Meijer Gardens to open artist Jaume Plensa exhibition on Oct. 24

GRAND RAPIDS TOWNSHIP, Mich. -- Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park will open an exhibition on October 24 titled, "Jaume Plensa: A New Humanism."

It says it is the first career retrospective in the United States dedicated to the internationally acclaimed Catalan artist.

The exhibition will run through March 15th next year in Meijer Gardens' indoor sculpture galleries, and on the Stuart & Barbara Padnos Rooftop Sculpture Garden. It features works in metal, stone, resin, light, mixed media, and collage.

Below is more information from a Meijer Gardens' news release:

 Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park will host the exhibition Jaume Plensa: A New Humanism, the first career retrospective in the United States dedicated to the internationally acclaimed Catalan artist. This major exhibition will be held Oct. 24, 2025 through March 15, 2026 in Meijer Gardens’ indoor sculpture galleries and on the Stuart and Barbara Padnos Rooftop Sculpture Garden.

Known globally for his evocative exploration of the human form and spirit, Jaume Plensa and his work have become deeply associated with Meijer Gardens since his sculpture I, you, she or he... entered the Sculpture Park in 2006 and the 2021 unveiling of Utopia, his iconic marble room installation in the Welcome Center’s Garden Pavilion. This landmark exhibition builds upon that connection, offering an expansive view of Plensa’s creative journey across four decades.

Featuring works in metal, stone, resin, light, mixed media, and collage, Jaume Plensa: A New Humanism examines themes central to his artistic vision: inner life and imagination, individual dignity and collective harmony, and the profound value of human rights. Whether monumental or intimate in scale, each work invites viewers to consider what it means to be human in an increasingly complex world.

“Jaume Plensa’s art speaks to the poetry and potential of the human condition,” said Suzanne Ramljak, Vice President of Collections & Curatorial Affairs. “His humanist vision reminds us of the endless capacity to transform our experience, both personal and social, through the power of imagination.”

The exhibition includes major installation works such as Talking Continents (2013), Silhouettes (2011–12), and Forgotten Dreams (2020), the latter inscribed with the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. These pieces, alongside works on paper and smaller figurative studies, highlight Plensa’s commitment to a contemporary humanist vision—one that acknowledges our differences while affirming our shared potential.

Exhibition Catalogue

Jaume Plensa: A New Humanism will be accompanied by an exhibition catalogue published by Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park. The publication will feature an introductory essay by curator Suzanne Ramljak, surveying Plensa’s commitment to humanist values; an essay by Dr. Henry Luttikhuizen on Plensa’s ties to Renaissance thought and the use of language in his art; and an extensive interview with Ramljak and Plensa exploring the artist’s core ideas and aspirations that have shaped his art over four decades.

To celebrate the opening, Meijer Gardens will host a special Member Opening on Thursday, Oct. 23 at 6 p.m., featuring introductory remarks by Ramljak and a conversation with Jaume Plensa, followed by an exclusive preview of the exhibition. Additional programming includes Behind the Eyes: A Curator’s Tour with Ramljak on Sunday, Nov. 9 at 2 p.m. in the interior sculpture galleries.

Jaume Plensa: A New Humanism is organized by Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park and will travel to the Denver Art Museum, where it will be shown from April 18 – Sept. 6, 2026.

For more programming and information about Jaume Plensa: A New Humanism, visit MeijerGardens.org/Plensa

#  #  #

Jaume Plensa: A New Humanism is made possible by:

The Meijer Foundation

Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Foundation

Botanic and Sculpture Societies of Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park

 

About Jaume Plensa

Jaume Plensa (b. 1955, Barcelona, Spain) is internationally renowned as one of today’s leading contemporary sculptors best known for his large-scale public installations. For more than forty years, the artist has created meditative sculptures, drawings, and environments that make manifest a sense of spirituality and an atmosphere of introspection. Working across materials as varied as stone, steel, glass, cast iron, resin, light, water, video, language, and sound, Plensa’s practice invites viewers to ruminate on their fundamental relations to space, to silence, to beauty, and to a shared humanity.

 

Solo museum exhibitions of Plensa’s works have been presented at the Yorkshire Sculpture Park, Yorkshire, England; Joan Miró Foundation, Barcelona, Spain; Nasher Sculpture Center, Dallas, Texas; Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía, Madrid, Spain; MAMC–Musée d’art moderne et contemporain Saint-Étienne Métropole, Saint-Étienne, France; and at the Max Ernst Museum Brühl des LVR, Brühl, Germany, among many others.

 

Plensa’s work is held in institutional collections around the world, including Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park, the Art Institute of Chicago, Albright-Knox Art Gallery, FLAG Art Foundation, Fondation Paribas, Fundación Joan Miró, Harvard University, Mori Art Museum, Reina Sofía, The Museum of Modern Art, New York, National Museum of Korea, Pérez Art Museum Miami, Philadelphia Museum of Art, and the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, among many others. The artist has received numerous national and international awards, including honorary doctorates from Notre Dame University and the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, as well as the Velazquez Prize awarded by the Spanish Cultural Ministry. Plensa lives and works in Barcelona.

 

About Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park

Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park, one of the world’s most significant botanic and sculpture experiences, was named the Best Sculpture Park in the United States in the 2023, 2024 and 2025 USA TODAY 10Best Readers’ Choice Awards, and is regularly listed in the 100-most-visited museums in the world and 15-most-visited museums in the United States by The Art Newspaper, the leading global art news publication. The permanent collection highlights hundreds of sculptures from internationally acclaimed artists Magdalena Abakanowicz, El Anatsui, Louise Bourgeois, Alexander Calder, Mark di Suvero, Marshall Fredericks, Henry Moore, Beverly Pepper, Jaume Plensa, Auguste Rodin, Richard Serra, Yinka Shonibare CBE, and Ai Weiwei, among others. Indoor galleries with changing sculpture exhibitions have presented numerous solo shows, including artists Jonathan Borofsky, Edgar Degas, Jim Dine, Richard Hunt, Cristina Iglesias, Michele Oka Donor, George Segal, David Smith, and others. The 158-acre main campus features Michigan’s largest tropical conservatory; one of the country’s largest interactive children’s gardens; arid and Victorian gardens with bronze sculptures by Edgar Degas and Auguste Rodin; a carnivorous plant house; outdoor gardens, including a replica 1930s-era farm garden; an 8-acre Japanese garden featuring contemporary sculpture; and a 1,900-seat outdoor amphitheater garden, showcasing an eclectic mix of world-renowned touring musicians each summer. Learning Engagement programs welcome 80,000 students and guests each year. Culinary Arts & Events offerings include weddings, corporate meetings, and award-winning catering.