PORTFOLIO

Although slightly cold, the weather for our trip to Yorkshire Sculpture Park was kind of perfect. It was sunny at times with blue skies and then clouds would roll in bringing light rain with them. There was a very dramatic backdrop for the sculptures  created by the changing weather.

Upon arrival we went to the main entrance and visitor space. The building itself was really well designed with two floors and a long gallery space after the main desk. The materials used on the outside really completed the natural surroundings whilst the huge glass windows in the interior showcased nature and the sculptures. It was a light space with the pieces of art inside well framed. One of the examples of work was Sheer Folly – Fanciful Buildigs of Britain by Ed Kluz. A collection of prints made with a screen printing technique along with a small model. These were really pretty pieces of art work that had depth and texture and because of the intricacy made people stop and look closer.

The first art piece we visited was the Deer Shelter Skyscape by James Turell. If we hadn’t have been looking for it we probably would have missed it as it is built into the ground with the entrances hidden under archways. The interior space is a complete contrast to the exterior surroundings. It is all concrete and smooth materials with straight edges and geometrical shapes whereas outside, you are surrounded by rolling hills and grass, it’s soft in comparison. Inside the structure is striking and beautiful becasue of the initial simplicity of the design. It’s light, open and all focus is on the square sky light that frames the sky. All the seats have angled backs so you sit back and face the skylight, it is completely empty and blank so there are no distractions. Another reason why the weather was perfect was becasue you were given a small piece of the sky to look at and you could see the clouds in varying shades of grey followed by breaks of blue. It reminded me straight away of the Void at the Jewish Museum in Berlin by Daniel Libeskind which felt cold and claustrophobic whereas the space at YSP was open, welcoming and calm. It is strange to see how different a similar idea can be, either oppressing or relaxing even when using the same type of materials and straight lines.

We then walked to the gallery space where we couldn’t take pictures but held the exhibitions by Alfred Jaar. One of the spaces held a video we watched was called the Sound if Silence. We sat in a very dark room where we couldn’t see the seats and watched a screen that for the most part was black with small white writing and you really found yourself focusing purely on the screen and reading every word. The space definitely represented the exhibition well and enhanced it. On the outside of this room was a wall of bright white lights. We then went into another exhibition with a similar concept of light and layout but a different narrative. The room was long and all black with a series of backlit pictures on film roll. It grabbed your attention and made you look but also gave a flow of traffic to the room that was continuos and encouraged you to move along. In the entrance to this gallery was a station for things you may want during your time in the exhibitions, such as a note pad for writing a poem and books. I really liked this idea as some people wouldn’t think to bring these things and it creates a more interactive space when a lot of the time in galleries they are very selective and exclusive. I am considering putting something like this station in either my Future Life of Honours projects.

Another exhibition we saw was the  On The Heights exhibition. This was about the park and how it has been molded over the years and the effect of water. One of my favourite parts of this exhibition was foxgloves dipped in a wax or resin that at first looked like they were made from glass or porcelain and then on closer look it seemed the flowers were dripping with water. The flowers were preserved very well and you could see all their details so well and along with not being sure what they were covered in resulted in a focal point of the room and everyone wanting to look closer at the exhibition. There was also a showing of rehearsals from a Shakespeare play in the park that was projected on to cloth. This made the protection come through to the walls behind and was more inclusive as an exhibition.

During the course of the day we saw other sculptures which looked great as a contrast to the landscape and that had been positioned so they were framed by their environment. It was amazing to see the installations and I think I can take a lot of inspiration from the sculptures but also from the gallery spaces and what made them work so well.