasts heirloom vegetables, herbs, gourds and larger-than-life pumpkins. This example of a working 1930s family farm occasionally provides some of its more than 40 varieties of produce for our James & Shirley Balk Café.
The Glow Garden will be Sept. 20 and 27 and Oct. 4. (Supplied)
This exhibition is truly a feast for the eyes, displaying the unexpected color combinations of the magnificent mum—and more!
“This year we are exploring the beauty of Unexpected Color,” said Steve LaWarre, Vice President of Horticulture. “We hope that guests will notice the rich palette and striking details of unique and unexpected combinations of color throughout our grounds, inside and out.”
Activities throughout the exhibition, including Tuesdays at the Farm, Glow Garden and Hallowee-Ones, are full of family fun.
Renovations to Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park’s Volunteer Tribute Garden will soon see plantings come out of their winter stillness, and it will soon have an updated “The Tribute”, by Oliviero Rainaldi, on display. (WKTV.K.D. Norris)
By WKTV Staff
Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park appreciates its volunteers enough to give them, and the general public, a Volunteer Tribute Garden with its own work of art — “The Tribute”, by famed Italian artist Oliviero Rainaldi and commissioned for the site.
So it is fitting that as the Gardens readies the competition of renovation, and pending rededication of the tribute garden, still located just outside the hallway leading to the Lena Meijer Tropical Conservatory, part of the renovation will be an expanded version of Rainaldi’s circular work.
Fifteen years after the dedication of the Volunteer Tribute Garden and Rainaldi’s original sculpture, both the space and the sculpture are getting a new look, according to an announcement from Meijer Gardens.
Renovations to Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park’s Volunteer Tribute Garden will include an updated “The Tribute”, by Italian artist Oliviero Rainaldi, on display. (Supplied)
The Tribute and the Volunteer Tribute Garden will be rededicated Wednesday, April 20, in a special ceremony at 4 p.m., proceeded on April 19 by “A Conversation with Oliviero Rainaldi” at 7 p.m., in the Huizenga Grand Room.
“In 2006, Rainaldi was first commissioned to create a work of art to honor the thousands of volunteers who give their time and talents to Meijer Gardens,” according to the announcement. “As the buildings, garden spaces and number of volunteers at Meijer Gardens grow, so too did this sculpture.”
The artwork was temporarily removed to accommodate the redesign of the Volunteer Tribute Garden.
(Meijer Gardens is always seeking new volunteers, who are “Wanted. Needed. Appreciated.” with various jobs and shifts. For more information contact Valerie Maciejewski at vmaciejewski@meijergardens.org or 616-974-5221.)
Garden, artwork expanded but remains unique
Designed by Progressive AE and the Meijer Gardens horticulture team, the tribute garden has been expanded and redesigned to be more accessible and improve views of the wetland, sculpture and horticulture.
The tribute garden area update includes a new boardwalk area and outdoor classroom that extends on top of a wetland, “providing a great opportunity to teach guests about the importance of the natural environment, water and the ecosystem.”
And, according to the announcement, newly designed aluminum panels are being inserted into the interior of “The Tribute”.
“The exterior bronze panels poetically tell the stories of a diverse group of Meijer Gardens guest experiences,” according to the announcement. “The two interior panels incorporate stories of place and the emotion of love.”
Rainaldi describes the central curve as “the heart of the sculpture, which should be dedicated exclusively to Fred and Lena Meijer, creating an idealized place where horticulture and sculpture dialog together.”
Rainaldi, well known for his artwork focused on the human figure in a post-war and contemporary setting, “takes a linear approach that emphasizes humanity’s most ideal and essential qualities,” according to the announcement.
The structure brings viewers into a water scene, where they look up at the sky through reeds and will notice an aerial view of the Great Lakes, “as if looking down upon the Earth. Water has historically been symbolic of life, power, purity and strength.”
These elements together represent and pay tribute to Fred and Lena Meijer, to the natural beauty of West Michigan, and to the thousands of dedicated volunteers who have donated their time and talents, according to the announcement.
While “A Conversation with Oliviero Rainaldi” — a conversation with Meijer Gardens President & CEO David Hooker and Amber Oudsema, Curator of Arts Education — is included with admission, registration is required at: MeijerGardens.org/calendar.
Susanne Ramljak, Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park Chief Curator. (Supplied)
By WKTV Staff
Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park has appointed a new Chief Curator: Suzanne Ramljak, “a seasoned curator and art historian,” and a graduate of University of Michigan who has worked at the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, the institution announced Tuesday, March 29.
Ramljak, who started work March 28, will oversee Meijer Gardens’ expanding exhibition programing and acquisitions for the permanent collection. She joins an art team at the Gardens which includes Laurene Grunwald, Director of Sculpture, Art Collections, Exhibitions. Jochen Wierich, Assistant Curator and Researcher, has resigned his position as of the end of April, according to Meijer Gardens.
“In this newly created position, she (Ramljak) will lead our efforts to acquire and site sculpture and to curate engaging sculpture exhibitions,” David Hooker, Meijer Gardens President & CEO, said in supplied material. “Ramljak is ideally suited to help us realize Fred Meijer’s desire to create a world-class sculpture program. In addition, in this role she will serve as an officer of the institution.”
Ramljak comes to Meijer Gardens from the American Federation of Arts in New York City, where as curator for 10 years she organized numerous traveling museum exhibitions. Her own exhibition projects have centered on modern and contemporary sculpture, including “Natural Wonders: The Sublime in Contemporary Art”, “Case Studies: Art in a Valise” and the forthcoming “Mark Dion and Alexis Rockman: Journey to Nature’s Underworld.”
Ramljak has also worked in the curatorial departments of the Guggenheim, as well as the Detroit Institute of Arts and University of Michigan Museum of Art.
“I am delighted to join the outstanding team at Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park to advance the mission of inspiring appreciation of sculpture and the natural environment,” Ramljak said in supplied material. “It is my fortune to be arriving during a time of impressive growth at Meijer Gardens and at a moment in our culture when the bracing forces of art and nature are more essential than ever.”
Meijer Gardens recently underwent a major $115 million expansion project that adds new major architectural features and renovations to current facilities.
A Michigan native, Ramljak earned a Bachelor of Arts and Master of Arts in art history from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, where she also served as arts writer for the Ann Arbor News, according to the Meijer Gardens announcement. Ramljak pursued doctoral work and earned a Master of Philosophy in art history from the Graduate School, City University of New York, with dissertation research on the Venus de Milo in 20th-century art.
Along with her broad curatorial background, Ramljak has extensive publishing and writing experience. She was editor of Sculpture magazine for five years and held the editorship of Glass Quarterly and Metalsmith magazines. Ramljak has published widely on contemporary art.
Her writing on sculpture includes monographic essays on artists Louise Bourgeois, Michele Oka Doner, John Grade and Beverly Penn, among others. She has authored several books including “On Body and Soul: Contemporary Armor to Amulets” and, most recently, “Loaded: Guns in Contemporary Art”.
Yinka Shonibare, the featured artist as Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park reopens its sculpture galleries after more than a year of renovations, is commanding in his artistic vision and, yet, undoubtedly playful as well.
Shonibare — with “CBE” (Commander of the Order of the British Empire) attached to his name when necessary — is a self-proclaimed “postcolonial hybrid” of British-Nigerian heritage who has emerged as one of the leading artists in the global art world, with his works maybe best known for a playful combination of colorful Dutch wax-fabric patterns popular in West Africa with the fashion of upper-class Victorian culture.
Yinka Shonibare “Moving Up”, courtesy the artist and James Cohan Gallery, New York. (Supplied/Photo by Stephen White & Co. Supplied)
When the Garden’s remodeled sculpture galleries reopen in April, Shonibare’s works of the past three decades, many never shown in the United States, including sculptures, paintings, photographs, collages, embroidery, and film, will be featured in the exhibition “Yinka Shonibare CBE: Planets in My Head.” The show will run thorough October.
“Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park is thrilled to host this major exhibition, one of Yinka Shonibare’s largest in the United States,” David Hooker, President & CEO of Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park, said in supplied material. “It will be a wonderful opportunity for hundreds of thousands of guests to experience works never before seen in the U.S. and learn more about this fascinating artist.”
The man and his works
Born in London to Nigerian parents and raised in Lagos, Nigeria, where he spoke Yoruba at home and English at the private school he attended, Shonibare has a bicultural heritage, according to supplied material. “His identity is shaped by the postcolonial experience of being in two places at once; of growing up located between center and margin of the British Empire.”
Yinka Shonibare in his studio in 2014. (Artist’s website photo by James Mollison)
Postcolonialism and hybridity define his artistic and political identity, and are major themes in his artistic output. While Shonibare embraces cross-cultural mixing and exchange in his work, he never shies from alluding to the postcolonial scars of cultural imperialism and exploitation.
“As this exhibition reveals, Shonibare thinks globally and uses his artistic imagination to comment on colonialism, art history, environment, education, knowledge, food justice, and other subjects of universal concern,” the Meijer Gardens’ announcement states.
Shonibare, born 1962, studied Fine Art at Byam Shaw School of Art, London (1989) and received his MFA from Goldsmiths, University of London (1991), according to the biography on his website.
Yinka Shonibare’s ‘Hybrid Mask (Fang Ngil). Courtesy the artist and Stephen Friedman Gallery, London. (Supplied/Photo by Stephen White & Co.)
His interdisciplinary practice uses “citations of Western art history and literature to question the validity of contemporary cultural and national identities within the context of globalisation. Through examining race, class and the construction of cultural identity, his works comment on the tangled interrelationship between Africa and Europe, and their respective economic and political histories.”
In 2004, he was nominated for the Turner Prize and in 2008. In 2013, he was elected a Royal Academician, and was awarded the honour of ‘Commander of the Order of the British Empire’ in 2019. His installation ‘The British Library’ was acquired by Tate in 2019 and is currently on display at Tate Modern, London.
More recently, Shonibare was awarded the prestigious Whitechapel Gallery Art Icon Award. His works are in collections of, in addition to the Tate, the National Museum of African Art at the Smithsonian Institute, Washington, D.C; Museum of Modern Art, New York; and the Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago.
Yinka Shonibare’s ‘Creatures of the Mappa-Mundi – Bonnacon’. Courtesy the artist and Stephen Friedman Gallery, London. (Supplied photo by Mark Blower)
Yinka Shonibare’s ‘Creatures of the Mappa-Mundi – Bonnacon’ (detail). Courtesy the artist and Stephen Friedman Gallery, London. (Supplied photo by Mark Blower)
Exhibit-related special events
Among the many exhibition-related events are:
“A Fashion in Contemporary Art” — Saturday, June 18, a discussion by Suzanne Eberle, PhD, Professor Emerita, Kendall College of Art and Design.
“Abundance and Scarcity: Yinka Shonibare CBE and Food Justice” — Saturday, July 16, a discussion by Jochen Wierich, PhD, Assistant Curator & Researcher at Meijer Gardens and Associate Professor of Art History at Aquinas College.
“Complex Embodiment: Yinka Shonibare and Disability” — Saturdays, Sept. 3 and 10, with Jessica Cooley, PhD candidate in the art history department at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
“Yinka Shonibare and the Pan-African Imagination” — Saturday, Oct. 1, 1with Antawan Byrd, PhD candidate in the art history department at Northwestern University, Weinberg Fellow, associate curator of photography and media at the Art Institute of Chicago.
An Emerald Swallowtail is just one of the many butterflies visitors will see at this year’s “Butterflies are Blooming.” (Supplied)
Bold butterflies are flying in for Spring! The Frederik Meijer Gardens and Sculpture Park’s annual Fred and Dorothy Fichter Butterflies Are Blooming exhibition is back.
Beginning March 1 through April 30 thousands of butterflies will be taking over the Lena Meijer Tropical Conservatory. The 15,000 square-foot conservatory is set at 85 degrees with 70 percent humidity. New this year is the kokedama arch that is filled with colorful penta, lantana, bromeliads, and orchids. During the exhibition, several flowers will be blooming including orange plume, blue porter weed, jatropha, queen’s wreath, and bleeding heart vines.
This year’s exhibition highlights the power of flowers and the positive and powerful impact flowers have on butterflies, people, and the world.
“Our goal is to bring an awareness of the important relationships butterflies and humans have with flowers, and to show the positive and powerful impact flowers have on butterflies, people, and the world,” said Steve LaWarre, Vice President of Horticulture.
More than 60 species of butterflies reside in the warm, lush environment of the Lena Meijer Tropical Conservatory. These creatures come from butterfly-rich regions around the world including parts of Asia, Africa, and Central & South America. Every week an average of 1,000 pupae arrive at the gardens and guests can view the new arrivals at the observation station. At this station, the conservatory staff collects and releases adult butterflies throughout the day.
