What Is The Gernot Huber Sculpture Park Officially?

The Gernot Huber Sculpture Park (also known as the Gernot Huber Foundation or Fundación Canaria Gernot Huber) is a large outdoor park at the top of San Isidro in South Tenerife. It's home to over 100 incredible sculptures from young, up-and-coming artists who have travelled from around the world to make their mark on the park.
Here you'll find an incredible diversity of sculptures made out of all kinds of materials, from volcanic stone and steel to wood and glass. The sculptures are carefully arranged so that the blend into the ancient landscape of Tenerife, rubbing shoulders with cacti, palm trees, and evergreen euphorbia.
The park designer and established artist, Gernot Huber, wanted to create a harmonious balance between fine art, architecture, and nature. He achieved this through his two sculpture parks - this one in a volcanic, rural part of Tenerife and another in Hamburg, Germany.
The idea behind the park is to give new artists an opportunity to create and showcase their art in a way they might not have been able to afford to do otherwise. Because of this, the park continues to grow with new sculptures each year.
As well as the sculptures, the land is also occupied by Gernot Huber's home. The artist no longer lives there - he passed away several years ago. It's now home to a wonderful German family who spend half the year at the park in Tenerife and the rest of their time at the park in Germany.
One of the most unusual things about the park is its very limited opening hours, which you'll find listed at the bottom of this post. Guided tours are available daily, but only upon request.
What Is The Gernot Huber Sculpture Park Really?
If you choose to visit the Gernot Huber Sculpture Park on an "open day", you'll experience nothing more than a pleasant stroll looking at purposely placed objects that are interesting but make very little sense.
Sure, each piece has a tiny placard that credits the author and names the piece. But this often poses more questions than it answers. If you pre-book your visit and join a guided tour, you'll leave with a more defined appreciation for the sculptures.
The tour guide Alex, was present during many of the park's creations. He's there to fill in all the blanks by answering the two questions that everybody wants to ask: "What is it?" and "Why?"
Every piece has a back story. So often the original commissioned sculpture never came to be due to artistic changes of hearts or material failures. In one special case, it was because an artist fell in love, leaving behind a rather unusual-looking unfinished piece.
You need to remember that this is a foundation, so there's no official entry fee. However, it's not technically one of our free things to do in Tenerife. A donation is requested in exchange for a glass of water at the end of the tour.
The good news is that because it's a non-profit organization, all donations go toward future projects and the park's upkeep. Storing artwork outside where it's regularly battered by strong winds means the repair and maintenance work is never ending.
Ian's Gernot Huber Sculpture Park Review
My critical acclaim of fine art generally goes no further than "Oh, that's pretty". So entering the Tenerife Sculpture Park with no real understanding or appreciation for the subject felt like I was achieving little more than getting out of the house for a bit.
Getting to the park is a bit tricky. The journey takes you onto a back street that leads you into the middle of nowhere. Pretty soon you'll start to question if Google has the park located correctly. Fortunately, the back street is also named Gernot Huber Road (what are the odds of that?) which is quite reassuring.
We opted for the guided tour and were jolly glad we did. It was conducted in English which seemed odd, as the guide was German and so was everyone else in the group. But as all the others spoke perfect English (and had turned up on time) they agreed to this before our late arrival.
Most of the time, I looked at the sculpture, then looked at Nicky, and we both just shrugged at each other. This is where the guide fills in all the blanks. What the artist was trying to achieve? Why did they choose that style and those materials? Some of it resonated and became obvious, but not all of it.
Finishing at the family home for refreshments and a chance for further questions felt a little uncomfortable. Especially when the donation jar came out, something we had not planned for. To watch the first couple put €50 in each made me feel a bit cheap, as I only had €20 on me.
In conclusion, this place surpassed my expectations. Sculptures are displayed in so many public places and are just ignored by most. Though I shan't become an art scholar anytime soon, I may just actually stop and look next time. So, from the foundation's perspective, I am a success story.
