The Sculpture Fields at Montague Park in Chattanooga's fast growing Southside arts district took our breath away on a recent visit. The vast scale of the dozens of large-scale sculptures that dot the landscape of this 30 plus acre urban park is both awe inspiring and welcoming, all at the same time.
This out-sized, open air, interactive museum where climbing on or inside the sculptures is expected is kid and dog friendly. Kite flying, yoga classes and bird watching are all regular happenings at the Sculpture Fields. Can you imagine that 22 different species of birds have been spotted in this in-town Chattanooga park?
On the particularly gorgeous early Spring day we visited the Sculpture Fields, it felt as though these enormous pieces of art were placed in between Lookout Mountain and the brilliant blue sky just for us. We roamed around the Sculpture Fields wide open spaces for a good part of the afternoon, taking in all of the sculptures and learning about the massive pieces of art through an interactive app called Otocast. Otocast allows you to take a self-guided tour of the Fields and to learn about the sculptures in the artist’s own words and in some cases in the artist’s own voice.
While the Sculpture Fields feature many international artists, the piece that spoke to me the most was the locally made, concrete and steel, 65-foot “Anchors” by Peter Lundberg This enormous sculpture honors the five servicemen killed in Chattanooga in July of 2015.
Another favorite was “Bette Davis Eyes” by Chattanooga’s own, the renowned John Henry. This metal, spidery, horizontal piece was a hit with my people due to its grand scale, deceptive simplicity and accessibility. We climbed all over that sculpture and enjoyed the view.
The Sculpture Fields are open from dawn til dusk, 7 days a week and parking is free. I can imagine taking an early walk with my pup and kiddos in this unexpectedly peaceful setting and watching the morning light transforming these beautiful works of art with the sun rise.