The Caterpillar Room, in the Grace Jarecki Seasonal Display Greenhouse, features monarch caterpillars. The greenhouse is filled with milkweed host plants for the hungry caterpillars to feed on.
At the Lena Meijer Children’s Garden, young guests can participate in outdoor activities. The children’s garden has unique educational activities for all ages to enjoy. In the Log Cabin guests can perform their own butterfly-themed puppet shows or read about moths and butterflies. The garden features a special Treehouse Village hunt, a Butterfly Maze, and the Monarch’s Migration game. Check the Children’s Garden Information Center for activities and times, which vary daily.
Through the exhibition, the gardens will be putting on several special events and recurring activities including:
The Lena Conservatory will be filled with an array of different butterflies from March 1 to April 31. (Supplied)
Outdoor Children’s Activities
March 1 – Friday, April 30, daylight hours only
Lena Meijer Children’s Garden
Included with admission
Tuesday Night Lights
Included with admission
Bring your flashlight on Tuesday nights until 9 p.m. to search for butterflies and see the nightlife in the Lena Meijer Tropical Conservatory.
SMART Gardening to Support Monarchs (Lecture)
March 13, 2 – 3:30 p.m.
Included with admission
Dr. Erwin “Duke” Elsner Extension Educator, Michigan State University, will explore simple ways landowners and gardeners can support monarch butterfly populations in their own backyards. During his presentation he will highlight simple ways to create a significant “green space” in urban and residential areas.
Flower House Detroit (Lecture)
March 27, 2 p.m.
Included with admission
Lisa Waud, Botanical Artist, Flower House Detroit
In October 2015, 37 floral designers and more than 100 volunteers from across North America came together to fill an abandoned Detroit house with American-grown fresh flowers and living plants. In this lecture, botanical installation artist, Lisa Waud will be presenting virtually to the audience at Meijer Gardens. She will be sharing her project from idea to exploration along with her thoughts on beauty, blight, and nostalgia, and the themes of risk-taking, logistics, and collaboration through the lens of the large-scale installation.
Flower Power Exploration Stations
April 24, 2 – 3:30 p.m.
Included with admission
Learn about flowers and butterflies during a self guided drop-in program. Guests can use microscopes and IPads as they explore the connection between flowers and butterflies.
Night With The Butterflies – Family Parties
March 14, March 20, April 18, 6 – 8 p.m.
This party will include entertainment, an art activity, and a light snack.
The gardens request that all visitors wear a face mask in indoor public settings regardless of their vaccination status. During the exhibition, tripods are not allowed in the conservatory and monopods may only be used with courtesy around other guests. No butterfly or plant materials can be removed from the conservatory and guests are not permitted to touch the butterflies.
The exhibit runs through April 30. Members can attend the exhibit for free, while students and children receive a discount. For more details about the butterfly exhibition, visit www.meijergardens.org
Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park’s Michigan’s Farm Garden, a reproduction of Lena Meijer’s home early in life near Lakeview, Michigan. The windmill is actually from that farm. (Supplied/Dean VanDis)
The legacy of the late Lena Meijer — community advocate, philanthropist and so much more — lives on in her family, in many ways in the Grand Rapids community, and, of course, Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park.
And while Lena played a large role in the success of her family’s Midwest grocery super-center business, her life began on a humble farm near Lakeview, Michigan. And that humble beginning is on full, if slightly miniature, display at Meijer Gardens’ Michigan’s Farm Garden.
“She always spoke so lovingly of her upbringing and cherished that experience in her life,” David Hooker, President and CEO of Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park, said WKTV.
Fred and Lena Meijer. (Supplied/undated)
Both Lena and her husband, late grocery entrepreneur Fred Meijer, grew up on farms. A daughter of German immigrants George and Mary Rader, Lena was born and raised on the farm her parents acquired after settling near Lakeview, while Fred’s family farm was located in Greenville.
Lena and Fred never lost the desire to share their knowledge and love of the land with their community.
“They wanted people to really understand that food comes from a farm, it doesn’t come from their grocery stores,” said Hooker.
Through this desire, the Michigan’s Farm Garden was born.
“The idea for creating Michigan’s Farm Garden was so people could understand what the farming life was like, especially in the era of the 1930s when they both grew up,” said Hooker. “The fact that they wanted to recreate that experience for people is a testament to how Lena felt about it.”
Milking cows, fresh carrots … and that windmill
At the Michigan’s Farm Garden, visitors can find a three-quarter scale replica of the farmhouse where Lena was born and raised, a barn, vegetable and flower gardens, animal pens, and bronze sculptures of farm animals scattered throughout. Patrons are invited to sit in rocking chairs on the wraparound porch, and visit and relax.
Fred and Lena Meijer at the dedication of Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park’s Michigan’s Farm Garden. (Supplied)
Another piece of Lena’s heritage she chose to share with the community is the windmill visitors see while visiting the Farm Garden. “That actual windmill came from her family’s farm,” Hooker said.
“She (Lena) learned at a very young age how to milk a cow and work the fields, and do everything that farmers do,” said Hooker.
One of Lena’s favorite stories involved milking cows. Hooker said Lena liked to joke about being so skilled at milking a cow that she could feed their cat at the same time.
“She could squirt the milk into the cat’s mouth from six feet away,” said Hooker.
Lena’s antics as a young farm girl didn’t end there.
One of the farm scene sculptures from the Michigan’s Farm Garden. The girl riding the pig, reportedly, is taken from Lena’s childhood. (Supplied/William J. Hebert)
“As a young girl, she’d ride the pigs,” Hooker said. “In fact, we have a sculpture of Lena as a little girl riding a pig out in Michigan’s Farm Garden. It’s classic.”
When it was mentioned that it seemed like Lena had some “spunk” in her personality, Hooker agreed — “Oh, she had a ton. Absolutely.”
Lena died at the age of 102 on Jan. 15. She will be buried beside her husband at Michigan’s Farm Garden, laid to rest in a place they both loved to visit in their twilight years.
“If it was the right time of year, they would pull a carrot right of the ground, wash it off, and they’d eat it,” said Hooker.
Children, learning and lots of beautiful plants
Lena’s love of gardening and plants is also revealed in the Lena Meijer Tropical Conservatory and, especially, the Lena Meijer Children’s Garden.
“(Lena) loved kids and loved the idea of a garden dedicated to children learning about gardening and learning about how life itself would not be possible without plants,” Hooker said.
Lena Meijer at the 2017 groundbreaking of Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park’s expansion projects. (Supplied/Anthony Norkus Photography)
The Children’s Garden promotes interactive learning and the use of all five senses with various hands-on activities for children and their families.
“Meijer Gardens is a gift to all of us as a community,” said Hooker. “This is what Fred and Lena were interested in and they gave this to us as a gift. For this gift to mean anything, come on out and visit! It’s here for everyone to enjoy.”
For more information about Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park visit meijergardens.org.
It’s been a great Christmas season in the Gonzalez house with our two grandbabies visiting from out of town. What a change to go from just the two of us to two more adults, two children under the age of 3 and a dog!
I think we’re going to usher in the New Year in a whole new way.
What about you?
We have some ideas of things to do this weekend in Gonzo’s Top 5, exclusively on WKTV Journal.
Gonzo’s Top 5
5. The Grand Rapids Gold
The season is just getting started for GR’s newest professional franchise, The Grand Rapids Gold basketball team in the NBA G League. Several home games are on tap, including games Jan. 5, 7 and 8 at the DeltaPlex Arena. “Star Wars” Night is Jan. 22. The team is an affiliate of the Denver Nuggets. Ticket information, as well as roster details, at grandrapids.gleague.nba.com/. Let’s go see some basketball!
4. Grand Rapids Griffins
We always have our Griffins to usher in a new year. The popular New Year’s Eve game – complete with fireworks – returns on Dec. 31 at Van Andel Arena. Game time is 6 p.m. The team plays in the American Hockey League and is an affiliate of the Detroit Red Wings. Check out the schedule and ticket information at griffinshockey.com/schedule.
Photo by Gavin Brown (from Facebook)
3. Normal Mode at The Listening Room
Ready for live music to make a big comeback in 2022? I know I am. Start the new year with Normal Mode, a Grand Rapids-based trio writing what it calls “lo-fi space travel music.” The group performs at 7:30 p.m. Saturday (Jan. 1) at The Listening Room in Grand Rapids. The band’s press material says: “This group of young, but seasoned musicians offer up floating ethereal soundscapes on top of head bopping grooves; perfect for a relaxing exploration. Dutcher Snedeker (Piano/Keys), Ian Thompson (Upright/Electric Bass), and Nathan Coles (Drums), all have deep roots in the Michigan music scene. Their genre blending style echos hints of Jazz, rock, and funk, while leaving enough room for improvisation.” I couldn’t agree more. It’s fantastic! The show is free. But there are vaccination requirements. Listen to their music and learn more at listeningroomgr.com.
2. Billy Strings Live
Fans are excited for the return of bluegrass star Billy Strings, a local musician-turned Grammy award winner, who is scheduled to perform Dec. 30-Jan. 1 at GLC Live at 20 Monroe in downtown Grand Rapids. All shows are sold out. If you have tickets, you’re in for a memorable evening. If not, well, maybe next time. And if you’ve never heard of Billy Strings or you want to watch from home, this is a good opportunity to learn more about this emerging national talent who is originally from Ionia. Those who want to livestream the shows can get more details at nugs.net. Follow Billy Strings on YouTube at https://found.ee/StringsYT and on Spotify https://found.ee/BSpotify.
Oh, and if you’re downtown on Thursday (Dec. 30), a pre-show concert is planned with Desmond Jones, a five-piece American rock band from Grand Rapids, at 5 p.m. at The Listening Room. The show is free. Doors open at 4 p.m. The band is known for its “melodic guitar riffs, funky bass lines, groovy drumbeats, and smooth saxophone,” according to press materials. More info at listeningroomgr.com.
Note: Billy Strings postponed some shows in Nashville earlier this month because of a Covid positive test in his touring band. In a story on liveforlivemusic.com he said: “At this time we have every intention of performing our New Years Eve run in Grand Rapids and can’t wait to see you there. We love you and hope you all stay healthy and safe this holiday season.”
Scenes from Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park’s Christmas and Holiday Traditions Around the World exhibition and events. (Supplied/Dean VanDis)
1. Christmas in Grand Rapids
I’ve mentioned a couple local institutions several times over the last few weeks. Don’t forget:
The Christmas Lite Show at LMCU Ballpark remains open from 5:30-9 p.m. daily, and 5:30-10 p.m. Friday and Saturday. It runs through Jan. 1. Cost is $28 per car. More information at christmasliteshow.com.
The University of Michigan Health-West Christmas & Holiday Traditions exhibition at Meijer Gardens runs through Jan. 2. It is open daily, but closed on Jan. 1. More details at meijergardens.org.
That’s it for now.
As always, I welcome your input and recommendations for events to include in my Top 5 list. If you have something for me to consider, just send me an email at michigangonzo@gmail.com.
Have a great, safe weekend.
John D. Gonzalez is a digital journalist with 30-plus years of experience as a food, travel, craft beer and arts & entertainment reporter based in Grand Rapids, Michigan. He also co-hosts the “Behind the Mitten” radio show, which airs at 6 p.m. Sundays on WOOD-AM and FM. You can find him on Twitter as @MichiganGonzo, on Instagram @MichiganGonzo and Facebook at @GRGonzo. He also relaunched his YouTube Channel. Email him story ideas and tips at michigangonzo@gmail.com.
We have so many things going on locally, as usual. But this weekend I find myself on Mackinac Island for its annual Christmas Tree Lighting ceremony. You can follow my Facebook page for updates. I might even bring back some fudge, if you’re interested.
A little closer to home….. you can check out the Christmas tree lighting party at Boston Square Community Parklet at 4:30 p.m. Saturday (Dec. 4). Eight Boston Square area organizations and businesses are hosting a free, family-friendly event featuring music, food and talent from the neighborhood. The ceremony begins at 6 p.m. at the Boston Square Community Parklet, 1505 Kalamazoo Avenue SE.
In addition, the Christmas in Caledonia Lights Parade and tree lighting ceremony is from 4-7 p.m. Saturday (Dec. 4) in Caledonia and features food, warm fires and festivities. A light parade will start at 6 p.m. with Santa ushering the parade. You can get a photo with him after the parade.
What do you have planned?
Here are a few more ideas in this weekend’s Gonzo’s Top 5, exclusively on WKTV Journal.