Overall rating: ⅘
Nicky's Gernot Huber Sculpture Park Review
I'd been wanting to visit the San Isidro Sculpture Park for ages. But because of the very restricted visiting hours, it took literally years before the timing was right. Now that I've had the chance to check it out, I'm so glad I did and I definitely recommend you do, too. Whether or not you consider yourself an artsy person!
One of the coolest things about the sculptures is that some of them have been carefully positioned, taking into account wind direction, the sun's rays, or the way the shade falls. It's amazing how one single sculpture can look totally different just by looking at it from a new angle.
The Tenerife Sculpture Park is surprisingly large. The tour was around 45-60 minutes long and we didn't spend much time at each of the sculptures. But with 100+ pieces to see, you don't really have time to hang around. If you want to go at your own pace, I recommend visiting on an open day instead.
If you're a fan of sculptors, you might recognise a few pieces or names in the park. There are some amazing sculptures created by world-famous artists who have their own dedicated galleries around the world. That totally wasn't the case for us, but it might be for you!
There's a popular temple-like sculpture at the end of the tour that everyone has their picture with. If you want a group shot, guide Alex will patiently take as many as you like and send them via WhatsApp. If you're lucky, he might send you a picture of his pet cat, Putin, too!
The Gernot Huber Sculpture Park is a really cool place to spend an hour or so. Even if you're not a big fan of art, the quirky sculptures, volcanic surroundings, and gorgeous views mean you'll have a great time. It's probably not the best place to take little kids, but if you're looking for something out of the ordinary to do as adults, it's a great choice.
Overall rating: ⅘
Must-Haves for The Gernot Huber Sculpture Park
Visiting the San Isidro sculpture park for the first time? Here are three things you should take with you!
- Sturdy shoes - a lot of the land is loose underfoot.
- Phone or a camera - you'll definitely want to take lots of pictures.
- Cash - the park requests a donation on behalf of the artists in cash.
Insider Tips For The Gernot Huber Sculpture Park
Choose Your Type of Visit Wisely
You have two options to visit the Tenerife sculpture park. You can visit on your own and spend up to 3 hours wandering around the sculptures or you can sign up for a guided tour. If you're just interested in snapping some cool pictures, you're best off visiting on your own.
But if you want to learn more about the sculptures and the artists who created them, it's worth signing up for the guided tour. There's not much info on the sculptures, apart from the name of the artist and the name of the piece. Having someone who met the artists and watch them work guide you through the park can be really helpful.
Be Early
If you've opted for the guided tour, don't just get there on time - get there early. We signed up for a 10am tour and at 9.54am, the tour guide sent a message to tell us he was going to start without us! So be early or risk missing the first bit of the guided tour.
Only Go When It's Open
This sounds obvious, but take a look at the Google reviews for the Gernot Huber Sculpture Park. You'd be surprised how many people left a 1 star review because it was closed when they went.
The Tenerife sculpture park is only open for unguided visits on the second Sunday of each month between November and April, between 2pm and 5pm.
Donation to the Foundation
Decide before you arrive how much you want to donate and have the right amount in cash on you. It was funny watching someone put a €50 in the jar and then take €30 out as change - although €20 seems a pretty decent donation, right? Everyone else seemed very embarrassed.
Important Info About The Gernot Huber Sculpture Park
There's no official ticket price to visit the Tenerife sculpture park. However, donations are expected. If you sign up for the guided tour, you'll be asked for a donation at the end of your visit, while relaxing at the house.
The San Isidro sculpture park is open for unguided visits on the second Sunday of each month between November and April, between 2pm and 5pm. For a guided visit, you'll need to contact the park by calling 922 772 331 or sending a WhatsApp message to 618 506 326.
The Gernot Huber Sculpture Park is located at the very top of San Isidro, just up from the airport in the south of Tenerife. It can be a little tricky to find and you definitely need a car. Here's the exact location.
Have you been here? What did you make of it?