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13 May 2019

A Day Out at Yorkshire Sculpture Park


A few weeks ago, I took the children to Yorkshire Sculpture Park. I've wanted to visit for ages, but the right moment and the right weather never seemed to coincide.

With a few sunny days forecast in the half term and what looked like the most amazing art installations, I decided to take us there.

I had seen over on Instagram images of a beautiful mirrored room at the park, along with some of Damien Hirst's work too, so it really did seem like the perfect time to go.

It is really easy to find just off junction 38 of the M1 and although the parking fees may sound a little steep at £12 per day, this also covers the entrance fee to the park and galleries. In my opinion, £12 for three people for the whole day is very reasonable 

The park itself is huge, I'd totally underestimated the size of it and we could have easily spent a few more hours exploring. We shall definitely be heading there again in the summer, and it's the perfect place to take a picnic.

After parking up and heading out into the park, we first headed down to the Chapel, this is where To Breath by Kimsooja was installed. The floor was covered in mirrors and the windows had a diffraction film on them, this created the most stunning rainbow patterns when the sun shone through them. It was truly magical and I could have spent the whole day in there.  To protect the mirrored floors, socks or special slip on shoes were required, and perhaps wearing a skirt isn't advisable ;)

It was truly a beautiful and unique experience that we all enjoyed, I don't think i'll forget the joy on my children's faces for a while either.







After we had finished enjoying the Chapel we headed down the hill towards the imposing sculptures we could see in the distance.

One was instantly recognisable as The Virgin Mother.  Having been to Ilfracombe and viewed Hirst's Verity piece there, the YSP piece is very similar, except the painting on this one is so bright and bordering on gaudy it doesn't look as though it is made of bronze! The beauty of it I suppose.

The other two sculptures we saw were equally as impressive; Charity  is based on an charity box from the 70s and appears scratched and emptied by a giant crow bar sitting alongside. It is really thought provoking of many of society's current shortcomings. She was definitely my favourite.

My daughter's favourite although she was a little bemused by it, was the unicorn Myth. Stood there with it's insides exposed, it was interesting to say the least.









Throughout the rest of the park there are so many wonderful sculptures, both within the grounds and the the main buildings, with beautifully manicured gardens to wander round too, it was a truly breath taking day out.

There are a couple of cafe's serving really nice food, including a good range of Gluten Free options, as well as shops selling wonderful work from local artists as well as those exhibited and beyond. 








Have you been to YSP before? If so what did you see there? 

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