Gonzo’s Top 5
5. West Catholic Christmas Craft Show
I have been writing about local craft shows every week, and this weekend marks the return of the popular West Catholic Christmas Craft Show. It features 200-plus crafters and is from 9 a.m.-3 p.m. Saturday (Dec. 4) at the high school, 1801 Bristol Ave NW, Grand Rapids. Now that it’s December, you might want to get serious about your holiday shopping. (I’m telling myself.) You can find more information about the craft show on the event Facebook page. (I recently started working at West Catholic High School on the school’s communications team and I can tell you that everyone is excited to put on a great event, which helps raise funds for school programs.)
Video courtesy of Joanne Bailey-Boorsma
4. Wyoming Light Show
If you’re looking for a holiday light show a little closer to home, you can find nine houses synced to music located on Sage River Court SW and Amur Drive SW in Wyoming. Organizers of the Sage River Holiday Light Show encourage you to tune in to your radio at 94.1 FM when you arrive. Find more details on the Facebook page.
3. The Sound of Music
Over a recent family dinner I was talking to my niece, Christina Gonzalez, who said the cast is loving the return of Grand Rapids Civic Theatre’s “The Sound of Music.” She plays the role of Sister Sophia. That reminded me I better get tickets soon. Performances continue through Dec. 19. Shows are usually at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday-Saturday, and at 2 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. Get more information at grct.org/the-sound-of-music or check out GRCT’s Facebook page.
Santa Photos courtesy of Dean VanDis.
2. Visit Santa Meijer Gardens
As we have written about in prior weeks, the annual University of Michigan Health-West Christmas & Holiday Traditions exhibition at Meijer Gardens is in full swing as guests experience 46 trees and displays representing countries and cultures from across the globe, as well as 300,000 lights and Garden Railway display. But you can visit Santa, too. He makes an appearance from 5-8 p.m. Dec. 7, 14 and 21 in the Lena Meijer Tropical Conservatory (where it’s always balmy). His reindeer arrive at a different time. They are in the Michigan Farm Garden from 1-4 p.m. on Saturdays: Dec. 4, 11 and 18. Both are free with admission to the Gardens. Get all the details at meijergardens.org.
Photo of TSO is Courtesy of TSO/Van Andel Arena.
1.Trans-Siberian Orchestra
Looking for a BIG this weekend? You’ll be wowed by the spectacle of the Trans-Siberian Orchestra, which brings its “Christmas Eve and Other Stories” tour to Van Andel Arena for two shows – 3 and 7:30 p.m. Sunday (Dec. 5). The rock opera features many of TSO’s most beloved numbers, including “Ornament,” “Promises to Keep,” and, the song everyone knows, “Christmas Eve/Sarajevo 12/24.” Ticket information, a video preview of the show and more at vanandelarena.com. Trans-Siberian Orchestra video.
That’s it for now.
As always, I welcome your input and recommendations for events to include in my Top 5 list. If you have something for me to consider, just send me an email at michigangonzo@gmail.com.
Have a great, safe weekend.
John D. Gonzalez is a digital journalist with 30-plus years of experience as a food, travel, craft beer and arts & entertainment reporter based in Grand Rapids, Michigan. He’s an early adopter of Social Media and SEO expert. Follow him on his journey to discover what’s next. You can find him on Twitter as @MichiganGonzo, on Instagram @MichiganGonzo and Facebook at @GRGonzo. He also relaunched his YouTube Channel. Email him story ideas and tips at michigangonzo@gmail.com.
Jess Hart, the Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park’s director of education, discusses planned and possible educational programing available in the new Peter M. Wege Library and the unique public area outside its doors. (WKTV)
There is a work of art on the grounds of Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park, Bill Woodrow’s “Listening to History”, that speaks to many people about the importance of knowledge as much as it does the imagination of the artist. And the importance of knowledge is not lost on the visionaries at “The Gardens” as well.
As Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park laid out its ambitious expansion plans in 2017 much of the talk was about the new education center and the rooftop garden, the upgraded outdoor amphitheater and the crown jewel of the new “Welcome Center” entrance. All rightly so.
Bill Woodrow’s “Listening to History”, on display at Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park. (Supplied)
Tucked away in the design plans for the entrance, which opened early this year with a few pieces yet to be place — most notably the placement of Spanish artist Jaume Plensa’s Utopia — was the relocated and expanded Peter M. Wege Library.
But then again, education in general and art history resources in specific was important to Fred Meijer and continues to be important to the mission of the sculpture park named for him.
Located on the lower “Courtyard” level of the Welcome Center, along with “Mimi’s Garden”, a unique garden area seemingly located inside a glass terrarium, the library is intended to not only be a “go to” educational resource center but also a focal point for the Meijer Garden’s community and educational programming.
A scene from Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park’s relocated and expanded Peter M. Wege Library. (WKTV/K.D. Norris)
While the old library was nice — tucked into a corner just as you entered the old entrance building — both Jess Hart, director of education, and Shelly Kilroy, librarian and archivist, could barely contain their joy at the new space when WKTV visited recently.
“The thing I really enjoy most about it is that it is a space not only for information and learning but for curiosity,” Hart said to WKTV. “We have a really professional staff here at Meijer Gardens and wonderful volunteers, and guests are constantly asking those volunteers and staff questions about our collections and our gardens.
“But occasionally there is a question that a staff member or volunteer cannot answer. And in those instances we often encourage guests to come down to the library to find that information. It is wonderful to have that resource.”
And what a resource it is.
“We are used by the general public, researchers — particularly researchers of a particular artist — or someone who just wants to come in and browse,” Kilroy said to WKTV. “Also for our staff, for inspiration and research for their programs, especially the education staff and our sculpture staff. And, of course, volunteers as well, to learn more about all the Gardens has to offer.”
Library a key element in the expansion
Built using funds from the $115 million Welcoming the World: Honoring a Legacy of Love capital campaign, the 69,000 square-foot Welcome Center of which the library is only a small but important part, was designed by Tod Williams Billie Tsien Architects/Partners.
And the importance of the library and adjacent space to the overall mission of Meijer Gardens was not lost on the internationally known building designers — nor was it to David Hooker, president of Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park.
“Fred Meijer grew to truly enjoy contemporary art through education and the understanding of the principles behind much of the artwork he gave to Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park,” Hooker said to WKTV. “The Peter M. Wege Library is a fantastic resource for information about our artwork and gardens. Making use of the Wege Library promotes understanding and appreciation.”
And how extensive is that resource?
Shelly Kilroy, librarian and archivist at Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park, in the Peter M. Wege Library. (WKTV/K.D. Norris)
The collection is approximately 4,500 books and magazines, Kilroy said. And they cover the spectrum of all of what makes Meijer Gardens famous in several ways.
“Some art history, primarily sculptures and sculptors, and then we also have a small poetry collection, actually. … But also plant and insect and bird identification books, and then plant care in general,” Kilroy said. “Also general (garden) design, if you want to design a Japanese garden or an English perennial garden, we have the books here.”
There are also books on using plants in cooking and crafts, she said, as well as a children’s collection — “so the kiddos can learn more.”
The focus, though, is the art and the artists, and the horticulture, represented at the gardens.
“Any of the artists, the sculptures we have here, there are resources in our collection about that artist and about the art we have here. If you want to learn more about sculpture, broadly, or about a specific sculpture we have here, you can come in and we are more than happy to help.”
An community area at Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park’s relocated and expanded Peter M. Wege Library. (WKTV/K.D. Norris)
A scene from Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park’s relocated and expanded Peter M. Wege Library. (WKTV/K.D. Norris)
A scene from Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park’s relocated and expanded Peter M. Wege Library. (WKTV/K.D. Norris)
A scene from Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park’s relocated and expanded Peter M. Wege Library. (WKTV/K.D. Norris)
A scene from Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park’s relocated and expanded Peter M. Wege Library. (WKTV/K.D. Norris)
A scene from Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park’s relocated and expanded Peter M. Wege Library. (WKTV/K.D. Norris)
Present and (hopefully) future educational plans
Hart, the director of education, leads a department which oversees Meijer Gardens’ archives as well as library space. And she considers the library’s learning space to be both inside the Wege library and the community area adjacent.
Jess Hart, director of education at Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park, outside the Peter M. Wege Library. (WKTV/K.D. Norris)
“With that new space, we are able to support new programs as well,” she said. “We are really looking forward, in the future, to hosting our quarterly book groups here. Also some Sunday drop-in programs, and potentially our very popular Cozy Tales for Chilly Days for preschoolers and families. Which we can now hold in the library and in this beautiful seating area outside or the library as well.”
And while the current pandemic has led to some pauses in programming and restrictions on programming planned, Hard is hopeful.
“We are hoping to hold all our regular programing upcoming, but I think that remains to be seen with what happens with COVID this winter and any restrictions that may go into place,” she said. “A lot of our programs that are library centered are fairly small, so we do hope to be able to hold some of our story-time groups and some of our drop-in programming.”
The beauty of fall is on display with Chrysanthemums & More! at Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park. (Supplied/by Johnny Quirin)
By D.A. Reed
WKTV Contributing Writer
As West Michigan enters the fall season, the local community can enjoy an annual floral feast — an exhibition that literally spans thousands of blossoms across 158 sprawling acres.
Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park is presenting its fall horticulture exhibition, Chrysanthemums & More!, opening to the public Sept. 17 and on display through Oct.31. The largest of its kind in Michigan, the exhibition not only features expansive displays of chrysanthemums and fall foliage, it also offers family-friendly activities.
“This year’s theme for Chrysanthemums & More! is Autumn Glow,” Steve LaWarre, Vice President of Horticulture, said in supplied material. “We hope that guests will notice how the low light of autumn softens textures and cast long shadows and see how some leaves and plants appear as if they are glowing from within, illuminating fall’s beauty.”
Chrysanthemums & More! at Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park is a flower show and so much more. (Supplied/by Johnny Quirin)
Outdoor pathways offer a treat for your senses, allowing you to peruse various gardens aglow with vibrant fall plantings while breathing the crisp fall air. Be sure to pay attention to changes in texture, hue, and mood as you move from the intensity of sun-filled spaces to the understated low light of autumn afternoons.
Stunning displays are also available for viewing indoors, with a notable and exciting weekly change in the BISSELL Corridor as different local floral designers create a singular arrangement highlighting the chrysanthemum as its primary element.
Other activities offered during the horticulture exhibition include local gourd art, The Fall Bonsai Show, music and dancing, and Hallowee-ones.
Chrysanthemums & More! at Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park is a flower show and so much more. (Supplied/by Johnny Quirin)
Starting off will be the Herb & Gourd Fest on Sept. 18-19. Participants will discover many ways to use herbs and gourds at this event, including how to create gourd art using locally available supplies.
Tuesdays at the Farm will occur Sept. 28 and Oct. 5 and feature the James & Shirley Balk Café pop-up with fresh local fare, West Michigan beer, and an adult cocktail. Dance to local music in the barn and enjoy an Autumn Glow display featured at Michigan’s Farm Garden.
For young visitors, Oct. 22 boasts Hallowee-ones, a special event designed for your “wee ones” from 10 a.m. to noon, with a parade at 10:15 a.m. Children are encouraged to be creative and dress as a sculpture, fish or flower, or in any other way that highlights the Children’s Garden. No tricks. No treats. Just fun!
All exhibition programming activities are included with admission. For a full listing of events visit https://www.meijergardens.org/.
Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park today, June 28, announced a major gift from The Jewish Federation of Grand Rapids in order to establish the first Holocaust memorial in Grand Rapids, anchored by Ariel Schlesinger’s ‘Ways to Say Goodbye’.
The gift, according to the announcement, “is made possible by a donation from the Pestka family in memory of their father, Henry, all the Holocaust survivors who settled in Western Michigan, and the millions of Jews who perished in the Holocaust.”
Ariel Schlesinger’s ‘Ways to Say Goodbye’. (Photo credit to DIVR Gallery)
Meijer Gardens and the Jewish Federation of Grand Rapids envision ‘Ways to Say Goodbye’ as a gathering place for the Jewish community of Grand Rapids, as well as serving as a teaching tool for educators both locally and nationally to address the Holocaust and its legacy, according to the statement.
“As time goes on and memories of the Holocaust fade, it is important to remember the barbarity human beings are capable of,” Steve Pestka, said in supplied material. “It is equally important to contemplate the strength of the survivors and their ability to continue and rebuild their lives. It is our hope that this work of art will promote an appreciation of our shared humanity and a reminder that hatred and intolerance continue to this day and the consequences of the ultimate dehumanization of human beings.”
‘Ways to Say Goodbye’ is a 20-foot-tall aluminum cast of a fig tree that has shards of glass inserted among the branches. It has been described as “an exceptional work of contemporary sculpture dealing with themes of profound loss and grief” and will serve to memorialize those who perished in the Holocaust as well as those who survived.
