Yorkshire Sculpture Park

The park opened in 1977 in the grounds of Bretton Hall, then a teacher training college, as the first permanent sculpture park in Britain, on the argument that sculpture belongs outdoors. It covers about two hundred hectares of eighteenth-century parkland with follies, lakes, a ha-ha and mature trees, and works are placed across the whole of it rather than in a sculpture garden. Henry Moore was born at Castleford and Barbara Hepworth at Wakefield, both within a short distance, and the park holds significant long-term displays of Moore's bronzes on the hillside where he wanted them, in landscape. Indoor galleries include a chapel converted for exhibitions and the Weston, a low building cut into a former quarry. Major temporary shows change through the year.

What you'll find

• Moore's bronzes - large works sited on open hillside as he intended.
• The eighteenth-century park - lakes, ha-ha and mature parkland as the gallery.
• The converted chapel - an eighteenth-century chapel used for exhibitions.
• The Weston - a gallery and restaurant cut into an old quarry face.

When to go

April to October for the outdoor works in decent conditions; the park is open year-round and winter light on the bronzes is very good. Major exhibitions run through summer and autumn.

What to expect

Entry is free but parking is charged and is effectively the admission. The site is large, hilly and muddy, and covering it takes a full day of walking. Some indoor exhibitions are separately ticketed, and outdoor works are occasionally removed between shows.

Nearby

The Hepworth Wakefield gallery is a short drive; Barnsley and Sheffield lie south.

Key facts