Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park facts for kids

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Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park
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Established	1995 (1995)
Location	1000 East Beltline Ave NE Grand Rapids, Michigan United States
Type	Art Museum Botanical Garden
Key holdings	Iron Tree by Ai Weiwei Galileo's Wedge & archives of Beverly Pepper
Collections	Sculpture
Collection size	300
Visitors	750,000
Architect	Cox, Medendorp & Olson Tod Williams Billie Tsien Architects
Nearest parking	On site (no charge)

Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park is a huge place in Grand Rapids, Michigan, USA. It's like three amazing places in one: a 158-acre (64 ha) botanical garden (a garden with lots of different plants), an art museum, and an outdoor sculpture park. It first opened its doors in 1995.

Meijer Gardens quickly became a popular spot in the Midwest. It's known for its beautiful plants and impressive sculptures. You can explore a tropical conservatory, a large Japanese garden, and see many modern sculptures both inside and outside. There are also several outdoor gardens and nature trails to discover.

This special place attracts many visitors. Between 2015 and 2017, about 750,000 people visited each year! Meijer Gardens keeps adding new sculptures by famous artists. It also builds more spaces for its indoor and outdoor gardens. In 2018, Artsy magazine called it one of the "Eleven of the World's Greatest Sculpture Parks." And in 2023, 2024, and 2025, USA Today voted it the #1 Sculpture Park in the United States!

History of the Gardens
Exploring the Gardens
Amazing Sculptures
- Permanent Collection
- Temporary Exhibitions
Fun Seasonal Events
Gallery
Building Design
See also

History of the Gardens

In the early 1980s, a group called the West Michigan Horticultural Society wanted to create a botanical garden and a conservatory (a special greenhouse for plants). They were looking for the perfect spot near Grand Rapids, Michigan.

Around 1986, a member of this group asked Frederik Meijer for help. Frederik Meijer was the person who started the Meijer grocery stores. He owned a piece of land with a stream and wet areas. He had planned to build a new store there. But they found another place for the store. This meant the beautiful, natural land could be used for a public garden instead!

In January 1991, Meijer, Inc. gave 70.7 acres (28.6 ha) of land in Grand Rapids Township for the new garden. People raised $13 million to turn the land into a park. Frederik and Lena Meijer, from the Meijer Corporation, were very important in making the park happen. They gave land, money, and even their own sculpture collection to the park.

In 2002, the museum was renamed the Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park to honor them. The Gardens became a place for Fred Meijer's growing collection of large sculptures. It also showed Lena Meijer's love for plants and flowers. Three parts of the park are named after Lena Meijer: a tropical conservatory, a children's garden, and a copy of the family farm where she grew up.

Meijer Gardens first opened to the public on April 20, 1995. Its goal is to share the beauty of plants and art. It wants to help people appreciate nature and fine art. In 2017, the Gardens started big updates and added new areas. These changes included a new Welcome Center and more places to show art. In 2023, Meijer Gardens welcomed its 14 millionth visitor!

Exploring the Gardens

Lena Meijer Conservatory

Tropical Conservatory

The Lena Meijer Tropical Conservatory is a huge, five-story building. It's 15,000-square-foot (1,400 m²) big and filled with tropical plants from all over the world. You can see coconut palms from the Pacific, fig trees from India, colorful orchids from Central and South America, and tall bamboo and banana trees from Asia. Other indoor gardens include a house for carnivorous plants (plants that eat insects!), a dry house for cacti and desert plants, and a garden with a Victorian theme.

Children's Garden

The Lena Meijer Children's Garden opened in June 2004. It was also inspired by Lena Meijer and named after her. This garden has many sculptures, just like the rest of the park. Kids can explore a log cabin, a maze, and a rock quarry where they can dig for pretend fossils. It's a fun place for young visitors to play and learn.

Woodland Shade Garden

The Gwen Frostic Woodland Shade Garden opened in June 1998. It honors Gwen Frostic, a Michigan artist and writer known for her nature-inspired prints. This garden has plants that love the shade, like ferns, hostas, bleeding hearts, rhododendrons, and azaleas.