“The memorial has important significance to my family because our father was a survivor,” Linda Pestka said in supplied material. “The numbers 73847 are numbers that we will never forget. They were tattooed to my father’s forearm, as though he were an animal, as identification for his potential death. It is our duty to educate, respect and honor the victims and their families of the unthinkable acts against life and morality. The Holocaust did happen. … May we never forget.”
Ariel Schlesinger’s ‘Ways to Say Goodbye’. (Photo credit to DIVR Gallery)
The sculpture is expected to be installed in 2022.
“Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park is highly honored and very pleased to receive this significant and meaningful gift to acquire Ariel Schlesinger’s monumental sculpture ‘Ways to Say Goodbye’,” David Hooker, President & CEO of Meijer Gardens, said in supplied material. “We are deeply grateful for this gift adding such an important work of art to our permanent collection.”
Schlesinger work, according to the statement. “takes an organic form that is a metaphor of both the Jewish people and their history.” The aluminum cast sculpture is of a living fig tree that he found on a farm while traveling in northern Italy. This tree was specifically chosen by Schlesinger for its character and as a symbol of the Jewish struggle for survival both during and after the Holocaust. The tree appears fragile and clinging to life, however it is also representative of great endurance.
Schlesinger has commented that in conceptualizing the sculpture, he held pieces of broken glass in his hands that pressed into his fingers. This recalled the Kristallnacht, or “Night of Broken Glass,” the symbolic beginning of the Holocaust, during which Nazi mobs murdered Jews and destroyed Jewish property and synagogues throughout Germany.
Schlesinger (born 1980 in Jerusalem) has lived and worked in many parts of the world, including the United States, Great Britain, Mexico and Germany. He grew up in Israel and received his undergraduate degree at Bezalel Academy of Arts and Design in Jerusalem, Israel’s oldest and most prestigious art school. He graduated from Columbia University in New York with a Master’s in Fine Arts degree.
Schlesinger has had many notable exhibitions in Austria, Cuba, Germany, Israel, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Slovenia and Switzerland. In 2019 he received a prestigious commission for a public sculpture outside of the Jewish Museum in Frankfurt, Germany.
“There are thousands of butterflies from all around the world flying right here in Grand Rapids,” said Horticulturalist Laurel Gaut.
The theme of the 2021 butterfly exhibition is “Into the Glass House.” A glass container known as a Wardian case provides the viewer with a close up look at specimens. (WKTV/Joanne Bailey-Boorsma)
Visitors tour through the Lena Meijer Tropical Conservatory, a 15,000-square-foot space filled with tropical plants, vibrant foliage, and a balmy atmosphere.
More than 60 species of butterflies reside within the space. More than 1,000 pupae are shipped to the Meijer Gardens weekly from as far away as Costa Rica, Ecuador, the Philippines, and Kenya.
The theme of the 2021 butterfly exhibition is “Into the Glass House.” A glass container known as a Wardian case provides the viewer with a close up look at specimens.
The exhibit runs through April 30. Members can attend the exhibit for free, while students and children receive a discount. For more information about the butterfly exhibition, visit www.meijergardens.org
Miss perusing the booths full of crafts? Well, the Woodland Mall has got you covered for this week. Saturday, March 20, the mall will be hosting its first Spring Craft Bash, a 1-day event that will showcase a wide variety of handcrafted and vendor Items for sale. The event will run from 11 a.m. – 6 p.m. at the Von Maur wing of the mall and will have books, games, artwork, skincare, home decor items, jewelry, succulents and more.
Art in Bloom
The biannual celebration and competition, Art in Bloom has returned to the Grand Rapids Art Museum for one-weekend only, March 19-21. Visitors are invited to explore the galleries and view floral designs inspired by artwork from the Museum’s permanent collection. Art in Bloom entries will be eligible for two awards: The Public Vote Award and Juried Award. A panel comprised of floral and art experts from the Grand Rapids community will select the Juried Award Winner, which will be announced on Friday, March 22 at 2 pm. The three-day exhibition and competition includes a floral-focused schedule of in-person and virtual offerings. Visitors are encouraged to reserve timed tickets to Art in Bloom in advance. For GRAM’s hours and admission fees, call 616-831-1000 or visit artmuseumgr.org.
Photo by Joanne Bailey-Boorsma
And Blooming Butterflies
The Butterflies are Blooming at Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park. If you are planning to go, note you may have to wait in line to get into the facility due to COVID capacity guidelines, especially if you go on the weekend. (It took my family about an hour and half to get in to see the butterflies.) The good news is, while you are waiting, you get to wind through the desert and Victorian gardens, getting up close views of Monarch caterpillars and chrysalis. The Gardens are open 9 a.m. – 5 p.m. Monday – Saturday and 11 a.m. – 5 p.m. Sunday. For more information, visit meijergardens.org.
Monach butterfly
Karner Blue butterfly
Mayfly
Hungerford’s crawling water beetle
The Butterfly Debate
The State of Michigan does not have a state insect. Several have been suggested over the years, including (from the top left) the Monarch butterfly, the Karner blue butterfly, the mayfly, and Hungerford’s crawling water beetle. In fact, in 2019, a bill was introduced, inspired by a group of students from West Bloomfield Hills school, to make the Monarch butterfly, which comes to Michigan annual, the state insect. The bill was pushed into committee and has remained there. Trout fisherman say the mayfly because it is a food source for the designated state fish and others have said the Karner blue butterfly because it is endanger and more unique to Michigan, which is the same reason some have given to the Hungerford’s crawling water beetle.
Every visit to Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park is a different experience than any other — there is always something new blooming in the gardens, or up on the art gallery’s walls, or a sculpture placed in a new or changed setting in the nearly 160 acres of land encompassing the West Michigan entertainment and cultural landmark.
And the last three years, there has even been even more changes to the Gardens’s buildings and grounds as part of a massive expansion — changes that are near completion with the recent opening of the new Welcome Center.
The WKTV Journal In Focus team recently visited for a special interview with David Hooker, president & CEO of Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park.
We talked about the Gardens nearing the end of its multi-year expansion, the successful completion of a $115 million dollar capital campaign that funded it all, as well as keeping the doors open in 2020 despite pandemic restrictions.
Mr. Hooker also discussed the beautiful mystery that is the future of the Garden’s “natural area” — a one-time golf course but at this time unplanned area of donated land adjacent to the current park.
Fred and Lena Meijer portraits hanging at the gardens.
And Mr. Hooker has plenty of stories about Fred and Lena, but did you ever hear the story about his beginning experience at Meijer Gardens? Bet it is not what you think!
For more information about Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park, visit meijergardens.org.
WKTV Journal In Focus airs on cable television in the Wyoming and Kentwood areas on Comcast WKTV Channel 26 and on AT&T Channel 99 Government channel (For dates and times on Channel 26, see our Weekly On-air Schedule. For dates and times on Channel 99, visit here). All individual interviews included in episodes of WKTV Journal In Focus are also available on YouTube at WKTVvideos.
David Hooker, president and CEO of Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park, talked to WKTV at the Welcome Center opening Monday, Jan. 11. (WKTV video)
With the 2017 launch of the Welcoming the World: Honoring a Legacy of Love $115 million capital campaign, Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park was honoring the legacy of Fred and Lena Meijer’s past community vision and well as initial and continuing financial support.
But Meijer Gardens — a bedrock cultural and artistic landmark in West Michigan — was also acknowledging that for it to move boldly into the future, for it to “Welcome the World”, it needed to get buy-in from the West Michigan community, including businesses large and small, and civic-minded individuals.
That buy-in — the fact that the capital campaign had attained it fundraising goal, and thus stayed on-track with its massive and near-complete 4-year facility expansion — was clearly evidenced by a wall of donors in its just-opened expanded Welcome Center.
Also evident was the intent of the leadership of the Meijer Gardens to make sure the community and tourism focal point of the region stayed vital and vigorous for generations to come.
“This is not monument to one person or one family, the community is making this happen and that is critically important,” David Hooker, president and CEO of Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park, said to WKTV at the Welcome Center opening Monday, Jan. 11. “We, as an organization, have no time horizon. Our goal is to be here until the very end of time. For that to happen, everybody has to rally around, to own the place. (To be) stewards of it. This generation, the next, and the next.”
While the opening of the Welcome Center is not the end of construction at Meijer Gardens supported by the capital campaign, it will allow the end of use of a temporary entrance and work to be completed on a new Garden Pavilion and a veranda to expanded Tassell-Wisner-Bottrall English Perennial Garden — one of the final pieces of the multi-year effort.
An August 2020 aerial view of the new Welcome Center at Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park (at right and lower right, still under construction). The Welcome Center had a “soft” opened this week that will allow the closure the temporary entrance (center) and a final phased of work to be done. (Meijer Gardens Website)
In all, the highlights of the expansion and renovation effort included the 69,000 square foot Welcome Center, the 20,000 square foot Covenant Learning Center, the Peter C. and Emajean Cook Transportation Center, the expanded and upgraded Frederik Meijer Gardens Amphitheater, and the Padnos Families Rooftop Sculpture Garden.
The need for expansion was evidenced by a 2016 economic impact study, conducted by Grand Valley State University, that estimated that Meijer Gardens supports or contributes more than $75 million to the Kent County economy each year. More than 12 million people from around the world have visited since it opened in 1995, according to supplied material.
The project also addresses facility needs that include expanded annual horticulture exhibitions, more galleries for sculpture exhibitions, additional parking capacity and improved vehicle flow.
The Welcome Center’s architect is Tod Williams Billie Tsien Architects/Partners, with local partners Progressive AE and Owen-Ames-Kimball, Co.
One area of the Welcome Center not yet complete is the Garden Pavilion, a central room where Jaume Plensa’s “Utopia” will be located. For the four walls of the Garden Pavilion, Plensa created a sculpture using one female face on each wall representing different ethnic backgrounds, according to supplied material. The faces “represent universal symbols of the beauty inherent in humanity,” and was specifically commissioned for the Garden Pavilion and is scheduled to open later this year.
Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park has announced the soft opening of the new Welcome Center to the public on Jan. 11 at 9 a.m. The 69,000 square-foot building greatly enhances the arrival, admission and orientation experience for guests. The Welcome Center features contemporary sculpture as well as horticultural elements throughout.
Please note: The Jan. 11 opening is a soft opening, and not all areas of the building will be open and accessible until fall of 2021. Additional information will be sent regarding the Opening Celebration and Dedication.
“The magnificent new Welcome Center is made possible by the generosity of Fred & Lena Meijer, the extended Meijer family and hundreds of individuals, companies and foundations,” said President & CEO David Hooker. “The Welcome Center was created in response to an unprecedented embrace of our mission as reflected in our attendance, membership and donor base growth…Our architects, artists and garden designers have created a place to experience our mission that is truly world-class.”
Located at the beginning of the journey into the 158-acre main campus, the Welcome Center complements the glass architectural lines of the Lena Meijer Tropical Conservatory and serves as a place for guests to comfortably purchase tickets or a membership, view an orientation film and receive information about their visit. The design ties together the many parts of Meijer Gardens into a coherent and understandable whole and serves to welcome everyone who enters.
The Welcome Center is comprised of two levels, the Main Level and the lower Courtyard Level. Main Level exterior and interior highlights include an expanded and relocated Peter C. and Emajean Cook Entryway, PNC Portico, expanded and relocated Ram’s Garden, Daniel and Pamella DeVos Ticketing Center, expanded coat room and restrooms, a Mobility Center for complimentary wheelchairs and electric carts, O-A-K Theater and the Garden Pavilion, featuring horticultural displays and the new sculpture titled Utopia by the Spanish artist Jaume Plensa. The Garden Pavilion is scheduled to open later this year. Courtyard Level highlights include an expanded and relocated Peter M. Wege Library, archives and storage, Lievense Indoor Eating Area and a Courtyard Level garden named Mimi’s Garden, featuring a glass enclosed sunken garden that is naturally lit from above.
The new Welcome Center and recently completed Frederik Meijer Gardens Amphitheater and related facilities were designed by architects Tod Williams and Billie Tsien.
In addition to horticultural details throughout, the Welcome Center will feature prominent works of Contemporary sculpture by celebrated international artists: Jaume Plensa, George Segal, Yinka Shonibare CBE RA, El Anatsui, Kenneth Snelson, Alexander Calder and Marshall Fredericks, whose work first caught the eye of Fred Meijer and began his passion for collecting sculpture. Part of the permanent sculpture collection, the placement of these pieces and horticultural elements reflects the greater Meijer Gardens mission as evidenced throughout the Gardens & Sculpture Park. The exterior and Frey Foundation Plaza leading into the Welcome Center will feature sculpture by Marshall Fredericks, Tony Cregg, Manuel Neri and Henri Laurens.
Things were already going to be a little different this year with Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park’s annual Metro Health Christmas & Holiday Traditions exhibition, but the latest round of pandemic-related large-group and inside-building capacity restrictions will not dim the lights at the event.
