Detour Art
A curated guide to Artist-built Environments
region by region, coast-to-coast.
Dedicated to the sheer joy of outsider, folk, visionary, self-taught, vernacular art and environment discoveries found all along the back roads (and side streets).
Artist-built Environments in the United States
Note: Things change, so check first before arriving. When visiting art environments, remember they are usually on private property, so please be respectful and don’t trespass.
Road stories
The Quilters of Gee’s Bend
Gee’s Bend is a small rural community nestled into a curve in the Alabama River. The town’s women developed a distinctive, bold, and sophisticated quilting style based on traditional American (and African American) quilts, but with a geometric simplicity reminiscent of Amish quilts and modern art. The women of Gee’s Bend passed their skills and aesthetic down through at least six generations to the present.
Queen Califia's Magical Circle - Niki de Saint Phalle
Snakes atop the walls, fabulous mosaics and a giant eagle with an Amazon warrior guiding it, Those are just some of the elements of the Magic Circle, created by Kiki de Saint Phalle, a French-born self-taught artist whose large scale sculptures earned her accolades in Europe. Influenced by figures such as Jean Dubuffet and Antoni Gaudi, she made her reputation in the Sixties with a series of giant female figures, the “Nana’s”.
Bishop's Castle - Jim Bishop
Soaring towards the clouds for some 16 stories in all, it's made from stone; hand selected, hand carried, hand lifted and mortared into place by, you guessed it, hand. Jim Bishop's hands. He's been working the site for nearly 50 years now
Paradise in the middle of Kansas - Garden of Eden
This jaw-dropper is the oldest complete folk art environment in the United States, creating a creative epicenter in this rural Kansas town. OK, it's not exactly the exact Garden in the Bible, but Samuel P. Dinsmoor began pouring forth his vision in 1907 when, at the age of 64, he completed his Log Cabin Home, built from native limestone. Then, using the newest building compound of its day -- concrete -- he spent the next 18 years surrounding his house with a narrative sculpture garden.
A sparkling Museum of Self-taught art in Baltimore
When you see one of Vollis Simpson's whirligigs adorning the front lawn of a museum, you know it's no ordinary place. This is indeed the mecca for those who appreciate work by self-taught, outsider or visionary artists. AVAM features three full floors of art displayed in long-running shows that cover a specific theme like "aging" or "war and peace." Their permanent collection contains a number of works by Ted Gordon, Howard Finster, Gerald Hawkes and the Baltimore Glassman, Paul Darmafall.
