Yorkshire Sculpture Park, West Bretton, Wakefield WF4 4LG
t 01924 832631 | ysp.org.uk | @YSPsculpture
Open Tuesdays – Sunday (subject to seasonal opening times)
Go to the organiser's website to book tickets and find out how to get there ysp.org.uk
Sarah Kirby, The Hall, The Geese & A Henry Moore, 2023. Image © the artist. Photo © Chris Large, courtesy of Yorkshire Sculpture Park
Printmaker Sarah Kirby, has visited YSP frequently throughout 2023 and 2024 to document her favourite walking routes and landmarks at the Park. She sketched and took photographs, while discovering the various species of trees across the landscape and unearthing new views and natural forms. She has created a whole new body of work for a stunning solo exhibition to be held in the main Visitor Centre at YSP.
Growing up next door to Cambridge University Botanic Garden, Sarah's father was a plant physiologist who taught her the joys of gardening and inspired her to explore and interact with nature. She has spent her life building up knowledge about the future of nature, contemplating the existence of nature for people, plants, the future, the security of food production, and the preservation of trees and wooded areas.
Sarah explained:
“I have taken different routes and walks through different seasons and all weathers. Walking with a sketchbook, mostly on my own, has focussed my thoughts and extended the pauses along the way. I have discovered new favourite spots, views, sculptures and trees! I love that in some parts of the Park I can feel as though I am on my own in nature; it is also a place clearly enjoyed and used by so many people in different ways all year round. For me the historic elements - not just Bretton Hall but, for instance, the Greek Temple in the woods, the cordoned fruit trees in the walled Bothy Garden, the mix of now mature specimen trees add to its interest and keep alive the connection and need that people have for green spaces … places where my mind can rest and my imagination can roam.”
Sarah is curious and deeply interested in learning about historic landscapes and heritage sites, their past occupants, and the buildings they occupied. She illustrates scenes with an alternative viewpoint. Sarah uses a minimalistic but bold colour palette that reflects upon the typical and expected colours of the landscape, whilst including some unexpected elements. This is perfectly illustrated in the Camellia House series which depict her YSP visits during Spring 2023 when the Camellias were in full bloom. Kirby also employs iconic sculptures such as the Henry Moore Reclining Figure: Arch Leg (1969-70) and legacy pieces such as Peter’s Fold (2022) and Shadow Fold Stone (2007) by Andy Goldsworthy, as well as YSP’s historical buildings such as the Bretton Hall, the Bothy, the 18th century Chapel, the Greek Temple and the Shell Grotto. Pooling all of these features and attributes together, she has generated an artistic map of YSP; an impressionistic illustrator’s view that culminates in 'A Printmaker’s Landscape'.
All of the prints will be for sale.
