Sculpture in the Gardens

There are usually sculptures to be found scattered throughout the gardens at Harlow Carr. The ethereal metal deer have been there a while. I find those quite pleasant and they looked 'at home' within the autumnal scene. 

There were a lot of new works in the woodland that I hadn't seen before. Some were naturalistic looking pieces, like 'Willow Knot' by Lucy Hainsworth (below), carved from willow wood, which I thought attractive but unremarkable. 

On the other hand I emphatically did not warm to 'Omphalos' by Melanie Wilks (right), a red sandstone carving which was supposed to be 'about growth and separation, referencing the coil of an umbilical cord'. To me it looked like something nasty a large dog might have left behind! 

Then there were the more whimsical offerings, like 'Global Growth, Material World' by Victoria Ferrand Scott (below): 'strangely coloured, camouflaged spherical forms cluster like virus cells and spread between the trees'. Well, the virus had to get in there somehow, didn't it? 

Elsewhere, there were some concrete casts of feet, spread out in a square 'reflecting on the current mandate for social distancing and our sense of isolation and confinement during lockdown'. I didn't think you needed a sculpture to make you do that; just looking around at the visitors was enough! 

Even more whimsical was 'Paper Trail' by Linda Thompson: 'white paper markers lead visitors on a trail of discovery'... to a rather old-fashioned looking figure in wellington boots and a hat. 

I don't really think I'm a sculpture philistine. It's just that when you've wandered the Hepworth and the Yorkshire Sculpture Park and feasted on world-class artworks, more local offerings can seem a bit tame. In many ways, I'd rather simply enjoy the beauty of the gardens and nature itself. Perhaps the pieces give children something to seek out and enjoy.