Video: Yorkshire Sculpture Park carves out a new look

Tangled, overgrown foliage, has been cut back and woods thinned out so that visitors to the Yorkshire Sculpture Park, near Wakefield, can enjoy the kind of views of the lakes and gardens that were once only the preserve of the landed gentry and their friends.

The restoration experts have had one eye on the original creator of much of the landscape, Richard Woods, a talented contemporary of Capability Brown, who worked on behalf of Sir Thomas Wentworth, 5th Baronet.

Historical documents and photographs have been used as a guide and the project has been thoroughly researched so the restoration echoes what went before as far as possible. A handful of quirky historical features, including a Greek-style summer house, a now land-locked boat house and a shell grotto, have also been restored.

Some 85 acres of historic woodland and two 65-acre lakes, which the public can walk round for the first time, will open on Saturday.

Alan Mackenzie, sculpture and estates manager at Yorkshire Sculpture Park (YSP) said: “Its a hidden gem just waiting to be discovered and used by everybody.”

Some of the features that have been restored have a quirky history. Mr Mackenzie said of the shell grotto: “There was a suggestion that the family would have employed a hermit to jump out to surprise visitors.

“Whether it’s true or not I don’t know,” he added.

The open-air sculpture park, with support from Wakefield Council, Natural England and English Heritage, has been expanded by 150 acres to cover an area which contains the hidden follies that so entertained the aristocrats who used to live at Bretton Hall, and in 2009 the Grade II listed historic landscape of the hall was placed on English Heritage’s At Risk Register.

Previously visitors could see glimpses of the lakes but a leap of imagination was required to see beyond the trees and dense vegetation.

Mark Chesman, the park’s landscape co-ordinator, said of the £500,000 restoration project: “It has allowed people to do a circular route around both the upper and lower lakes which you could not do before.”

Antony Gormley’s iconic One & Other sculpture also gets a new home on an impressive beech tree, welcoming visitors into the historic lakes and woodland at the Cascade Bridge entrance after being in storage for over 18 months.

Architectural fancies that were created and developed over many years as part of a private pleasure ground for generations of Dronsfields, Wentworths and Beaumonts, who lived within the Bretton Estate from 1407 to the early 1900s, can now be explored by YSP visitors.

Peter Murray, executive director of YSP, said: “In many ways is the final piece of the jigsaw in terms of reuniting the 500 acres of the historic Bretton estate. It is a significant moment and provides new areas that have never been open to the general public before.”

Wakefield Council acquired the Bretton Hall campus in 2006 to ensure that any development was not detrimental to the sculpture park which has taken over the management of the estate grounds, nature reserve area and lakes to integrate them into the wider park to allow better public access.

Margaret Nieke, Natural England’s historic environment adviser, said: “Natural England is extremely delighted and very proud of this project which ensures that YSP is sustaining and protecting this historic landscape and its wildlife habitats for future generations to enjoy.”

Mr Mackenzie hopes that the restored vistas will provide artists with inspiration as well as provide an enjoyable place to visit.

Artist Emily Speed has already used the lakes as inspiration for her Make Shift exhibition at the Bothy Gallery until September 18. She floated a coracle boat and added an architectural structure to create a floating shelter which she sailed on the lake.

A series of photographs capturing this will be displayed alongside the coracle and other exhibits.

Coun Peter Box, leader of Wakefield Council, said this weekend’s opening came in a big year for Wakefield with the opening of The Hepworth Wakefield, which has already attracted more than 100,000 visitors.

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