Japanese Garden

The 8-acre Richard and Helen DeVos Japanese Garden opened on June 10, 2015. It combines beautiful plants with sculptures. A famous designer named Hoichi Kurisu created it. The garden features peaceful zen-style gardens, tiny bonsai trees, pretty bridges, waterfalls, and a tea house. It also has modern sculptures by international artists, including a ten-foot granite artwork by Anish Kapoor.

Nature Trail

The Wege Nature Trail branches off from the garden area into a preserve of native Michigan trees and wetlands.

The Wege Nature Trail is a paved path named after Peter M. Wege. It winds through a forest on the property. Along the trail, you can see different natural areas of West Michigan, like prairie and wetlands. It's a great spot for bird watching. The Peter M. Wege Library, which has books about plants and sculptures, is also named after Peter Wege.

Other Garden Areas

Amphitheater and landscape.

The outdoor gardens include a "New American Garden" designed by James van Sweden. There's also an "English Perennial & Bulb Garden" that was redesigned by Julie Moir Messervy.

In 2003, two more parts of the garden opened. The Michigan Farm Garden shows what a 1930s farm was like. It has old-fashioned vegetables, fruit trees, and animal sculptures. You can even see a 100-year-old barn and a copy of Lena (Rader) Meijer's childhood farmhouse. The Frederik Meijer Gardens Amphitheater is an outdoor stage for music and shows. It has seats for 1,900 people on a grassy hill. Famous musicians like Harry Connick Jr., B.B. King, and Sheryl Crow have performed there.

Amazing Sculptures

Leonardo da Vinci's Horse: The American Horse by Nina Akamu. Bronze, 24 feet (7.3 m)l in height

Meijer Gardens has a 30-acre (12 ha) outdoor sculpture park that opened on May 16, 2002. The museum has shown art by many world-famous artists. These include Alexander Calder, Mark di Suvero, Anish Kapoor, and Keith Haring.

Permanent Collection

Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park mainly collects sculptures. It also has drawings by artists who are sculptors. As of May 2015, the park had over 300 artworks in its permanent collection. You can see works by important artists like Claes Oldenburg, Louise Bourgeois, Richard Serra, and Henry Moore. There are also major pieces by international artists such as Ai Weiwei and Jaume Plensa.

Fred and Lena Meijer bought a large glass artwork by Dale Chihuly in 2009 for the collection. In 2016, the museum received over 900 drawings from sculptor Beverly Pepper. After the museum got Iron Tree by Ai Weiwei, a big show of his art was held at the Gardens in 2017.

Many large sculptures are placed outdoors around the park. You can also find sculptures inside the conservatory, special gardens, and art galleries. One of the most popular sculptures is The American Horse by Nina Akamu. It's a tribute to a horse sculpture that Leonardo da Vinci was asked to create long ago. You can also see works by Auguste Rodin and Degas in the Victorian Conservatory.

Temporary Exhibitions

The Gardens also has special art shows that change over time. These temporary exhibitions have featured works by artists like Andy Goldsworthy, Tom Otterness, and Jim Dine.

Fun Seasonal Events

Butterflies are Blooming, 2018

Meijer Gardens hosts two big events each year, both started in 1995 when the park first opened. These are The Fred & Dorothy Fichter Butterflies Are Blooming and Christmas and Holiday Traditions.

Fred & Dorothy Fichter Butterflies Are Blooming happens every year in the Lena Meijer Conservatory from March 1 to April 30. It's one of the biggest temporary butterfly exhibits in the country! Thousands of tropical butterflies from Central America, South America, and Asia fly freely around you. This butterfly show is very popular with visitors of all ages.

Christmas and Holiday Traditions takes place from November through the first week of January. During this event, the Gardens displays holiday items and symbols from more than 40 different nations and cultures.

Gallery

Arid room cacti 2006
Michigan's Farm Garden
Meijer Gardens, 2014
Gwen Frostic Woodland Shade Garden
Boardwalk and wetlands
Children's Garden
Children's Garden

Building Design

The Lena Meijer Conservatory was designed by Cox, Medendorp and Olson. It uses strong galvanized steel for its frame. In May 2019, a New York design team, Tod Williams Billie Tsien Architects, was chosen to update and expand the facilities at Meijer Gardens. They worked with local partners to create a new, larger welcome center. This center has a huge relief sculpture by Spanish artist Jaume Plensa. It's carved from four white marble slabs, each 19 feet tall!