Photo by Edward Cardona
What does it take to have a destination shopping center? Fine art? Great restaurants? A wide range of stores, including some not easily found elsewhere? Fountains and grassy courts? Site of arts & entertainment events? On all counts, Northpark in Dallas Texas is a huge hit, especially among the more than 26 million visitors annually.
With 2.4 million square feet (including a 2006 $250 million expansion), it’s also the largest shopping center in North Texas.
But what really sets Northpark apart is its art. I only know of one other shopping center in the country that has ever put art among the stores, Cermak Plaza Shopping Center in Berwyn, Illinois (near Chicago). And sadly, that innovative center, built in the 1950s has fallen on hard times and the art has decayed into debris.
Happily, Northpark is thriving under the ownership of husband and wife David J. Haemisegger and Nancy A. Nasher.
I could talk about the anchor stores (Neiman Marcus, Versace, Barneys New York), the restaurants (including the delish Cibus), the grassy outdoor spaces and cafes, but what really impressed me was the care put into the art and gardens.
Some of the finest artists in the country are included. Art hangs on the walls, stands in the intersections, and dominates the plazas. Stroll among the stores and see sculptures by Mark di Suvero, Frank Stella, Andy Warhol, Antony Gormley
Walk outside and see the work of Claes Oldenburg and Coosje van Bruggen.
Yes, you can certainly shop at Northpark – I was quite taken with their new Puzzle Zoo, and the Lego Store is coming soon – but you can also have a delicious dinner, wander through the art, sit outside and sip a coffee. No matter how you look at it, Northpark is a winner. And thank you for putting art back where it belongs, among the people. You can pick up a guide for an Art Walking Tour at the management office.
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Comments
It's wonderful to find art in surprising places. The Albany (NY) airport has a great sculpture program. From their website:
The Albany International Airport's Art & Culture Program presents large-scale sculptures in addition to commissioning site-specific installations. The Airport is an ideal venue for exhibiting three-dimensional works, particularly those that may be suspended within its vast vertical spaces. We have been fortunate to exhibit pieces by prominent twentieth century artists such as Alexander Calder, Isamu Noguchi, and George Rickey. Like the site-specific projects, the Art & Culture Program welcomes proposals from regional artists and issues stipends to artists whose work is selected by the Exhibition Committee. The work is exhibited for a minimum of two years.
More and more airports are doing that. It used to be quite surprising, but now it's almost part of the design process.
It's a great thing, too! I'm passionate about putting art into people's lives, not locking it up under guard in museums.
Sounds so great! I want to go there!
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