Yorkshire Sculpture Park unveils new art outdoors

Yorkshire Sculpture Park’s autumnal landscape provides the perfect backdrop for visitors to see several inspiring artworks set within 500 acres of historic parkland, woodland and lakes.

Offering an inspiring day out for nature lovers, art aficionados and walkers alike – it’s the perfect destination to come together and experience the best of international art.

Nestled a short walk from Lower Lake, Pittu Pithu Pitoo by Simeon Barclay depicts a cockerel resting on a stone-like formation. The sculpture’s form and title relate to an ancient traditional Indian game played by the artist in his youth. Played by two teams, it involves a pile of seven precariously assembled stones and a ball.

Installed close to important works by pioneering Yorkshire artists Barbara Hepworth and Henry Moore, Pittu Pithu Pitoo acknowledges these sculptors, who were also inspired by YSP’s breathtaking landscape. Prior to joining over 90 outdoor sculptures at YSP, Pittu Pithu Pitoo was on display in the City of London. Its new home, surrounded by veteran trees on the historic Bretton Estate, gives it a new sense of scale and importance.

Simeon Barclay said: “I am a product of my environment. As a maker, born and invested in developing my practice in the region, I have come to acknowledge that my work acts as a language to suggest the many facets of that experience. The opportunity now to broaden that conversation both locally and globally within one of the country’s most significant institutions provides an immensely exciting prospect.”
The Greek Temple, a much-loved pitstop for many YSP visitors, was constructed in the early 19th century and is an important reminder of the Park’s history as a pleasure ground. Perched on a nearby plinth stands Untitled (David) (2023) by British artist Matthew Darbyshire.

Many will recognise its reference to Michelangelo’s David, the famous Renaissance sculpture. Combining traditional sculptural carving and casting techniques with 3D digital processes, the artist describes his approach as ‘life drawing in three dimensions’. Manually sketching the contours of the original David onto hundreds of layers of polystyrene, he then cuts them out and stacks them, much in the mechanical manner of a 3D printer, only this time celebrating human expression, error, and inevitable glitches.

Matthew Darbyshire said: “I’m delighted to have Untitled (David) displayed at Yorkshire Sculpture Park. I’ve always wanted to present something in their wonderful landscape and alongside so many of my favourite artists … and it couldn’t be more fitting to put him right next to their fabulous folly!”

All Power to All People (bronze) (2023) by renowned American artist Hank Willis Thomas is on display at the Bothy Triangle. Angled into the ground, the Afro pick features the Black Power salute which grew out of the 1960s civil rights movement. The ‘Black fist’ first appeared on Afro combs in the 1970s when many Black people began to wear them in their Afros to express cultural pride and identity. Made from patina bronze, the sculpture stands over 8 feet tall and weighs nearly 800 pounds. By enlarging the pick to a monumental size, Thomas prompts us to consider its broader political and cultural significance. The sculpture also highlights the lack of commemorative statues featuring the lives of Black people, or that address equality and belonging.

Hank Willis Thomas said: “All Power to All People (bronze) bridges history and the present, representing adornment, political identity, and community. My goal is to highlight the beauty, solidarity, perseverance and resistance to all.

“I am excited for audiences to engage with this work at Yorkshire Sculpture Park, offering yet another context and to continue sharing its message of love and resilience.”
Working with sculpture, installation and painting, contemporary artist Marc Quinn explores the relationship between art, nature, science, the human body and the perception of beauty.

Recently conserved and relocated outside The Weston, the striking artwork is part of Quinn’s Flower sculpture series. Rendered in painted bronze, Wilder Shores of Desire (2011) takes the form of a large orchid, a symbol long associated with love, fertility and purity. These works explore the concept of idealised natural beauty and aspirations for perfection, often obtained through genetic modification or manipulation. Fittingly, the work is on display a short walk from the man-made lakes surrounded by imported plants and trees, which make up the historic landscape at YSP.

Marc Quinn said: “I love the irony of taking a delicate natural object – the Vanda orchid – recreating it in industrial materials and then putting it back into nature, in a landscape it would never naturally exist in. It’s a privilege to have Wilder Shores of Desire in this beautiful landscape at Yorkshire Sculpture Park.”