I’ve encountered a variety of interesting art pieces in landscape settings ranging from urban to natural. Some are in parks and nature preserves, others are along city streets and alleys, and a few are in small town centers. Some integrate visually and thematically with their surroundings, and others stand alone. Below are a few favorites.

Cut-outs in a small panel (viewed through a scope) on New York City’s High Line transform this view of buildings into abstract shapes.

More art on the High Line: A modernistic wire structure with houses and seed/fruit trays for birds and insects seems to represent the intersection of city and nature, as does much of the High Line. A similar structure faces the opposite direction on the other side of the walkway.

These transparent facial profiles at Garden in the Woods in Framingham, Massachusetts, appear to symbolize the connection between people and nature.

Juxtaposition of “natural” and built forms – Broad Art Museum at Michigan State University in East Lansing

Painted optical illusion in New Haven, Connecticut, by Felice Varini – this shape is only visible when one stands at a specific point. As one progresses further down the alley, it no longer appears as four circles within a square.

Sculpture composed of various types of stone in Cambridge, Massachusetts

Granite sculpture in Eastport, Maine – a town whose principal industry is commercial fishing

Bas-relief piece in CityGarden – a sculpture park in St. Louis, Missouri

A deep discussion taking place in Montreal, Quebec

Colorful bench in Belfast, Maine

Whimsical piece in the Olson Family Garden at St. Louis Children’s Hospital

See also Public Art in Outdoor Spaces (Part 1)

Photos by Alice Webb