The Bayou Botanist: Jazz, Beignets, and Blue Dog

New Orleans has always been magical to me; green street cars that seem to last forever, moss hanging from live oaks, Mardi Gras Indians, and tall tales that can keep up with Texas. While in NOLA, I always try to visit my favorite places; a little Snug Harbor on Frenchman's, a little Sucre on Magazine, and of course, a whole lot of the Sculpture Garden located in City Park. The Sculpture Garden is connected to the New Orleans Museum of Art but seems to exist in another realm. Towers of instruments rise out of a winding waterway, ladders lead to floating windows, and Godzilla-sized Mardi Gras Beads and Safety Pins make you feel like you just fell down the rabbit hole. Want to view the sculpture garden from another vantage point? You can rent a paddle boat or a gondola to take along the lagoon into the garden.

Robert Indiana, Love, Red Blue, 1966-1997; George Rodrigue, We Stand Together, 2005; Jean- Michel Othoniel, L'Arbre Aux Colliers, 2002

Arman, Pablo Casal's Obelisk, 1983, Bronze

Leandro Erlich, Window with a ladder-Too Late for Help, 2006, Metal ladder, steel underground structure, fiberglass, aluminum frame

Do Ho Suh, Karma, Stainless Steel

Jean-Michel Othoniel, L'arbre Aux Colliers (Tree of Necklaces), 2002, Glass and Stainless Steel

Ida Kohlmeyer, Rebus 3D-89-3, 1989, Painted Aluminum

Anish Kapoor, Untitled, 1997, Stainless steel

Coosie van Bruggen and Claes Oldenburg, Corridor Pin Blue, 1999; Spy the Jaume Plensa, Overflow in the background?

Louise Bourgeois, Spider, 1995, bronze

Roy Lichtenstein, Five Brushstrokes, 1994, Aluminum ; stands in front of NOMA

Audubon Park

While this post focuses on the Sculpture Garden, there are several other special Parks in NOLA including (but not limited to: Audubon Park, Audubon Zoo, and the New Orleans Botanical Garden (also located at City Park).