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Hard hats, blossoms and spectacular exhibits at Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park

Posted at 11:12 AM, Feb 07, 2019
and last updated 2019-02-07 11:12:26-05

With  roughly 696,000 visitors annually at Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park, an expansion was needed. It's hard to miss the massive equipment moving dirt and cinder block walls as you make your way into the West Michigan gem.

The Welcoming the World: Honoring a Legacy of Love expansion project continues throughout 2019. So what does it entail? Most notably with parking lot improvements and ongoing work on a new 60,000 square-foot, LEED-certified Welcome Center. This new parking lot expansion and redesign will double the number of parking spaces located within a one-to two-minute walk from the new Welcome Center entrance. The new configuration will offer additional accessible parking spaces near the entrance, increase the number of parking spaces overall, and add new urban and rain gardens to control water runoff— honoring their commitment to be good stewards of our environment. A new concession building and entry plaza at the Frederik Meijer Gardens Amphitheater opens in June.

A great lineup of events will be a delight for visitors. FOX 17 Morning Mix was able to take show viewers a brand new exhibit.

A National Treasure: Fred Meijer, His Collection and Legacy Sculpture Exhibition

February 1 – August 25

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. His views broadened in the following years.

In August of 1999, he declared his dream to build a "world-class" sculpture collection, 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 explores Meijer’s legacy through a series of eleven chronological chapters.

To keep up with all of the exciting things for 2019, be sure to visit meijergardens.org