Glenstone, Potomac, Maryland

Glenstone is an art museum in the Maryland suburbs of Washington, D.C. It has both indoor and outdoor art, focusing on twentieth- and twenty-first century work (i.e., modern art) in an open and relaxed environment. Admission is free but tickets are required so the place does not get crowded. Walking trails through the natural landscape lead to various outdoor works. A few buildings are placed along the trails, with one large complex that houses indoor art and another smaller gallery, along with two places to purchase something to eat.

The Arrival Hall is where visitors check in. The architecture is very minimalist, leaving almost everything to the imagination. 

Entryway to the grounds

Split-Rocker by Jeff Koons is a 2000 installation that has two not quite matched heads of rocking horses recreated in flowers. The structure is almost forty feet tall and is the image on the front of Glenstone's brouchure.

Split-Rocker

Wife and daughter admiring the flowers

The other face of the rocker

Rockers-eye view

In keeping with the intent of the museum, no explanation or interpretation is offered, leaving visitors to come to their own opinions and conclusions.

The next work we saw was Richard Serra's Contour 290 nestled into the hillside. It's a long, metal wall curving around the natural landscape. Since we had to stay on the path we could not get close to it.

Contour 290

Another angle

Smug by Tony Smith is a large, symmetrical work sitting in a field of gravel. Each side looks the same, an interesting effect.

Smug

View from a quarter of the way around it

Compression Line by Michael Heizer is a field of red stones with a visible slit in it that forms triangles at each end.

Compression Line

The Pavilions is the set of galleries that have a lot of displays of various art works with minimal descriptions. Photography is not allowed inside, but the buildings surround a courtyard with water and plants.

The Pavilions's courtyard

Charles Ray's Horse and Rider presents an older gentleman on an older horse in stainless steel.

Horse and Rider

Another outdoor sculpture is Richard Serra (again) with Sylvester. It's another steel wall, this time in a spiral. Visitors can walk inside to a small round space in the middle, though the restriction on touching the art forces some careful stepping, especially if someone is coming out while someone else is going in.

Visiting Sylvester

The grounds have two places to get food. The Cafe serves light meals and drinks; The Patio serves pastries and drinks. Both have indoor and outdoor seating. We visited the Patio, buying some coffee and a chocolate almond croissant.

The Patio

Further into the woods is a string of three small buildings made by Andy Goldsworthy called Clay Houses. This part was a bit crowded when we visited because each house has a small interior allowing only a few visitors at a time. We went into one that had a large boulder that suggested a dragon egg.

One of the Clay Houses

The wood path follows along the Greenbriar Branch, a small stream on the edge of the park.

A stream runs through it

Simone Lay's Satellite is an outdoor sculpture very similar to a work in the Pavilions, though much larger. 

Satellite

Further along the trail, Robert Gober has Two Partially Buried Sinks which are a bit far from the raised boardwalk and not easy to see. 

A zoomed-in photo of Two Partially Buried Sinks

The whole experience grants a hodge-podge of impressions. Some works are whimsical; some are impressive; some are thought-provoking; some are inexplicable; some are underwhelming; some are silly. With the modern art attitude of letting everyone interpret for themselves, it undermines and devalues artistic expression and cuts off communication between the artist and the appreciators of art. It's easy to make snide remarks about some works (and believe me, we did) or to be lost in confusion rather than wonder when contemplating some piece or tableau. One doorway in the Pavilions led into an unlit room with piles of newspapers and wooden framing for the back wall of one of the other rooms. We thought this might be the back of a display. Browsing through some catalogs of exhibits at the Patio, we saw that room was in fact an art display on its own, not just a random back hall with the door unintentionally left open. Then there was the charming if ridiculous "Untitled" (Two Lovers), a pair of cheap wall clocks mounted right next to each other showing the time almost in sync. I had unequal amounts of mocking and appreciation for what was on display throughout the grounds. 

I did have an enjoyable time walking around with my family and sharing impressions on works, both good and bad. The weather was nice and the area is not too large. The trail leading to the art and the buildings is about a mile long, so not too strenuous or taxing.