Part of the Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park’s annual Metro Health Christmas & Holiday Traditions exhibition. (Supplied/Meijer Gardens by Dean Van Dis)
The Christmas & Holiday Traditions exhibition will be on display from Nov. 24 through Jan. 3, 2021, during which guests will experience 46 trees and displays representing countries and cultures from across the globe, the always enchanting Railway Garden and its “holiday wonderland” surroundings, including the Grace Jarecki Seasonal Display Greenhouse.
And, as always, just a stroll around the sculpture gardens, even in winter, can be an enchanting experience — especially with the nearly 300,000 lights on display throughout the grounds.
“We were planning on being able to have 50 percent of our normal capacity for the upcoming Metro Health Christmas & Holiday Traditions exhibition, now we are allowed 30 percent.” a Meijer Gardens spokesperson said to WKTV this week. “We have already adjusted the layout of the trees and displays to allow for maximum physical distancing, and moved our Santa visits to be virtual.”
This year, as every year, Meijer Gardens “celebrates handcrafted traditions and explores the care that goes into creating these treasured traditions by hand,” according to supplied material.
Inside there will be fresh poinsettias, orchids and amaryllis, the smell of evergreens in the decorated trees and displays, and the unique horticultural artistry of the Railway Garden complements the trolleys, trains and handcrafted buildings replicating 37 Grand Rapids landmarks.
Entrance to the Japanese garden area. (Supplied/Meijer Gardens by Johnny Quirin)
“For this year’s exhibition, Meijer Gardens is showcasing handmade elements of traditions from all over the world,” Steve LaWarre, director of horticulture at Meijer Gardens, said in supplied material. “Guests will encounter the work of hundreds of skilled and caring hands and experience the details and attention that goes into creating these traditions.”
As usual, there will be extended holiday hours, with the gardens open until 9 p.m. on Nov. 24 and Dec. 1, 8, 14–19, 21–23, 26, 28–30. (The gardens will be closed on Nov. 26, Dec. 25 and Jan. 1, 2021.
Some other traditions remain but have changed, however.
Virtual Santa visits will be offered on the Tuesday nights starting Nov. 24 until Christmas Day from 5-8 p.m. The interactive visits with Santa will occur in the Hauenstein and Pfeiffer event rooms. “While your children will not be able to sit on Santa’s lap this year, we have a virtual connection with Santa and he will interact with guests live from the North Pole,” it states in supplied material.
The Original Dickens Carolers will be also be performing virtually on Tuesday evenings until Christmas Day, from 6-8 p.m., with guests able to enjoy these live performances on monitors located throughout the facility.
And what about those “Rooftop Reindeer” photos? The Rooftop Reindeer will be present from 1-4 p.m. on the Saturdays leading until Christmas Day. Visitors will be able to get close to the reindeer for photos, they will not be able to pet or touch the reindeer this year.
For complete information on what is, and is not, happening at Meijer Gardens this holiday — and most traditional things are happening — visit the Meijer Gardens webpage here.
Visual artist George Segal was a sculptor, yes. But the current multi-medium exhibit at Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park, “George Segal: Body Language”, is clear evidence he was as interested in the human condition as he was in human representation.
The exhibit had a COVID-19 delayed opening this summer, and will continue on display at Meijer Gardens through January 2021.
After having lived with the exhibit for several months, WKTV caught up with Jochen Wierich, Meijer Gardens’ Curator of Sculpture & Sculpture Exhibitions, to talk about the reasons one visit with Segal’s works is probably not enough to understand and fully appreciate the artist and his art.
While Segal (1924-2000) was often, and in Wierich’s opinion unfittingly, lumped into the Pop Art era of the late 1950s and ‘60s — along with artists such as Andy Warhol and Roy Lichtenstein — Segal was much more an observer of human nature, an explorer of human emotion.
That exploration of human nature and emotion is singularly clear in “Woman in Arm Chair”, already on permanent display at Meijer Gardens. But particularly telling to Wierich is “Street Crossing”, a 1992 work with several ambiguous figures moving through a fictional crossroads, seemingly blind to one another and to their surroundings, and on display as part of the current exhibition.
“Street Crossing is a very different piece because it shows Segal working with a large group of people, the scene he observed in New York, crossing the street and seeing people intersecting but not really interacting,” Wierich said. “It is a wonderful example of how he observed life, how he looked at people in everyday life.
“You might say, in today’s world of COVID-19, it already shows a bit of awareness of how people share space and how they navigate their physical distance. Or not.”
In WKTV’s video interview with Wierich, the art expert and educator also touched on how the current exhibit explores Segal’s works in many mediums, not just in sculpture, as well as why he did not always fit in neatly with his Pop Art peers.
“George Segal: Body Language” spans the career of Segal and focuses on his “creative vision in representing body language across a variety of materials,” as stated in supplied material. This is the first exhibition of Segal’s work at Meijer Gardens since 2004 and is the first time that a selection of the gift of 32 prints, one sculpture and three wall reliefs from the Segal Foundation and Rena Segal will be on display.
Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park is located at 1000 E Beltline Ave NE, Grand Rapids. For more information visit meijergardens.org.
WKTV college interns Rachel Weber and Matt Main contributed to this story.
One cannot walk through the current main building area of Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park and not take note of, pause to wonder about, the mysterious white-shrouded “Woman In Arm Chair”.
“Woman In Arm Chair” by George Segal. (William J Hebert)
Is she alive? Sleeping? Is she someone’s grandmother? Someone’s muse?
Such is the work of George Segal, one of the masters of Pop Art and so much more.
Meijer Gardens will now offer more clues into the master’s mind as the venue announced June 15 the opening this week of its highly-anticipated but delayed multi-media exhibition, “George Segal: Body Language” — a show which combines the artist’s sculptures side-by-side with a recent gift of prints from the Segal Foundation.
The exhibit, the announcement states, “explores Segal’s career and focuses on his remarkable versatility in representing body language across different media including plaster and various print techniques.”
The exhibition will open today, Tuesday, June 16, and will run through Jan. 3, 2021.
“Neysa” by George Segal. (Chuck Heiney)
“George Segal: Body Language” will span the career of Segal and focus on his “creative vision in representing body language across a variety of materials.” This is the first exhibition of Segal’s work at Meijer Gardens since 2004 and will be the first time that a selection of the gift of 32 prints, one sculpture and three wall reliefs from the Segal Foundation and Rena Segal will be on display.
“We are thrilled to share this selection of George Segal’s sculptures, reliefs and two-dimensional works with our guests,” Jochen Wierich, Meijer Gardens’ Curator of Sculpture & Sculpture Exhibitions, said in supplied material. “Segal’s exploration of the human body across different media continues to resonate. By showing the wide range of prints he made while also working on sculpture, we hope to add a new and largely unexplored dimension to this important 20th century artist.”
As detailed in the announcement, approximately 60 years ago, Segal “embraced a new working process that catapulted him to become one of the most recognized twentieth-century sculptors.”
During the summer of 1961, Segal was introduced to medical gauze bandages which he began to use as a primary material to cast plaster sculptures. The following year he was included in the legendary exhibition “The New Realists”, along with Andy Warhol, Roy Lichtenstein, Claes Oldenburg and Jim Dine. In response to this group exhibition, the American media began to refer to the artists as a new movement: Pop Art.
“Girl in Bright Red Shirt” by George Segal. (Chuck Heiney)
“The George and Helen Segal Foundation is pleased to see Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park exhibit their collection of Segal works along with rarely seen prints,” Rena Segal, President of the George and Helen Segal Foundation, said in supplied material. “It is wonderful that his work will inspire new audiences.”
There will also be several special exhibition programs associated with the show. (Exhibition programs are drop-in and registration is not required. Please note, due to COVID-19, programming might change. Please visit MeijerGardens.org/Segal for a current list of exhibition programming.)
Among the special programs scheduled are:
— Sculpture Walk: Figures in the Gardens. Sunday, July 12, at 2 p.m. (Free with admission.) Amber Oudsema, curator of arts education, will lead an exploration pf the Sculpture Park during an hour-long walk, discussing sculptures that focus on the human figure. Learn about how artists investigate the human condition through the body.
— Lecture: Exploring Process — Printmaking. Sunday, Aug. 9, at 2 p.m. (Free with admission.) Mariel Versluis, working artist and chair of the printmaking program at Kendall College of Art and Design, will discuss the processes of printmaking. Topics will include why an artist might choose one printmaking process over the other, when to add color and which medium is her favorite.
Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park is located at 1000 E Beltline Ave NE, Grand Rapids. For more information visit meijergardens.org.
Continuing concerns about community health and safety due to COVID-19 has brought organizers to cancel two of the area’s biggest outdoor summer concert events.
The Grand Rapids Symphony officially announced last night that it had cancelled all Symphony events through July 31. This includes the D&W Fresh Market Picnic Pops at Cannounsburg Ski area, which runs during the month of July, and the July Patriotic Pops concert at Grand Rapids’ Ah-Nab-Awen Park. The Patriotic Pops concert has been rescheduled for July 14, 2021.
This morning, the Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park officialy announced it has cancelled its 2020 Fifth Third Bank Summer Concerts series.
Grand Rapids Symphony
“It’s with a heavy heart that the Grand Rapids Symphony has had to cancel this summer’s D&W Fresh Market Picnic Pops at Cannonsburg,” said Principal Pops Conductor Bob Bernhardt. “We are so looking forward to the day we can safely return to live performances and large public gatherings, and until then, we wish everyone good health and safety, and send our sincerest gratitude for your continuing support.”
Grand Rapids Symphony President and CEO Mary Tuuk added that “While our currently planned July concerts are cancelled, we are thrilled to be able to to give the gift of music back to the Western Michigan community in August through innovative ways.”
Symphony officials stated they are looking to offer community concerts with the format being determined by health and safety guidelines. Since March, the Grand Rapids Symphony musicians and members of the entire GRS family have continued to release virtual performances on the From Our Home to Yours seres on Facebook and YouTube. (See video above.) More than 40 videos currently are available.
All exchanges and refunds for the Picnic Pops must be made through the original point of purchase. If you purchased tickets through Ticketmaster, you must contact Ticketmaster regarding your tickets. For the Grand Rapids Symphony, you may contact the office by mail, Ticket Exchange, Grand Rapids Symphony, 300 Ottawa Ave. NW, Suit 100, Grand Rapids, 49503; email tickets@grsymphony.org; or phone 616-454-9451, ext. 4. The GRS office will remain closed indefinitely with the staff working remotely to help patrons.
Meijer Gardens officials are exploring options to present local and regional performers as part of a modified Tuesday Evening Music Club later in the summer.
Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park
First thing this morning, Meijer Gardens patrons received noticed that the 2020 Fifth Third Bank Summer Concerts at Meijer Gardens had been cancelled.
“Due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and after close consultation of government issued public health pronouncements and orders and numerous conversation with our concert promoter and others, we have made the extremely difficult decision to cancel this year’s Fifth Third Bank Summer Concerts at Meijer Gardens,” said Meijer Gardens President and CEO David Hooker. “We are looking forward to a summer full of live music once again filling the Frederik Meijer Gardens Amphitheater in 2021 and we’ve already begun planning the 2021 Fifth Third Bank Summer Concerts at Meijer Gardens.”
Tickets for the series had not gone on sale.
The official announcement from Meijer Gardens does state that officials are exploring options to present local and regional performers as part of a modified Tuesday Evening Music Club series later this summer should the COVID-19 situation improve.
“The art of medicine consists of amusing the patient while nature cures the disease.”
Voltaire
Meijer Gardens horticulturist Laura Worth leads a virtual tour of the back greenhouses at the Gardens. (Meijer Gardens)
Let’s meet at The Gardens when all this is over
Can’t wait for working in the garden? Meijer Gardens works the year around. Take a tour with horticulturist Laura Worth as she leads a tour of the back greenhouses, where the horticulture team stores and grows many of the plants that make Meijer Gardens beautiful. Go here for the video.
National Museum of Natural History. (Supplied)
Look at the tusks on that elephant!
One of the world’s most visited museums for good reason, the National Museum of Natural History branch of the Smithsonian is magic at keeping kids of all ages entertained and learning. Go here for the virtual tour.
“All the Small Things” video remix 2020 by MDs vs COVID (YouTube) 2020
A little music, just for the fun of it …
In late March, a group of students at Harvard Medical School created “FutureMDs vs. COVID” and, as young people are want to do, created a video with an update of Blink 182’s “All The Small Things”. A little silly, a little good advice, a little heart. Go here for the music video.
Fun fact(s):
Winning at Go Fish
Playing a lot of card games with your kids? Tired of letting them win or, worse, them accidentally winning? Here is how to reach your kids how to beat you at Go Fish. Winning at Go Fish.
