Tony Cragg, New Stones - Newton Tones. Courtesy Arts Council Collection, Hayward Gallery London © the artist 2003
The Arts Council Collection, a massive collection of post-war and contemporary British art, is currently celebrating its 60th anniversary with an exhibition of key sculptural pieces at Yorkshire Sculpture Park (YSP).
60 features 60 key sculptures from British artists ranging from Barbara Hepworth to Damien Hirst and runs at the park's Longside Gallery until June 25 2006.
Focussing on the development of British sculpture from the earliest purchases made by the Arts Council through to the most recent, the exhibition reveals the innovative nature of the acquisitions over time.
Key figures in the history of British sculpture are included with work by established figures such as Henry Moore sited next to work by Eduardo Paolozzi and Anthony Caro.
Anish Kapoor, White Sand, Red Millet, Many Flowers. Courtesy Arts Council Collection, Hayward Gallery London © the artist 2003
Yorkshireman Moore is represented by a bronze, Head of a King, which is fittingly sited close to another piece by local lass made good, Dame Barbara Hepworth.
Pieces by the modern crop of sculptors and artists include a video sculpture from art characters Gilbert and George (their whole life is like a sculpture…apparently) and a ceiling hung installation of seemingly everyday objects by Bill Woodrow.
Elsewhere pieces by Antony Gormley, Anish Kapoor and Rachel Whiteread vie for the attention whilst offering evidence of the refreshingly broad practices employed in modern sculpture. Kapoor’s White Sand, Red Millet, Many Flowers, consists of piles of paint pigment carefully arranged, like elaborate sandcastles, on the floor.
A number of works in the exhibition are being displayed for the first time since purchase and Turner Prize nominee Anya Gallaccio’s piece, ‘can love remember the question and the answer’, can be viewed in all its decaying glory.
Mona Hatoum, Plotting Table. Courtesy Arts Council Collection, Hayward Gallery London © the artist
Featuring her trademark decaying flowers, the piece consists of fifty bright red gerbera flowers encased in glass panels set within the frame of an antique door. The flowers will of course decay during the course of the exhibition.
As well as being a stunning space in which to view sculpture, YSP’s Longside Gallery also features large glass windows that offer extensive views of Yorkshire Sculpture Park. The space is shared by the YSP and Hayward Gallery, which administers the Arts Council Collection to present exhibitions based around the Collection.
Since 1946 the Arts Council has acquired over 700 sculptures and installations for its Collection, which is also loaned to public spaces and galleries across the UK and the world.
Many artists, writers, curators and critics have been involved in the selection process, which has supported artists at the beginning of their careers as well as effectively charting the story of modern British art.
Richard Deacon. Arts Council Collection, Hayward Gallery London © the artist 2003
The collection has, from time to time, also benefited from donations. Charles Saatchi donated 100 works in 1999 and a further 34 in 2002.
60 is the first in a series of shows that will celebrate the anniversary of the Collection, which numbers over 7,500 works. The year will culminate in a major show at the Hayward, London, in September 2006.
