An Artful Visit: deCordova Sculpture Park and Museum

by Kerry Hawkins of Kerry Hawkins Photography

My friend and fellow Boston Handmade member, Lynne Parella and her two daughters met me at the deCordova Sculpture Park and Museum in Lincoln, MA. We decided to explore the sculpture park and surrounding trails. They are many surprises in the Park and many sculptures to discover. It was a perfect day to be out in nature and see large scale sculptures.

A nice treat was the new program, Play in the Park. It is a program where children can make art outside near one of the sculptures. The Museum provides the materials and the children, the imagination. Lynne's girls had fun creating different works. The program this week was placed near a new sculpture that was huge and looked like a continuous ribbon made of metal. It is a hit with children and adults.

My Visit to DeCordova Sculpture Park

by Karen Mahoney of City by the Sea Ceramics

I took a recent trip to the DeCordova Sculpture Park in Lincoln, MA on one of these gorgeous days we've been having. If you have never been, go! Right now! It's one of my favorite museums in the area and it's so much fun to wander and discover what they have. It's a perfect art museum for kids, as they are allowed to touch the sculptures outdoors, though no climbing is allowed as tempting as it may be. There's also many visitors that bring their dogs along. It sure beats a walk through the neighborhood any day.

While walking one of the winding paths I came upon Daniel Ladd maintaining one of his tree sculptures. Watching him manipulate the branches, I figured he was the artist, as it didn't seem like a job for the general landscaping crew. I asked if he was, and he seemed happy that I had made that assumption. Many others had passed, simply looking and moving along. I'm so glad I began speaking with Daniel because he took a few moments to show me exactly what he was up to.

Daniel's sculpture began in 1990. It is 11 elm trees, each bending to a 90 degree angle at a similar height, and growing into the one before it. Daniel said that he comes out 3-5 times a year to maintain the shaping of the tree sculpture.

Daniel cuts through the outer layer of bark, exposing the inside of the branches. He then tightly wraps them together. This time of the year is when it is best to encourage the branch grafting, since the trees are in a heavy growth period the two branches are able to grow into each other and become one. He also uses nails and a putty like substance to help direct the growth.

It was so much fun to see the park and it was especially nice to talk with Daniel Ladd. I plan on taking many more trips to the park, and you can bet I'll be paying special attention to the growth progress of Daniel's work.

Five Little Owls

By Crystal Hanehan of Vintage by Crystal

Five little owls sitting in a row,
The first one says "Oh my we're slow!"
The second one says "There's a full moon in the sky!"
The third one says "Let's fly and fly and fly!"
The fourth one says "The sitting here is done."
The fifth one says "Let's have some fun!"
Ooooh ohhhh with the wind,
and out with the lights,

and the five little owls flew out of sight."

You are what you eat!

By Crystal Hanehan of Vintage by Crystal

So said the veggie girl! No wonder children hate eating their vegetables! If this is what happens when they do!

A while ago I was picking fresh produce from my parent's garden...the carrots as a whole weren't quite ready yet, but I did manage to pick a few huge and weird looking ones that actually looked like little people with arms and legs and all. It inspired me to create this carrot girl...available in my Etsy shop! :)

Public Art at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology

By Bexx of White Sparrow Bindery

For most people, the mention of MIT conjures up visions of computers, robots, and nerds galore. Although known for producing some of the world's most innovative research in science and technology, MIT is also home to also home to a fascinating collection of public art. The campus is dotted with outdoor sculptures that make walking through campus visually engaging on even the bleakest New England day.

MIT’s collection of public art began to form in 1961, with the commission of MIT’s first outdoor sculpture, Dimitri Hadzi’s bronze Elmo-MIT (shown at right). This piece resides outside of the Hayden Memorial Library, whose ground are also home to several other sculptures in the MIT collections.

One of the campus's best known sculptures (and one of my favorite) is Alexander Calder's La Grande Voile (The Big Sail), which is located in McDermott Court. (Shown at left).

Other notable piece on campus include several bronze sculptures by Jacques Lipchitz, a cast concrete statue by Pablo Picasso, and Sol LeWitt's polychrome terrazzo floor.

If you're interested in taking a self-guided tour, you can view and download an interactive map and guide to the collection here. Free guided tours are also available.

To find out more about art at MIT, visit the List Visual Arts Center's webpage here.

*Photos courtesy of the List Visual Arts Center.