“Tree decorating with cats. O Christmas tree, O christmas tree, your Ornaments are history!”
Courtney VanSickle
Perfectly decorated trees at MMA
The Muskegon Museum of Art is jumping into the holiday spirit early with its 15th annual Festival of Trees, running through Dec. 1, highlighted by a silent auction of the display trees. The complete story is here.
Get a early peek at the Garden
Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park’s annual Metro Health Christmas & Holiday Traditions exhibition is not officially open until Nov. 26, but much of it is already up — and thee is a great show in the featured art gallery. The complete story is here.
The Mighty Wurlitzer Organ holiday concerts at the Grand Rapids Public Museum.
Holiday music live at GRPM
Grand Rapids Public Museum (GRPM) holiday events kicks off this weekend with two Classic Melodies organ concerts as part of the Mighty Wurlitzer Theater Organ Concert Series. The complete story is here.
Fun fact:
Almost 1 million
The number of songs in the “Christmas Music Catalogue” … Well. actually, 914,047 tracks represent 180,660 unique songs and were created by 63,711 unique artists – from Aaron Neville to Zuma the King. The top 20 artists with the most Christmas tracks in the Spotify catalog are all pre-Beatles artists. (Source)
Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park’s Metro Health Christmas & Holiday Traditions exhibition. (Supplied/Johnny Quirin)
By Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park
Experience the wonder of the holidays at Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park with the annual Metro Health Christmas & Holiday Traditions exhibition, on display from Nov. 26 through Jan. 5, 2020.
Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park’s Metro Health Christmas & Holiday Traditions exhibition. (Supplied/Johnny Quirin)
Guests from all over the world visit Meijer Gardens to experience 46 trees and displays representing countries and cultures from across the globe. The adored and enchanting Railway Garden, and the holiday wonderland that encompasses it, will once again loop through three lush indoor garden spaces, including the Grace Jarecki Seasonal Display Greenhouse.
Guests are invited to ring in the holiday season with our most beloved winter exhibition.
This year, Meijer Gardens celebrates the signs of the season and highlights iconic symbols that are used in holiday festivities. Winter is a season rich with symbolism. On display are icons that evoke a deeper meaning and represent holiday cheer. Guests will celebrate both fact and folklore, past and present.
Each winter, Meijer Gardens transforms into a botanic wonderland with fresh poinsettias, orchids and amaryllis. The smell of evergreens as visitors enter the building and the sounds of carolers make it a place to reflect and enjoy the holiday season. Indoors and out, our grounds sparkle with 300,000 lights. 500 volunteers lovingly decorate the trees and displays.
The unique horticultural artistry of the Railway Garden complements the trolleys, trains and handcrafted buildings replicating 37 Grand Rapids landmarks. Visitors will find familiarity in the Fifth Third Ballpark replica building, with its light posts made of willow, as well as Royal Poinciana pods, Pomegranate, Japanese Fantail Willow and Bamboo that make up the iconic architecture of the Van Andel Institute replica building. Five landmarks from Grand Rapids sister cities around the world are also represented in the Railway Garden.
“This winter, Meijer Gardens is highlighting iconic symbols from around the world,” said Steve LaWarre, Director of Horticulture at Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park. “Guests will have the opportunity to explore the signs of the season with deeper meaning and find the commonalities shared within diverse cultures.”
Mainstays of the exhibition include the Germany tree, adorned with handmade glass ornaments and homemade springerle cookies, the England tree—with antique Christmas cards and mistletoe—and the beautiful Eid ul-Fitr display, which celebrates the end of Ramadan.
In many cultures, the holidays bring people together in distinct and memorable ways that are difficult to capture in a display. Meijer Gardens is once again presenting the wonderous original film, joy, that explores the diverse festive fabric that is holiday life across our local communities. This film will be shown continuously in the Hoffman Family Auditorium and is also available on the Meijer Gardens YouTube channel.
(Supplied/Dean VanDis)
A variety of family-friendly activities are offered throughout the exhibition. Exhibition activities include:
Extended Holiday Hours: Open until 9 p.m. on Dec. 17-21, 23, 26-28 and 30. (Please note Meijer Gardens is closed on Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Day and New Year’s Day).
The Original Dickens Carolers: Tuesdays: Nov. 26, Dec. 3, 10, 17 from 6-8 p.m.
Santa Visits: Tuesdays: Nov. 26, Dec. 3, 10, 17 from 5-8 p.m.
Winter-Time Walks: (Dec. 3-Jan. 4, 2020), with preschoolers Tuesdays and Wednesdays at 11:15 a.m., and family and friends Saturdays at 11:15 a.m., with fee included with admission. Winter in the Lena Meijer Children’s Garden can be chilly, but fun! Bundle up and join us on an outdoor interactive discovery walk to investigate the Children’s Garden in new ways. We’ll explore different winter themes and gather in a cozy spot to learn about winter with stories, kid-friendly conversation and other activities.
Christmas and Holiday Themed Classes: Enjoy festive learning opportunities for adults and families. Fees apply.
Metro Health Christmas & Holiday Traditions is made possible by made possible by Metro Health — University of Michigan Health, the Meijer Foundation, Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Foundation, the Botanic and Sculpture Societies of Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park and the Michigan Council for Arts and Cultural Affairs, a partner agency of the National Endowment for the Arts, and Star 105.7. The Railway Garden is sponsored by Warner Norcross + Judd, Inc.
When Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park opens its next exhibit, “Rebecca Louise Law: The Womb”, on Sept. 20, the Gardens horticultural staff and community volunteers might be excused if they feel a little ownership of the artwork.
After all, the site-specific exhibition includes about 10,000 flowers and plants gathered from the Gardens’ massive gardens and strung together in delicate wire strings by local volunteers and staff, and then added to Law’s existing collection of approximately 1 million flowers and plant material.
The resulting newly created sculptural works, as well as painted works, will be on display within, and in spaces preceding, the main gallery in an exhibition which will run through March 1, 2020.
While the British installation artist has gained international acclaim for her works and her use of natural materials, the ability to have such a wide range of local material to select from and work with is a little unusual but very pleasing to the artist.
British installation artist Rebecca Louise Law. (Supplied by the artist)
“It was amazing to have a dedicated team that would daily harvest flora from an abundant garden,” Law said to WKTV. “I felt spoilt by the horticulture team as I’ve given them my preferences and guidance as to what will work best in this installation.”
While some of new exhibit is based on previously produced material, the initial stringing of local materials by a variety of local volunteers does present the artist with a kind of variance, of randomness, that plays into her final artistic decisions as the exhibit comes together.
“I am strict with the method of wiring each flower and we prepare the flowers according to size and tone,” Law said. “Apart from this, I allow the volunteers to work naturally. I have always loved the artwork involving many hands, what makes the installation beautiful to its core is all the handmade twists of copper.”
A close-up of part “Still Life” by British installation artist Rebecca Louise Law. (Supplied by the artist)
The titles of some of Law’s other works seem to reflect or hint at a place and time in nature — “Life in Death” for example. So we asked if “The Womb”, which uses seeds or pods or early roots as well as flowers and other plant material, reflects or hints at an early stage of nature.
“‘The Womb’ studies the start of life and the human cocoon in nature,” Law said to WKTV. “I wanted to study the womb as a vessel and the first human relationship with nature. I have always had the fantasy of being enveloped in nature and through studying the womb, this artwork is the closest I have got to creating an essence of this experience.”
Law’s use of natural materials, mainly floral, will “encourage guests to experience the relationship between humanity and nature. The natural decay of the plant material makes this exhibit time based and encourages frequent visits to observe the process of drying,” according to supplied material.
A close-up of part “Community” by British installation artist Rebecca Louise Law. (Supplied by the artist)
The installation is also described as “an intimate exploration into the relationship between humankind and nature, and explores the sensation of being cocooned in nature, and the fantasy of being naturally enveloped.” The artworks surrounding the installation look in detail at the womb as a natural cocoon.
Although photography will be allowed in specific areas, Law encourages guests to “put aside their cell phones and cameras and fully engage with the exhibition,” she said in supplied material.
An advocate of sustainability, Law frequently reuses dried plant materials that have been displayed in her previous installations.
“I like to capture and treasure small, beautiful natural objects to create an artwork that can be observed without the pressure of time,” Law said in supplied material. “Preserving, treasuring, celebrating and sharing the beauty of the earth with the world is what drives me.”
That advocacy for the natural world combined with artistic vision fits in perfectly with Meijer Garden’s vision.
“We have been aware of Rebecca’s work for some time, and are very excited to be working with her,” Laurene Grunwald, Director of Sculpture, Art Collections, Exhibitions & Installations at Meijer Gardens, said in supplied material. “Her concern for the environment and practice of sustainability is a perfect fit for us along with the literal combination of sculpture and horticulture, which directly mirrors our mission.”
The exhibition will include several free-with-admission special “drop-in” programs, including:
A Director’s Walk will take place on Tuesday, Oct. 15, at 6 p.m., led by Grunwald and Steve LaWarre, Director of Horticulture, as they explore one of the places where this combination of nature and sculpture is emphasized — the wildflower meadow with Mark di Suvero’s sculpture “Scarlatti” at its center.
A lecture, “The Secret Symbolism of Flowers”, will take place on Sunday, Nov. 10, at 2 p.m., with Suzanne Eberle, Professor of Art History, Kendall College of Art and Design. Eberle will discuss how flowers often contain a symbolic meaning that is sometimes specific to the period of art, region or artist from which it was created.
A lecture, “The History of Environmental Art”, on Sunday, Dec. 8, at 2 p.m., with Billie Wickre, Professor of Art History, Albion College. The Environmental Art movement began in the 1960s and early ’70s as a way to appreciate nature. Over time, it has become a way for artists to address the endangering of ecosystems. Wickre will highlight some important works of art in the Environmental Art movement that have been intended to evoke change in the ways in which we understand and interact with our surroundings.
Dr. Jochen Wierich, Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park new Curator of Sculpture and Sculpture Exhibitions. (Supplied/Meijer Gardens)
By K.D. Norris ken@wktv.org
Dr. Jochen Wierich, Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park new Curator of Sculpture and Sculpture Exhibitions, comes to Grand Rapids with extensive art curatorial experience, having most recently led curated exhibitions at Nashville’s renown Cheekwood Botanical Garden & Museum of Art including a much admired exhibition “Jaume Plensa: Human Landscape” in 2015-16.
He also has an equally impressive resume as an art historian and teacher, which includes being a lecturer on art history at prestigious institutions of higher education including Vanderbilt University — and he now holds the Lena E. S. Meijer Professorship in Art History at Aquinas College.
But the “American” portion of the German-born Wierich’s art history resume only hints at his depth of knowledge and appreciation of art, and his desire to share his knowledge and appreciation with local students and the general public visiting Meijer Gardens.
During one of his first in-depth interviews after coming to Meijer Gardens in late July, Wierich wore his curatorial jacket as he discussed his admiration for the Meijer Gardens sculptural art collection as well as some works which surprised him on his initial tours of the gardens. (See the following video.)
During the WKTV interview, however, he also discussed his views on the differences between art education in Europe and America, as well as his conviction that understanding history and culture is essential to understanding art.
“I see a number of differences in the role of art and art education in Europe and in the United States,” Wierich said to WKTV. “From my own perspective, in Europe young people grow up understanding that art is a part of a kind of cultural heritage, a part of a kind of patrimony, that we inherit. So even outside the classroom education, that is something that young people in Germany, in Europe, they just bring to their college education.
“I, you, she or he” by Jaume_Plensa. (Supplied/Meijer Gardens by William J Hebert)
“In the United States, I would say that museums have done a great job of helping, educating young people, in the arts. Encouraging them to be creative. And then to appreciate art. But, still, art is not as much imbedded in the broader education sphere in the United States. And so, when the students come to college, they just don’t quite bring that background, that kind of familiarity with the arts, that I see in Germany and in Europe.”
But passing on his passion for art is where Wierich’s passion for education comes into play.
“That is something that, especially as a college teacher, I also want to help with,” he said. “Being part of the Aquinas faculty, and interacting with the students in the classroom, and possibly encouraging them to come out here and explore the sculpture collection, that is going to be part of my job. … And maybe bridge that gap a little bit.”
Another stop in Wierich’s American journey was at the Northwest Museum of Arts and Culture in Spokane, Wa. — a place which cemented his belief in the importance of culture and historic context in understanding and appreciating modern art.
“The issue of understanding art within the historic and cultural context, to me, it is something that I think about all the time,” Wierich said. “My background, as you know, is in art history and American studies. So I thrive in museum environments that are multi-disciplinary, if you want (to call it such). And, for example, here at Meijer Gardens, you have art and horticulture, and you have programs that bring music and literature to this institution, and create this conversation across different disciplines.
