OUT SIDE museums’ walls
Appreciating outdoor sculpture gardens
IIf you seek a balm for the soul in art, it’s possible to discover and enjoy it safely outdoors in a variety of venues in our state. Sculpture gardens and outdoor art installations are a way to experience natural and manmade beauty at once. Take a drive to visit some of these hidden treasures in both rural and urban locations….
Located in bucolic Coventry – where Revolutionary War hero Nathan Hale made his home – Hartford-born artist David M. Hayes lived and worked in an 18th-century home and studios for more than 40 years. Today, you can visit for a self-guided tour of the 57-acre property, where hundreds of Hayes’s abstract sculptures constructed from welded steel populate the fields and woods.
Some rusted by the elements, others wearing bright paint in primary colors, Hayes’s sculptures are displayed in an old orchard, by a tranquil pond, in hayfields and near the antique house and barn. The sculpture fields are complemented by informal gardens of herbs, wildflowers and ferns, plus roses and annuals planted by the artist’s wife, Julia. Although he passed away from Leukemia at age 82 in 2013, the artist’s work is still promoted, exhibited and sold worldwide by his son, David Hayes.
“My father is widely considered an American modern master and is collected by most major North American museums, including the Museum of Modern Art and the Guggenheim,” says Hayes. “He worked directly with Alexander Calder and his mentor David Smith. We continue to do museum exhibitions all over the country.”
David Hayes resides in New York State but is in Coventry about once a week doing sculpture restoration. His father started the sculpture fields in 1972, so the grounds have been open for half a century. “My dad, who enjoyed a robust 60-year career, was a private man and did not take well to unannounced visitors while he was working. This accounts for the low awareness of the place,” he remarks. The family home, called Stonewalls, is listed on the Connecticut Register of Historic Places. “He had several studios here, all of which have been preserved: a welding studio, an upstairs painting studio, and a separate painting studio in the barn.”
Thanks to the generosity of the Hayes family and the eponymous art foundation, you can visit this remarkable collection free of charge. The sculpture fields are open year-round during daylight hours. “In recent months, we ask for small, well-spaced groups,” David says. “Well behaved dogs are also welcome.” Any donations go to the David Hayes Art Foundation, which helps fund improvements to the trails and artwork.
The David M. Hayes Sculpture Fields are located at 905 South St., Coventry. Visitors may park in
the driveway or in the adjacent grassy lot. There is a map online at www.davidhayes.com.
Just 10 minutes away in Storrs, you can grab lunch or a snack and continue your outdoor art tour on the University of Connecticut campus, where students have created a “sculpture scavenger hunt.” Starting from The William Benton Museum of Art, you can use your smartphone to find and learn about the university’s public art displays. There are two routes and each takes about 45 minutes to walk through campus. Follow the tours at benton.uconn.edu/campus-art-and-sculpture-hunt. Located at 245 Glenbrook Road, Storrs, The William Benton Museum of Art free to the public but currently not open due to COVID-19. Visit benton.uconn.edu for updates.
Studio 80 + Sculpture Grounds is located by the Lieutenant River in Old Lyme. Historic Old Lyme is well known as a birthplace of American Impressionism and home the Lyme Academy of Fine Arts and the Florence Griswold Museum. According to its website, Studio 80 + Sculpture Grounds “embraces the other traditional fine art establishments within this town while stepping ‘outside the box’ to create and display abstract sculptural works inspired by nature.”
While indoor facilities are currently closed for the safety of all, the sculpture grounds are open to the public. They feature over 100 large-scale contemporary works by more than 40 artists. Sculptures in a variety of media are displayed in gardens and courtyards throughout 4.5 landscaped acres. The on-site Studio 80 is the private work space and gallery of artist Gilbert V. Boro, an internationally known sculptor, architect, educator and design consultant, whose work is featured throughout the property. All of the sculptures are for sale and proceeds directly fund onsite programs and the Sculpture Grounds.
Located at 80 Lyme St. in Old Lyme, the Sculpture Grounds are open 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily. Children are welcome and admission is free. www.sculpturegrounds.com
“Wall to Wall” is a six-block walking tour in New London featuring 16 murals, drawings and large-scale art installations by internationally acclaimed and aspiring local artists. It starts at the Hygienic Art Galleries on 79 Bank St. and winds through the city’s historic downtown. It is free and open year round. There is a map online at www.hygienic.org/new-london-mural-walk.
To discover more murals and street art throughout the state, visit the CT State Tourism website here: www.ctvisit.com/articles/instagrammable-outdoormurals-in-ct. You’ll find a series of Instagram posts with images and locations of amazing outdoor artwork painted on buildings, stairways and more.
Downtown Putnam in the Quiet Corner had to cancel its popular First Friday’s Street Fair in 2020, but continued to celebrate the arts with a Sculpture Walk last summer and fall. While many of
the sculptures from Haverhill, Massachusetts, artist Dale Rogers’ collection of 20 large-scale welded steel animals and other pieces have been returned, Putnam kept enough to make it worth a trip to explore this quaint town. Seven delightful sculptures are located in various settings along the scenic River Trail and in historic downtown, where you can also shop and dine. www.facebook.com/discoverputnam/
In southwest Connecticut, The Aldrich Contemporary Art Museum in Ridgefield is featuring an exhibition of Frank Stella’s work through May 9, 2021. Frank Stella’s Stars, A Survey is the artist’s first solo exhibition at The Aldrich and is on view outdoors on the Museum’s grounds and inside the galleries (open with timed tickets or advance reservations). “Among the myriad of forms found in Stella’s work, one element continuously reappears, a motif that is simultaneously abstract and figurative: the star.” Stella’s sculptures are fabricated from materials including plastics, wood, aluminum, carbon fiber, and more. Outside, large-scale sculptures are sited on Ridgefield’s historic Main Street, in the Museum’s courtyard, and a two-acre Sculpture Garden.
Born in Malden, Mass. in 1936 and currently residing in New York, Stella has worked in various media over a six-decade career. His work is held in more than 50 public collections including MOMA, the Whitney and the National Gallery of Art in Washington, DC. thealdrich.org/ exhibitions/frank-stellas-stars-a-survey
Sculpturedale in Kent, is the studio and display gardens of sculptor Denis Curtiss. He specializes in life-size steel and bronze animals of all types, from exotic species to farm critters. These dynamic forms enhance his own property and the spaces of collectors all over the world. After a career teaching art in Europe, Africa, Asia, and the South Pacific, Denis now transforms sheet metal into durable outdoor sculptures with torch and welding mask. He welcomes visitors to explore his gardens and wander among the animals free of charge. You might fall in love with one and bring it home to grace your garden! Sculpturedale is located off Route 7 near Kent Falls State Park (3 Carter Road, Cornwall Bridge). Contact (860) 927-3420 or sculptaire@snet.net before you visit. deniscurtisssculptor.com