Ya know how people always complain that they never have any money to do anything? Well, I’m one of them, so I got off my tush, and did something- for free. Yesterday was a beautiful spring afternoon, and Sam and I drove down to my home turf in Columbia County. We strapped on our Keens and hiked around at the Omi International Art Center in Ghent, a great place to check out interesting art in a natural environment. Here’s a clip from the website about The Fields Sculpture Park at Omi:
The Fields [over 100 acres] was founded in 1998 as public grounds for viewing contemporary sculpture with over 80 works of art on view. Several new pieces are added every year and temporary curated exhibitions are opened to the public each June. There are six distinct areas for viewing sculpture comprised of rolling fields, wooded knolls, and wetlands. A path for viewing the sculptures follows the edge of a natural pond surrounded by trees, providing a shaded backdrop to view the pieces.
The setting is very natural and serene, and it’s a great place to relax and enjoy a little bit of nature and a lot of art. Everywhere you turn there was a path leading to a large sculpture or a unique design etched on a tree or something floating over a swampy wetland. Just a few days ago, Omi had the grand-opening to their Visitors Center, a very “green” building, equipped with a grass roof, solar panels, LED lights, recycled materials and much more. The new center adds yet another great element to this fabulous art park.
Here are some of my favorite works of art at Omi:
Even though the park was an adventure to both Sam and I, someone else had a fabulous time while were there. As soon as we opened the car door, Molly scurried past us and took off running into The Fields, happy to be free. Occasionally, she would look back at us and wait, probably thinking “hey guys are you coming?” Later when we were walking through the “wooded knolls,” Molly found a cool muddy puddle to wade in, so we made her swim some more in the scream to wash off. She didn’t mind.
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