The Parade of Hearts Tour

 If you don't live in the Kansas City area, then you missed an incredible art installation that took place around the metro. It was called The Parade of Hearts and they were located within cities in both Kansas and Missouri. We found it to be an awesome family adventure that we were able to take throughout the spring and early summer. The hearts lined sidewalks, street corners, and local city landmark parking lots. There were 156 in total, but we were only able to get roughly 70 in before they were taken down and auctioned off for local charities. We each had our favorites along the way and I loved sharing all of them with you in various social media posts. However, I wanted to gather them all in one space to share with those who weren't able to participate. 

Kansas City has claimed to be "America's Heartland" for more than 100 years and it's symbolized in many ways throughout the city. You can see this in forms of railroad pins, on t-shirts, and more notably on the uniforms of the legendary Monarchs Negro League Baseball Team where the KC heart is worn. Each of the hearts placed around the city were 5' sculptures. Local artists were asked to create their sculptures in keeping with the theme of hope and unity. The idea behind it all was simple. 2 States. 1 Heartland!

So here's what we did most days. We would try and visit at least 5-10 hearts per trip. Thanks to the app that was created specifically for this tour, we had directions at our finger tips. We would have lunch either in the car, or if weather permitted, at a local park or patio of a restaurant. One thing I tried to do was dine at local eateries, if possible, to continue to support the initiative of helping those impacted by the last couple of years. We would talk about the ones we loved so far and then re-discuss at the end of the journey. In the end, our favorites usually changed.

As I lay out the photos of the hearts we found, I'm going to try and keep them in order of when we found them. This all began in March and was completed just a couple of weeks ago as they extended the timeline of taking them down so more people could get out and see them before they were gone for good. 

I tried my best to get fronts and backs of each heart. If you look closely, you will see a recessed KC. Without further ado, here they are!

That was day one! And our biggest day by far. We narrowed our focus after that. And not all hearts were discovered as a family of three. McKinley and I stumbled on some or simply went out on our during Spring Break. Here is the next grouping we found.

For round three, we stayed fairly local.

Round four was back on the Plaza and beyond.

When we took to the River Market to tackle round five, I have to say that this was my favorite of all the days. Exploring the city, and finding new nooks and crannies, is what I love doing most! And it a was a perfect spring day!

This last bunch rounds out one last big trip with some random finds thrown in. The journey, exploration of our city, and time spent together was amazing!

What I loved about these final hearts were that they were after we thought we were done! They were some of the last to come down and we got super lucky to spot them!

All of the hearts are currently in auction mode. There was an online only auction and one in person to follow. What would you do with a heart if you were to bid on one and win it? Would you place in your home or in your back yard? Your front yard? Maybe donate it to a space somewhere in the city? Even back to it's original spot? I haven't a clue where I would put one. Or which one I would bin on! I do have several favorites. And so many I wish I could have seen in person. But hey, we gave it our best shot!

So there it is. The Parade of Hearts brought to you by the Krasnows! It is definitely a memory and one I hope McKinley remembers fondly forever!

XO,

Andrea