Houghton Outdoor Sculpture

In recent years, the 18th century planting scheme of formal hedges and avenues has been restored on the West side of the house, and there is now an impressive collection of contemporary sculpture by world renowned artists, displayed in the gardens and grounds, many created specially for Houghton. The first to be commissioned, in 2000, was a ‘Skyspace’ by the American artist James Turrell. Since then sculptures by Richard Long, Anya Gallaccio, Stephen Cox, Jeppe Hein, Rachel Whiteread, and Phillip King have been added.

‘My hope is that in time Houghton will become a ‘must-see’ destination for those interested in contemporary art and sculpture.’ Lord Cholmondeley.

ARTISTS AT HOUGHTON

Sean Scully RA (born 1945) is a painter, printmaker, sculptor, and photographer, especially known for leading the transition away from Minimalism in painting, in favour of a return to metaphor and spirituality in art. He lives and works between New York, Bavaria, Aix-en-Provence, and London.

Jeppe Hein (born 1974, Copenhagen, Denmark) is an artist based in Berlin and Copenhagen. His interactive sculptures and installations combine elements of humour with the 1970s traditions of minimalism and conceptual art. See his “Water Flame” work in the walled garden.

Dame Rachel Whiteread DBE (born 20 April 1963) is an English artist who primarily produces sculptures, which typically take the form of casts. She was the first woman to win the annual Turner Prize in 1993. Her “Houghton Hut” sits in the grounds at Houghton Hall.

James Turrell (born May 6, 1943) is an American artist known for his work within the Light and Space movement. Much of Turrell’s career has been devoted to a still-unfinished work, Roden Crater, a natural cinder cone crater located outside Flagstaff, Arizona, that he is turning into a massive naked-eye observatory; and for his series of skyspaces, enclosed spaces that frame the sky. There is a “Skyspace: Seldom Seen” here in the grounds at Houghton.

Anya Gallaccio (born 1963)[1] is a British artist, who creates site-specific, minimalist installations and often works with organic matter (including chocolate, sugar, flowers and ice). The “Sybil Hedge” at Houghton is based on the signature of the late Lady Sybil Cholmondeley (1894-1989)

Claudio Parmiggiani (Italian, b. 1943) conjures poetic images of myth and legend using a variety of media, including smoke. “Axis of the World” is the most recent site-specific commission at Houghton, and is made out of Ombra di Caravaggio marble. You can see this near to St Nicholas Church.

Stephen Cox RA (born 1946 in Bristol) is a British sculptor, known for his monolithic public artworks in marble and stone evoking the art and culture of ancient civilizations. “Interior Space” is made our of a rare breccia marble only found in Egypt

Phillip King PRA (1 May 1934 – 27 July 2021) Following the “New Generation” show at the Whitechapel Gallery, both Caro and King were included in the seminal 1966 exhibit, “Primary Structures” at the Jewish Museum in New York representing the British influence on the “New Art“. In 2011, his work was represented in the Royal Academy exhibition on Modern British Sculpture which explored British sculpture of the twentieth century. His “Dunstable Reel” can be found in the parkland

Sir Anish Kapoor CBE, RA (born 12 March 1954) is a British-Indian sculptor specializing in installation art and conceptual art, born in Mumbai. is especially known for his exploration of the void through freestanding stone and marble pieces, as well as in polished steel and concave mirrors which show the world reflected in their surface. Turner Prize winner 1991. His “Untitled” work sits in the parkland.

Sir Richard Julian Long, CBE, RA (born 2 June 1945) is an English sculptor and one of the best-known British land artists. Long is the only artist to have been short-listed four times for the Turner Prize. He was nominated in 1984, 1987 and 1988, and then won the award in 1989 for White Water Line. “White Deer Circle“, “Houghton Cross” “Full Moon Circle” and “A Line in Norfolk” can all be found here at Houghton Hall.

Ryan Gander OBE RA (British, b.1976) works in a variety of mediums, including Carrara marble and metallic assemblages, referring to himself as a “neo-conceptualist, ‘proper-Ganderist’, amateur philosopher.” He was elected to the Royal Academy in 2021.

Tony Cragg KBE, CBE, RA (British, b.1949) started making installations with found objects in the 1970s, before turning to organic sculptural forms derived principally from abstract drawings. He won the Turner Prize in 1988. His sculpture “Tommy” has been added to the collection.

Sean Scully RA (Irish, b.1945, Dublin) is a painter, printmaker, sculptor, and photographer, especially known for leading the transition away from Minimalism in painting, in favour of a return to metaphor and spirituality in art. He lives and works between New York, Bavaria, Aix-en-Provence, and London. His works “Tower Light Cubed” and “Crate of Air” can be found here at Houghton.