Akiko Matsuda

amatsuda@lohud.com

PURCHASE - The renowned sculpture garden at PepsiCo's world headquarters will reopen to the public at 10 a.m. Saturday.

The major art collection, which had been closed to visitors for more than four years, will be open on a more limited schedule than before.

The public will have walk-in visits only on weekends, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., on both Saturdays and Sundays through Oct. 31.

EARLIER REPORT: PepsiCo pledges to reopen shuttered sculpture garden in March

Schools and camp groups can visit the park from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. from Mondays to Fridays by making reservations at least 10 business days in advance for their trip, according to PepsiCo's website.

Kirsten Porto, an art teacher at Mamaroneck Avenue School in Mamaroneck, said she was thrilled to hear the news.

"Since PepsiCo is right in our 'back yard,' I used to encourage my students to visit the Donald M. Kendall Sculpture Gardens as often as possible," Porto wrote in an email Thursday. "I have taken students on many field trips to view these impressive works of art, and I missed being able to share them with my students since the garden was closed.

"I am truly looking forward to revisit the garden again before the school year comes to an end."

The garden has been closed since the end of 2012 while the headquarters underwent a major renovation.

Prior to its closure, the sculpture garden at the Anderson Hill Road property had been open to the public for free on a drop-in basis seven days a week, from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. from April to October and from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. in the winter.

"While we are happy to share the beauty of the campus and the art collection with the public, this is first and foremost our world headquarters," states a page on the company website that lays out the hours and rules for sculpture garden visits. "Therefore we have established a schedule that allows access to the grounds without interfering with our business operations."

The Donald M. Kendall Sculpture Gardens, named after the company's former chairman and CEO, were installed in 1970 and had been praised as the food-and-beverage giant's generous gift to the community.

Before its closure, more than 100,000 visitors annually had enjoyed the collection of 45 outdoor sculptures — including pieces by Alexander Calder, Jean Dubuffet, Joan Miró, Auguste Rodin, and Alberto Giacometti — in the 168 acres of carefully tended landscape.

The headquarters' three-year makeover was completed in mid-June, but the garden still had not reopened to the public even months later. Pressed about the matter by The Journal News/lohud in early September, spokeswoman Aurora Gonzalez said the renovation had given PepsiCo an opportunity to revisit its security protocol, and the company was evaluating a way to provide "gradual, controlled access" for groups to the garden.

Shortly after the initial article was published online, Jay Cooney, a vice president of corporate communications at PepsiCo told The Journal News/lohud that by March, the park would "be fully open to whomever wants to visit."

The rules for visitors, posted on the website, include no touching of the art, no sunbathing or playing sports, no pets, no smoking and no bicycles, skateboards or similar items.

In addition, Gonzalez said in an email that PepsiCo would be launching a new app "that will provide visitors with interactive experiences and audio tours." The app, "The Donald M. Kendall Sculpture Gardens," will be available from the Apple store toward the end of next week, she said.

For more information, or to request a group visit, see the PepsiCo website, http://www.pepsico.com/sculpture-gardens.

Twitter: @LohudAkiko