“At the MAC, the Northwest Museum of Arts & Culture, you might see in one visit a Native American contemporary artist painting landscapes, you might see additional plateau Indian baskets, and then you might see an exhibition of German and Italian immigrants who came to the inland Northwest as farmers. And so, each of these exhibitions contributes to, in a sense, framing the art.”
When it comes to modern and contemporary art appreciation and art history “I think that learning about the context (is important), that none of these works was created in a vacuum. That each of these works can help us understand what the historical circumstances were that, maybe, inspired the artist,” he said. “Think about the great Picasso painting “Guernica”, without understanding the (Spanish Civil) War, that painting is not quite the same.”
And he brings that idea home to Meijer Gardens.
Iron Tree by Ai Weiwei. (Supplied/Meijer Gardens by PeterMcDaniel)
“Even with the artists here in the sculpture park — Ai Weiwei, Jaume Plensa — you can really understand what an artist like Ai Weiwei is processing in terms of his growing up in contemporary China, and struggling with the changes in China,” Wierich said. “Or Jaume Plensa, somebody who grew up right after the dictatorship of Franco, and when Spain became a democracy. This are all stories that allow us to have a greater appreciation of the modern and contemporary art works.”
Prior to his work at Vanderbilt, Wierich held teaching positions at Whitman College, Free University in Berlin and Belmont University.
He earned a Master of Arts degree from the Universitat Frankfurt, Frankfurt, Germany and a Bachelor of Arts degree from Universitat Dusseldorf, Dusseldorf, Germany. He has a master’s degree in American Studies from Goethe University of Frankfurt and a Ph.D. in American Studies from the College of William and Mary in Virginia — where his dissertation is titled “The Domestication of History in American Art, 1848-1876”.
Joseph Becherer, who previously held both the Meijer Gardens and Aquinas College positions, was named director of the Snite Museum of Art at the University of Notre Dame last fall.
“Animals are such agreeable friends — they ask no questions; they pass no criticisms.”
George Eliot
On a roll
Only recently, Margo Price “was a country underdog just trying to keep enough gas in the tank to get to the next gig,” but by the end of 2016, she was one of the genre’s most celebrated new artists with gigs on late night television and at major festivals around the world. Don’t miss her performance at Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park this Thursday, Aug. 1st. The Dawes with Margo Price concert will start at 6:30pm (5:15pm gates open), with a $50 general admission ticket price. For more information and tickets visit meijergardens.org. Go here for the story.
Precious cargo
National Heat Stroke Prevention day is July 31, 2019, and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) is reminding everyone to “look before you lock.” It takes just 10 minutes for a vehicle in the sun to heat up by 20 degrees and become potentially deadly for a child left locked in a car. Go here for the story.
Tick tock
If despite your best prevention efforts, a tick still attaches to you, there’s a right and a wrong way to remove ticks. Don’t use matches or the tip of a cigarette to burn off ticks. This could cause them to transmit bacteria more quickly. The correct way to remove a tick is to lift it gently with thin forceps or tweezers. Here are more tips.
Fun fact:
A raisin dropped in a glass of fresh champagne will bounce up and down continuously from the bottom of the glass to the top. You’re welcome.
Fred and Lena Meijer, in Meijer Gardens gallery. Undated. (Supplied/Meijer Gardens)
By Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park
Timed to commemorate the centenary of Fred Meijer’s birth and to celebrate his role as one of America’s foremost patrons of the arts, Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park is honored to announce A National Treasure: Fred Meijer, His Collection and Legacy.
Opening on Feb. 1, 2019, this exclusive exhibition is a celebration of Meijer’s desire to build a world-class sculpture collection. This exhibition will run through Aug. 25, 2019 and will display eleven different “chapters”, each based around original works of art from Meijer Gardens’ permanent collection as well as exclusive loans from sculptors and galleries that Meijer knew and admired.
In addition, the exhibition will debut a series of important recent acquisitions to Meijer Gardens’ permanent collection, including works by El Anatsui, George Segal and George Minne.
A National Treasure: Fred Meijer, His Collection and Legacy examines Meijer’s passion for sculpture, his growth as a collector and his profound commitment to engage diverse audiences through his collection. Each facet of Meijer’s collection is explored in this exhibition, including early ideas for a sculpture park and ways that the collection would be integrated across the gardens and grounds of what would become Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park. The exhibition follows Meijer’s journey as a collector and patron of the arts, with rare insight into the creation of one of the world’s greatest collections of Modern and Contemporary sculpture.
“One of the many things that I admired about Fred Meijer was that he was a lifelong learner and enjoyed finding out about new sculptors and their work with each acquisition,” said Laurene Grunwald, Director of Sculpture, Exhibitions and Installations at Meijer Gardens. “He never sought to collect for himself, but to enrich the lives of others.”
Fred Meijer’s history
Frederik G.H. Meijer was born in Greenville, Mich., in 1919, to Dutch immigrants Hendrik and Gezina Meijer. Together with an older sister, Johanna, the Meijers formed an industrious working-class family and embraced life in the rural Midwest. The Meijer parents maintained a life-long connection to their European roots and instilled the importance of education, culture and the arts in their children.
“The eye needs something, too” was a favorite phrase Gezina Meijer often shared as a reminder that, whenever possible, a truly full life extended beyond physical needs to embrace beauty, as well as intellectual and cultural pursuits.
In 1934, in the depths of the Great Depression, 14-year-old Fred Meijer worked with his father to found and operate the first Meijer grocery in Greenville. This store became the cornerstone of the chain of supercenters, Meijer Inc., which flourishes with 242 stores today.
In 1946, Fred Meijer married Lena Meijer (born 1919) who became his beloved wife of 65 years. As their success in business burgeoned, so did their commitment to community through philanthropy in education, health care, the natural environment and the arts—an extraordinary tradition embraced by their sons and families today.
The opening of Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park in 1995 brought together Lena’s love of plants and flowers with Fred’s passion for sculpture and quickly became a cherished focal point of their interest and support.
Fred and Lena in Milan, Italy studio of Arnaldo Pomodoro. Undated. (Supplied/Meijer Gardens)
Although never formally trained in the visual arts or art history, Fred Meijer was deeply interested in cultural endeavors and history, and had a long interest in sculpture. In particular, he was initially attracted to historical and figurative statuary in bronze. He began collecting in the mid-1980s according to his own interests, but his views broadened in the following years.
In August of 1999, he declared his dream to “build a world-class sculpture collection” at Meijer Gardens — opening a door for collecting beyond his initial personal aesthetic with the betterment and enjoyment of the public in mind.
Today, the collection is hailed as among the finest in the world. This exhibition celebrates Fred Meijer’s centenary and traces the development of the man and his collection of sculpture and his emergence as one of the nation’s foremost patrons of the visual arts.
Exhibit events scheduled
Associated with the exhibit there will be a series of free-with-admission programs:
Gardens of Art Around the World Sunday, March 17, 2 p.m. Presented by Suzanne Eberle, Professor of Art History, Kendall College of Art & DesignDrawing inspiration from gardens and sculpture collections around the globe, Fred Meijer sought to create a unique museum environment that was second-to-none right in Grand Rapids. Join Dr. Sue Eberle as she highlights the sculpture gardens that inspired Meijer as well as some of the outstanding outdoor collections to add to your travel bucket list.
Great American Collectors Sunday, April 14, 2 p.m. Presented by Dr. Craig Hanson, Associate Professor, Calvin CollegeFred Meijer, as an art collector, is among a small group of philanthropists who believed that art should be shared widely with the public. He saw his collection as a tool to enrich lives through the power of art. Join Dr. Craig Hanson as he discusses the role of collectors in the United States and the legacy of art patronage.
The Art of Fine Art Collecting Sunday, May 5, 2 p.m. Presented by Linda and Scott Lafontsee, Owners of Lafontsee GalleryYou don’t have to have the resources of Meijer Gardens to build your own fine art collection. Join the owners and artists behind Lafontsee Galleries to learn easy ways to live with original artwork that inspires you every day. Linda and Scott Lafontsee have represented local artists for over 30 years in Grand Rapids.
Charcoal Drawing with Anna Greidanus Friday, June 14, 3-5 p.m. Presented by Anna Greidanus, Professor of Art, Calvin CollegeHead outdoors with artist Anna Greidanus and learn the relaxing and inspiring practice of charcoal drawing. A gestural, loose and rapid approach is both less intimidating to first time artists and an effective form of observation. Class size is limited to 15 guests. Please register online at MeijerGardens.org/calendar
Summer Sculpture Walks Sculpture Park Niches, The Gallery – Tuesday, July 30, 6 p.m. Sculpture Park Niches, The Groves – Sunday, August 11, 11:30 a.m. Get off the beaten path and explore lesser known areas of the Sculpture Park. See fantastic examples of Modern and Contemporary sculpture instrumental to Fred Meijer’s collection style and legacy. Meet outside of the Indoor Sculpture Galleries and be prepared to walk and stand for at least 90 minutes, rain or shine.
Exhibition programs are drop-in and registration is not required.
A National Treasure: Fred Meijer, His Collection and Legacy is made possible by: The Meijer Foundation, Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Foundation, Botanic and Sculpture Societies of Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park, and The Michigan Council for Arts and Cultural Affairs, a partner agency of the National Endowment for the Arts.
Meijer Gardens today
Today Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park had 723,000 visitors in 2017 and was recently listed in the top 30 most visited museums in the United States by The Art Newspaper, the leading publication in global art news. The 158-acre main campus features Michigan’s largest tropical conservatory; one of the largest interactive children’s gardens in the country; arid and Victorian gardens with bronze sculptures by Degas and Rodin; a carnivorous plant house; outdoor gardens; and a 1900-seat outdoor amphitheater, featuring an eclectic mix of world-renowned musicians every summer.
The internationally acclaimed Sculpture Park features a permanent collection including works by Oldenburg, Moore, Hepworth, Serra, Bourgeois, Ai Weiwei and Plensa, among others. Indoor galleries host changing sculpture exhibitions with exhibitions by Ai Weiwei, Picasso, Degas, di Suvero, Borofsky, Calder and Dine.
In June 2015, the eight–acre Richard & Helen DeVos Japanese Garden at Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park opened. Created by renowned designer Hoichi Kurisu, the garden features sculpture by Anish Kapoor, Jenny Holzer and Guiseppe Penone, among others.
Butterflies of all colors and patterns will be flying around Meijer Gardens’ tropical conservatory starting March 1. (Supplied)
WKTV Staff
Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park’s tropical conservatory, starting Wednesday, March 1, will be home to the first of more than 7,000 tropical butterflies that will be hatched and start flying around the heads of both children and adults alike.
Can’t you just see the Facebook photo?
Butterflies are Blooming runs through April 30. The annual show attracted more than 170,000 visitors last year.
With butterflies from Africa, Asia, South America and Central America, Butterflies Are Blooming is the largest temporary tropical butterfly exhibition in the nation, according to Meijer Gardens.
The Atlas moth (not really a butterfly, but big and beautiful) will be making an appearance. (Supplied Meijer Gardens/William Hebert)
Approximately 60 colorful species will be flying freely in the five-story, 15,000 square-foot Lena Meijer Tropical Conservatory, wherein the 85-degrees and 70-percent humidity environment mimics tropical regions that the butterflies call home.
“Our exhibition this year celebrates shape and pattern,” Steve LaWarre, director of horticulture, said in supplied material. “The butterflies and the natural environment of the conservatory are wonderful examples of how these patterns reveal themselves all around us. This exhibition provides a superb opportunity for our guests to view caterpillars, wings, flowers and foliage with a renewed appreciation for the world around us.”
Species of butterflies expected to arrive include the blue Common Morpho, whose iridescence impresses in flight; brushfoot varieties such as the Clearwing, Lacewing and Zebra Mosaic; the “Longwings” such as the Small Blue Grecian, Doris, Postman and Tiger butterflies; and the “Gliders” such as the Emperor, Ruby-spotted and Tropical Swallowtails.
Special related events include “Who Am I?” A Butterfly Ballet”, with two shows on both March 4 and March 18, a program performed by the Grand Rapids Ballet Junior Company; as well as Tuesday Night Lights, running each week throughout the exhibit’s run, where visitors bring their flashlights to find the butterflies at rest throughout the conservatory.
St. Paul & The Broken Bones will be on the Meijer Gardens concert schedule this summer. (Supplied Meijer Gardens/David McClister)
By K.D. Norris
ken@wktv.org
The catchline for Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park summer concert series goes something like “It’s how you know its summer.” So it seems appropriate that after an almost summer-like run of weather over the weekend the Gardens gave us a tease of summer with the announcement of three of the acts coming to the Fifth Third Bank Summer Concerts at Meijer Gardens 2017 concert series.
