Washington's Hirshhorn Reopens Its Sculpture Garden This Weekend

The Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden in Washington, DC, opens its renovated outdoor sculpture garden to the public on Saturday, 31 October. The Hirshhorn is one of the museums run by the Smithsonian Institution, the group of national museums in the United States capital.

The garden covers 1.3 acres, a little over half a hectare. After a four-year revitalisation, the Smithsonian's own news release says the work included repairs before the reopening. Crews have added 30,000 new plants and trees. The Art Newspaper reports the renovation cost US$68 million.

Visitors will find 60 works in the garden. Twenty-one of them were already part of the museum's 1974 installation, the year the Hirshhorn opened. The rest include recent acquisitions by artists Raven Halfmoon, Liz Larner and KAWS. An acquisition is a work the museum adds to its collection.

The garden has five entrances, east and west overlooks (raised viewing points), and an underground passageway lined in stainless steel. Japanese artist Hiroshi Sugimoto designed the renovated space. He had already redesigned the museum's lobby in 2018.

The project has a public history too. In 2022, the Hirshhorn held a groundbreaking ceremony for the garden with Jill Biden, who was First Lady at the time.

The weekend opening comes with a full day of activities. An Opening Celebration runs from 10:00 am to 4:00 pm on 31 October. From 2:30 pm to 4:00 pm, teenagers can join a Teen Studio session. Families can also take part in an art activity called Mini Sculpture Garden.

For anyone planning a visit, the garden is outdoors and open to the public, so the opening weekend offers a chance to walk the new paths and see the works up close before the winter months arrive in Washington.