Video: Giant sculptures are airlifted into Yorkshire’s big show

England’s premier agricultural event will showcase the giant work of art, and a second piece, ‘Héros de Lumière’, in what is believed to be the first time sculptures have been displayed at an agricultural show.

The two 3.6m high works, which have a combined weight of 14 tonnes, have been displayed at the Yorkshire Sculpture Park for the last three years.

Bill Cowling, Honorary Show Director said: “We are absolutely delighted to showcase such impressive pieces of art and the setting is just perfect for them.

“Our two organizations are flagships of excellence, not just in Yorkshire but internationally and this trailblazing initiative celebrates that. We believe it is the first time that sculptures of this stature have been displayed at an agricultural show and I am sure they will cause great interest.”

British sculptor Sophie Ryder’s bronze ‘Crawling’, a hybrid female/mother figure, with the head of a hare and a human body, has been displayed at the Yorkshire Sculpture Park, for the past three years.

Ryder created the piece in 1999 using a steel armature, around which she moulded and bent different thicknesses of wire. The finished bronze - 6.2m long and weighing five tons - was then dipped in boiling zinc to galvanize it.

Polish sculptor Igor Mitoraj’s ‘Héros de Lumière or ‘Hero of Light’ was created in 1986 and can be seen at the show after a period out of the limelight. The nine ton piece of artwork has been modelled in carrara marble by Mitoraj, following the style favoured by Renaissance sculptors.

Gary Verity, chief executive of Welcome to Yorkshire, said: “The eyes of the world have been on Yorkshire this year because the county is fast becoming the UK’s centre for sculpture. The Great Yorkshire Show is a major date in Yorkshire’s calendar and this year’s visitors are in for a real treat as they can see first hand why our sculpture offering is attracting so much attention.”

The Great Yorkshire Show runs from Tuesday 12 – Thursday 14 July.