Burning Man comes to Chatsworth in UK first for sculptures more usually found in Nevada desert

A dozen monumental sculptures are to go on display at the country estate's 1,000 acre parkland from April in what's been hailed a UK first for the "ambitious" free exhibition.

It comes as details are revealed for a grand exhibition inside the country house , featuring some of the Cavendish family's favourite acquisitions with some never seen in public before.

The Duke and Duchess of Devonshire, said: “We’re delighted to be announcing this celebratory programme for Chatsworth.

"The exhibition in the house is a marker in time - a record of our acquisitions that we want to share with others - while the sculptures in the park continue the great tradition of the estate as a backdrop for contemporary works.

"We very much hope that visitors find inspiration here in this special place.”

It was Sotheby's that first saw the links, in creativity and community between Chatsworth and Burning Man, which has led to the launch of Radical Horizons: The Art of Burning Man.

Within it will be eight existing sculptures and with four more to be built on site. Three of these will be created with help from visitors and community groups as is desert tradition.

Burning Man is usually hosted annually in the Black Rock Desert in Nevada, USA, and the collaboration with artists brings its "distinctive" creativity to Chatsworth for the first time.

Kim Cook, director of creative initiatives at Burning Man, said: “We’ve come to understand Chatsworth as a place to foster innovation, creativity, thoughtfulness and thinkers since its early days, something that is also central to our work and ethos at Burning Man.

"Our hope is that the art in the landscape will provoke joy, new ways of viewing, and be an invitation to make up your own story about meaning as you explore the beautiful expanse of Chatsworth.”

Art of Chatsworth

Even as Radical Horizons is hosted in Chatsworth's parkland from April 9 to October 1, a second grand exhibition is also to begin within the country house.

Living With Art We Love, presented by the Duke and Duchess of Devonshire, will feature some of their favourite acquisitions over the past 40 years.

The collection includes selected paintings, ceramics, furniture and textiles as well as a special section on 'Freud at Chatsworth’.

This dedication, honouring the artist's centenary year, brings together paintings and prints as collected and commissioned by the 11th Duke of Devonshire Andrew Cavendish.

The two men had become friends in the late 1940s, with Freud spending time at Chatsworth painting six members of the 11th Duke's family over a period of 20 years.

The works span the entirety of Freud’s career and include the major themes of his oeuvre: portraits of his mother, partners, friends, family, and animals.

Exhibition

Living With Art We Love, with contemporary artworks by Michael Craig Martin, Edmund de Waal, Natasha Daintry and Felicity Aylieff alongside historic works by Poussin, Rembrandt and Boltraffio, will be taking place inside the house from March 26 to 9 October 9.

Alexandra Hodby, senior curator of programmes at Chatsworth, said: “It is wonderful to bring together this group of works, which represent the span of Freud’s life, and celebrate his relationship to the Cavendish family over many years.

"We’re grateful to private lenders, who have allowed us to bring back two paintings which were once part of the Devonshire Collections, and reunite them with the works at Chatsworth.”

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