The Clark, Part 3
On the third day of my long weekend trip to Western Massachusetts, which I took back in March 2026, I visited The Clark, an art museum in Williamstown, MA. Like my trip to MASS MoCA taken on the day before, my summary of the experience will be divided into three parts. In the first part, I described artwork found inside the museum building. In this second part, I covered the architecture of the building, a nearby historic building, and some outside sculptures. In the third part, I will describe the rest of the outside sculptures and give tips on how to visit the museum.
Visitors can find several permanent installations on their walk across the property. Teaching a Cow How to Draw by Argentine artist Analia Saban is a creative wooden fence that does serve a practical purpose of keeping the ornamental cows in their place during the warmer months. Crystal by German artist Thomas Schütte is a little wooden shed on top of the hill overlooking the museum complex. The view is beautiful at all times of year, and this is a nice place to sit after the long climb. Another sitting spot is the stone bench on the aptly named Stone Bench Trail.
The six installations from Grand/Work 2025 are intended to remain at The Clark until they naturally decay and stand along the two-mile Stone Hill Road Trail, colored in red on the nifty trailhead map. Three Times Spanning by Dutch artist Milena Naef was a fallen tree and slabs of rocks with a cutout in the shape of the artist. the End by Hugh Hayden resembled a massive ribcage made of hemlock trees. Oscillation: Vertical Garden by Japanese artist Yō Akiyama is a stoneware sculpture that looks like a burned tree trunk. Gathering My Thoughts by British artist Laura Ellen Bacon is a woven willow structure in a similar shape to an anatomical heart. Bana Yiriw ni Shi Folow (Trees and Seeds of Life) by Mali artist Aboubakar Fofana combines natural materials from his home company and from Indonesia, using cotton and indigo to remind the viewer of the African Diaspora and economy of enslavement that lasted until the 19th century.
If you wish to see everything the Clark has to offer, expect to stay at the museum for at least four hours. As an added bonus, visitors are permitted to visit the outdoor installations at any time of day or night without purchasing a ticket; if you wish to see another site during the day and come to the Clark at night, that could be a uniquely fun experience! Galleries are open from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. on Tuesdays through Sundays, September through June, and every day in July and August. Tickets are $22 for adults, $20 for Seniors, $10 for young adults ages 18 to 25 and for college students with a valid ID, and $0 for children under 18, members, students at select colleges, Massachusetts Card to Culture holders, military and their families, Massachusetts Teachers, NARM members, and ROAM members. Many libraries offer passes; you are unlikely to pay full price for this one-of-a-kind experience. The indoor galleries are highly accessible with good lighting, seating, and plenty of space to move around. The trails are steep and can be difficult to climb in places even for athletic hikers. If you are looking for a unique cultural experience in Western Massachusetts, this is a must-see.
