The Hepworth Wakefield

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The Hepworth Wakefield
The Hepworth Wakefield - geograph.org.uk - 1507085.jpg
The Hepworth Wakefield and the River Calder
Established 2011
Location Wakefield, West Yorkshire, England
Coordinates Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
Type Art Gallery
Website The Hepworth Wakefield

The Hepworth Wakefield is an art gallery in Wakefield, West Yorkshire, England, which opened on 21 May 2011. The gallery is situated on the south side of the River Calder and takes its name from artist and sculptor Barbara Hepworth who was born and educated in the city.[1]

The gallery was designed by British architect David Chipperfield, who won an architectural design competition managed by RIBA Competitions[2] and was built by Laing O'Rourke with funding from Wakefield Council, Arts Council England and the Heritage Lottery Fund. Yorkshire Forward, the Homes and Communities Agency, and the European Regional Development Fund have also supported the building of the gallery alongside a number of charitable trusts, corporations and private individuals. The Hepworth Wakefield is a registered charity under English law.[3]

The gallery cost £35 million to build.[4] Five weeks after opening it had received 100,000 visitors.[5] In May 2012 it celebrated its first birthday, having received over 500,000 visitors in the year.[6]

Architecture

The Hepworth Wakefield is a structure composed of ten trapezoidal blocks; its upper-level galleries are lit by natural light from large windows in the pitched roofs.[7] Its windows have views of the river, historic waterfront and the city skyline. The building's façade is clad with self-compacting pigmented concrete made on site, the first of its kind in the United Kingdom. The architects selected the material to emphasise the gallery's sculptural appearance. The gallery has ground-floor visitor facilities, including a café bar overlooking the river, a learning studio, a 100-seat auditorium and shop.[8] The building's brutalist design is not universally popular with local people.[9]

Collection

The Hepworth Wakefield's 1,600 square metres (17,000 sq ft) of purpose-built gallery space houses 44 plaster and aluminum working models donated by Dame Barbara Hepworth's family and temporary exhibitions of contemporary art.[10] Items from Wakefield's art collection which spans the 16th century to the present day are on display, including works by Henry Moore, who was born in Castleford in the Wakefield district, Ben Nicholson, Graham Sutherland, Paul Nash, Jacob Epstein, Walter Sickert, Anthony Caro, Ivon Hitchens, LS Lowry, and David Hockney.[8][11]

The gallery is a partner of Plus Tate, a project aimed at increasing public access to the national collection of British and international modern and contemporary art.[12]

Awards

A year after opening, The Hepworth Wakefield was named Regional Building of the Year for 2012 by the Royal Institute of British Architects.[13] The gallery was short-listed for the Art Fund Prize in 2012.[14]

See also

References

  1. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  2. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  3. ↑ THE HEPWORTH WAKEFIELD OPERATING TRUST, Registered Charity no. 1138117 at the Charity Commission
  4. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  5. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  6. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  7. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  9. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  10. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  11. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  12. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  13. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  14. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.

External links

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