On Monday, Meijer Gardens announced that up-and-coming Southern soul powerhouse St. Paul & The Broken Bones will be in town on June 9; the sweet sounds of Four Voices: Joan Baez, Mary Chapin Carpenter and the Indigo Girls will hit the stage on June 12; and the classic rock (and so much more) music of Jethro Tull by Ian Anderson will make a rare small-venue visit on Aug. 18.
Members of Meijer Gardens members pre-sale period will be April 29 through May 12 this season, with general public sale Starting May 13.
The Four Voices concert, led by the grand-dame of folk music Baez, will undoubtedly be a night of lovely songs and lovely voices in harmony, and just hearing Tull founder and frontman Anderson dancing around with flute in hand will be worth the price of admission on a hot August night.
But the scheduling of St. Paul & the Broken Bones will likely be one of those “I heard them first at the gardens” kind of events.
Led by vocalist Paul Janeway, the Bones gained notice with their single “Call Me” off their debut recording “Half the City” from 2013, but after opening for the Rolling Stones on a few dates in 2015 and the playing the Glastonbury Festival last year, they are really getting a buzz going with their second album, “Sea of Noise”, from last year.
For lack of a better label, the band is often called a “gospel-tinged, retro-soul garage” band and hailing from Birmingham, Ala., and the sextet certainly has its southern soul credentials in order — including not being afraid to do an Otis Reading cover to two.
The new album also marks a little more depth of music and depth of songwriting for the band and Janeway.
“Sea of Noise,” Janeway says on the band’s website in describing the album, “is not quite a full-blown concept record. It is focused in terms of subject matter — finding redemption and salvation and hope. (The single) ‘Crumbling Light Posts’ comes from an old Winston Churchill quote, in which he said England was a crumbling lighthouse in a sea of darkness. I always thought that was a really interesting concept — that we’re falling anyway. In this day and age, it is the noise that has defined so many things. We’re going to fall to it eventually, but for now we feel like our heads are above water.”
It is likely that the audience at Meijer Gardens will be glad they dove into the deep southern water with the Bones this summer.
Ai Weiwei self portrait surrounded by supporters and police. (Supplied)
By K.D. Norris
ken@wktv.org
When asked about the artist Ai Weiwei, Ping Liang — board chair of Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park, international businesswoman, and a Chinese-American with a deep understanding of modern Chinese culture — readily defers artistic questions to the Garden’s chief curator.
But both she and Joseph Antenucci Becherer, who serves as Meijer Gardens vice president in addition to his curatorial duties, understand that to appreciate Weiwei one must go deeper than simply his art. One must understand his history and his culture, especially his social activism both inside his rigidly controlled home county and around the world.
Ping Liang, board chair of Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park, and chief curator Joseph Antenucci Becherer, in the main gallery of the exhibit “Ai Weiwei at Meijer gardens: Natural State”. (WKTV)
“I came to know Ai Weiwei’s reputation through the 2008 Olympic stadium, called the Bird’s Nest. At that time, his name wasn’t taken in a very good light because of the Chinese media, which is very controlled,” Liang said, as she and Becherer sat together with WKTV recently and dove deep into the exhibition Ai Weiwei at Meijer Gardens: Natural State, which is running though Aug. 20.
Detail “Dropping a Han Dynasty Urn” in Legos image. (Supplied)
“We only knew him, according to the Chinese media, as a person who purposely broke a very valuable antique jar. We also heard he used vulgar language, kind of insults, purposely. So, I didn’t really know too much about him. Of course, when Joe, here, talked (to us) about Ai Weiwei, as an artist, I was like ‘Wow!’”
And as she dug a little deeper, what Liang found was much more than simply an artist as portrayed by the Chinese media.
“He has this very famous family, particularly his father, Ai Ching, a very famous poet in China, and how his family suffered during the Cultural Revolution, even though his father was a very prominent and early Communist Party member,” she said. “And when we look at some of (Weiwei’s) artwork, the insults, and some of the themes, I started to understand. He is actually a social activist. That was very rare in China.”
‘Everything is politics’
Becherer, too, advocates for an understanding of the artist’s politics as well as his art — it is no coincidence that one of Ai Weiwei’s most well known sayings is “Everything is art. Everything is politics.” Blending his art and his politics is, in fact, the “natural state” of Weiwei’s world.
Joseph Becherer, Meijer Gardens vice president and chief curator. (WKTV)
“I think it always makes it more meaningful to know something about an artist’s biography when you are looking at their painting or their sculpture or whatever their work happens to be, because we all carry some part of us with us into whatever it is we do for a profession,” Becherer said. “With someone like Weiwei, it is probably more of an extreme, because for him art and life are inseparable.”
Becherer, in an essay accompanying the exhibit, states that Ai Weiwei’s art was influenced by, among others factors, his father’s life and clashes with the government, the artist’s growing up isolated from modern industrial China and being influenced by “traditions and artisan efforts of rural China,” followed by his emersion into Beijing’s late 1970s youthful avantgarde and his spending much of the 1980s in New York City before retiring to Beijing in 1993 when his father fell ill.
Maybe most importantly, however, Ai Weiwei’s art is influenced by increased use of social media and increased social activism — including his criticism of the Chinese government in the aftermath of the 2008’s Sichuan earthquake.
“In the following years,” Becherer’s essay states, “Ai Weiwei came under surveillance and was beaten, hospitalized and denied the right to travel. In 2011, he was arrested and mysteriously detained for 81 days, to the shock of the international cultural community.”
It was not long after that Ai Weiwei become a worldwide cause célèbre — and Becherer and Meijer Gardens began their interest and relationship with the artist as part of the the Garden’s pursuit of acquiring the massive sculpture “Iron Tree”.
Ai Weiwei’s “Iron Tree” has been on display for two years, but now an extensive exhibition of the artist’s works is on view. (Supplied)
“We started visiting Weiwei more than three and a half years ago, it was initially about acquiring ‘Iron Tree’,” Becherer said during the recent interview about his first meeting with the artist, who was practically under house arrest at the time. “Our process has always been that we try to engage directly with the artist. We want to understand, obviously, how the artist is living, how things come together, how things came to be. So, we began out of that, the very beginning, a sincere desire to know more about him. … It started out in one way, but it evolved and this exhibition was the result.”
And the exhibition is another example of Ai Weiwei’s continuing evolution.
“He seems to be more and more engaged in universal ideas,” Becherer said. “He seems to be more engaged with global concepts of freedom of speech and human rights. So it (his art), yes, is still related to his biography and, yes, it is related to his nationality and his heritage. But he seems to be more comfortable with the world stage.”
Now on the world stage
In July 2015, Ai Weiwei’s passport was returned and he was able to travel once again. Today, he divides his time between Beijing and Berlin, where he maintains studios.
It was in Berlin, in 2009, that Ai Weiwei created a massive exhibit of 9,000 children’s backpacks on the side of a building, backpacks which represented the number of children who lost their lives in the Sichuan earthquake — with colored backpacks spelling out “For seven years she lived happy on this earth,” a sentence with which a mother commemorated her daughter.
And the artist’s focus on social activism, and his influence both in and outside of China, has not changed according to Liang, who has more than 30 years experience in international business including extensive work in China and throughout Asia as managing director of AlphaMax Advisors LLC as well as serving on the World Affairs Council of Western Michigan. She says Ai Weiwei’s example and causes have greatly impacted her and many of her friends and business associates around the world.
Ping Liang, board chair of Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park. (WKTV)
“Now I realize he actually inspired the birth of modern social activism in China,” Liang said. “He and his friends were so active when Sichuan earthquake took place, and the aftermath, when thousands of young children were killed. I remember seeing, on global media as well as Chinese media, the devastation, the building collapsed, and the cry of parents whose only children lost their lives in this earthquake. … Now I look back, I understand that he was trying to raise people’s awareness about what really happened. What you really need to know. This should not be kept as a secret. That is why I describe him as an inspiration for the very beginning of social awareness and activism.
“In terms of his impact on the world, it is huge,” she added. “When I travel around the world, everybody talks about Ai Weiwei … People realize he was actually trying to get social justice for the earthquake victims. Actually, because of that a lot of Chinese, overseas Chinese, started donating to the earthquake victims. And a lot of young people started volunteering for non-profit organizations. I thought that was just tremendous. This is the impact he has had.”
Ai Weiwei at Meijer Gardens: Natural State is more than 30 works including iconic works from the artist’s repertoire and work specific to Meijer Gardens located in galleries, conservatories, public spaces and the auditorium. For more information visit meijergardens.org .
Ai Weiwei’s long-anticipated show at Meijer Gardens will open to the public on Jan. 27. (Supplied)
By K.D. Norris
ken@wktv.org
Two years after giving the West Michigan arts community a beautifully patinaed example of the power of renowned Chinese artist and social activist Ai Weiwei, in the form of the stunning “Iron Tree”, the Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park will open to the public its long-anticipated exhibition Ai Weiwei at Meijer Gardens: Natural State on Friday, Jan. 27.
Ai Weiwei’s “Iron Tree” has been on display for two years but now an extensive exhibition of the artist’s works will be on view. (Supplied)
In total, more than 30 works — including iconic works from the artist’s repertoire and work specific to Meijer Gardens — will be sited in galleries, conservatories, public spaces and the auditorium.
“I am looking forward to the exhibition at Meijer Gardens and to share my work and ideas in this unique place,” Ai Weiwei said in supplied material. “I appreciate that they are so committed to my work; they even acquired Iron Tree in 2015. This opportunity to bring an exhibition to Michigan is something I greatly anticipate.”
The public should also “greatly anticipate” the show as well, according to David S. Hooker, President and CEO of Meijer Gardens — for purely artistic enjoyment as well as intersecting with the artist’s unique political and social esthetic.
“Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park is pleased beyond words to host this major exhibition, Ai Weiwei’s first ever in a botanical garden or sculpture park,” Hooker said in supplied material. “It will be an opportunity for hundreds of thousands of people to enjoy his vision and boundless creativity … (and his) compelling life story that is told through his art.”
The title of the exhibition — “Natural State” — underscores the relationship between the artist and the venue, according to supplied material, combining the artist’s use of the natural materials in his works, set in the often natural settings of Meijer Gardens, but pushing those natural materials into unique states of being: personal, historical, social, political. Materials such as ceramics, silk, bamboo and wood become symbols of Ai Weiwei’s views on humankind in his native China and around the world.
Ai Weiwei’s “Taifeng” will be part of a series of natural material sculptures on display. (Supplied)
The exhibition will use four gallery spaces, four indoor conservatories, the auditorium and numerous public areas at Meijer Gardens. And many of the works will be placed not only in the artist’s unique vision but in context to their surroundings, including having five monumental sculptural bodies derived from ancient Chinese mythological text — “Taifeng”, “Dijiang”, “Shuyu”, “Mingshe” and “Shusi” — shown in a “scenic corridor” outside the normal gallery spaces.
“Having worked with Ai Weiwei for many years and in venues across the world, it has been a pleasure to see him focused on the very distinguished and unique circumstances of Meijer Gardens,” Greg Hilty, curatorial director of Lisson Gallery, said in supplied material. “The work carefully selected by the artist and thoughtfully installed at this venue offers a truly memorable experience.”
Lisson Gallery, out of New York City, collaborated with Meijer Gardens on the Ai Weiwei exhibition, as it did with a previous show of the works of Anish Kapoor.
The holidays officially kick off not with Black Friday, or even with Thanksgiving eve, but when Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park unveils its annual Christmas and Holiday Traditions Around the World exhibition Tuesday, Nov. 22.
A model of the Chomeiji Temple in Omihachiman Shiga Prefecture of Japan.
The display, open through Jan. 8, presents more than 40 international trees and displays, as well as the railway garden and several special events and activities.
“This year we’re celebrating not only the various holiday traditions observed around the world, but also the folklore that makes these celebrations so unique,” Steve LaWarre, Meijer Gardens director of horticulture, said in supplied material. “Many of these traditions are rooted in horticulture and natural elements. … (including how) legendary folklore such as mistletoe, spider webs, olive trees and rosemary are important parts of holiday customs around the world.”
The exhibition will include narratives and special displays from Iceland, Ghana, Germany and other counties and cultures. The railway garden meanders through four indoor garden spaces, including the newly renovated Grace Jarecki Seasonal Display Greenhouse.
Another highlight will the return of the beautiful Eid ul-Fitr display, which celebrates the end of the Muslim holy period of Ramadan.
Meijer Gardens is open daily but is closed on Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Day and New Year’s Day. There will be extended holiday hours not just on Tuesdays as usual but also Dec. 19-23 and 26-30. There will also be special events such as The Original Dickens Carolers, Santa visits, Rooftop Reindeer, the Christmas Cabaret Gala, and winter-time walks and classes on select days and times.
