Visit a Glass Labyrinth in Kansas City

The Glass Labyrinth, a sculpture by minimalist artist Robert Morris, is now open to the public at the Nelson-Atkins Museum in Kansas City, Mo. Nearly one million pounds of one-inch-thick plate glass went into the sculpture, which was built to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the Donald J. Hall Sculpture Park. 

Mirror mazes and other optical illusions have long been a staple of boardwalks and carnivals. But this must be one of the first times that a glass maze has come from the world of high art.

From the museum’s website: 

In spirit, Glass Labyrinth acknowledges similar prehistoric markings on stones and cave walls, ancient Greek myths, and Christian metaphors for pilgrimage to the holy city of Jerusalem. Thus, it transcends time and space to remind us of the power of deeply felt archetypes. In form and material, however, this labyrinth is a departure from the more familiar circular and rectangular labyrinths of old. Triangulated and constructed of glass plate walls capped with bronze, it speaks to this moment in the language of modern architecture and design–streamlined, dynamic, transparent, and elegant.

Morris, who grew up in Kansas City, is an interanationally renowned artist, whose works have been exhibited or acquired by museums like the Museum Of Modern Art, the Guggenheim and the Tate, among many others. 

If you’d like to try the angular labyrinth out for yourself, the museum is open to the public Wednesday through Sunday, and admission is free. 

Mary Beth Griggs | | READ MORE

Mary Beth Griggs is a freelance science journalist based in New York City.