Grounds For Sculpture park is a hidden gem in NJ

HAMILTON, N.J. (PIX11) - Some call it an outdoor art museum. Others call it a garden or park. Whatever you call it, Grounds For Sculpture welcomes you for a visit.

"Grounds For Sculpture is a really unique place," said executive director Gary Garrido Schneider. "It's a 42-acre garden of discovery … punctuated by a little over 300 sculptures, both small and intimate, and quite monumental."

"We would describe ourselves as sort of a mix between a botanic garden and an art museum, but it all happens outdoors," said Schneider.

Located about halfway between New York and Philadelphia, just outside of Trenton and Princeton, Grounds For Sculpture is a year-round destination.

"We have over a quarter of a million visitors every year," said Schneider.

Along with the incredible art, you'll find peaceful, scenic views, places to reflect, and even make some new feathered friends.

"The bravado of the peacock as they display and the beauty of that, is a part of it as well," said Schneider.

A breath-taking, interactive installation "Night Forms: Infinite Wave" is the latest addition to the grounds.

"It is like the park is during the day; it's something you feel with your whole body, you move through the space, you hear the sounds of the music -- in this case there's electronic music -- but also the sounds of animals you can kind of hear in the distance, projections that are on the actual sculptures. There's a work that has a joystick where you can actually control the direction, almost like the 1980s video game Space Invaders … and there's another where there's a xylophone-type object where you can play and your playing of the instrument changes the lights that are projected on the sculpture."

If you find yourself needing to get inside from the cold, Grounds For Sculpture has several indoor art galleries, including one featuring the works of Philadelphia artist Roberto Lugo.

"Grounds For Sculpture, the whole place was designed to kind of give you a sense of surprise," said Schneider. "[It's a] very different kind of museum, not a sort of stoic experience where you go into the hallowed halls and you have to be quiet and contemplative, but a place where you can let your guard down and have a little bit of fun. If you want to grab dinner at our incredible French restaurant, Rat's Restaurant, and then get your tickets to come after or vice versa, it's an incredible night out a great date night out, it's a great night to meet up with some old friends and have a unique way of gathering both around the holiday season or in the dead of winter where you're just starting to get outside again."