Meijer Gardens – Photography by Rodney Martin

A New Work by Plensa in Grand Rapids

Abstract, Grand Rapids, Meijer Gardens, My photography, Sculpture

Jaume Plensa is a Spanish artist noted for his public sculpture. Visitors to Chicago have likely seen his Crown Fountain, the spitting fountain in Millennium Park. The Frederik Meijer Gardens and Sculpture Park, in Grand Rapids, Michigan, has two works by Plensa and has commissioned yet another for its new entry way.

The DeVos family also commissioned a sculpture by Plensa, which was installed this week in downtown Grand Rapids. I have not been able to learn its name yet. I took some photos this morning.

Update: According to Experience Grand Rapids, the sculpture is named, “The Four Elements.” The sculpture uses letters, characters and element symbols to represent air, water fire and earth and signifies the diverse characteristics that bring people together to form a single human race.

As luck would have it

Flowers, Meijer Gardens, My photography

I went to the Frederik Meijer Gardens and Sculpture Park yesterday and was shooting photos of a group of sculptures on loan from the Hirshhorn Museum in Washington, D.C. Those photos did not turn out well, but as I was leaving the rooftop garden where they are on display, I saw this flowering plant by the exit. I really like how the image came out.

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Some shots from Meijer Gardens

Grand Rapids, Meijer Gardens, My photography, Summer, Waterfalls

The Frederik Meijer Gardens and Sculpture Park is just five or so miles from my house and a great place to go to shoot photographs. I got there at opening time this morning, 9:00 a.m., and spent an hour shooting.

Henry Moore’s “Bronze Form,” cast in 1985.

Henry Moore’s “Bronze Form,” cast in 1985

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“Cabin Creek,” by Deborah Butterfield

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An Afternoon Shooting at Meijer Gardens

Meijer Gardens, My photography

I stopped by the Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park this afteroon to get some practice with my camera. Here are some of the shots from the session. (Click on a photo to see a larger image.)

“B-Tree II,” by sculptor, photographer, and mathematician Kenneth Snelson.

“Galileo’s Wedge,” by Beverly Pepper

“Disk in the Form of a Desert Rose,” by Arnaldo Pomodor

These next three photos are of “Aria,” by Alexander Liberman.

I have tried to get a decent photo of “Eve,” by Auguste Rodin but have never quite been satisfied. This one comes close but the focus is kind of mushy.

One of the things I am trying to do is to envision things in black and white. Some of the photos I took today converted nicely, I think.