{"id":66503,"date":"2026-09-24T16:21:26","date_gmt":"2026-09-24T15:21:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thefamilygrapevine.co.uk\/midsussex\/?p=66503"},"modified":"2026-09-24T16:22:38","modified_gmt":"2026-09-24T15:22:38","slug":"the-exhibition-that-changes-with-the-weather-landmark-henry-moore-sculpture-showcase-takes-on-new-life-at-kew-wakehurst","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thefamilygrapevine.co.uk\/midsussex\/2026\/09\/24\/the-exhibition-that-changes-with-the-weather-landmark-henry-moore-sculpture-showcase-takes-on-new-life-at-kew-wakehurst\/","title":{"rendered":"The exhibition that changes with the weather: landmark Henry Moore sculpture showcase takes on new life at Kew Wakehurst"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t<div data-elementor-type=\"wp-post\" data-elementor-id=\"66503\" class=\"elementor elementor-66503\" data-elementor-post-type=\"post\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-117b3c7 e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"117b3c7\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-c785ba6 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"c785ba6\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<ul><li><strong>Year-long outdoor exhibition<\/strong><em><strong> <span data-contrast=\"auto\">Henry Moore and more<\/span><\/strong><\/em><strong><span data-contrast=\"auto\"> evolves through the seasons at Kew Wakehurst in Sussex<\/span> <\/strong><\/li><li data-aria-level=\"1\" data-aria-posinset=\"1\" data-list-defn-props=\"{\" data-listid=\"1\" data-font=\"Symbol\" data-leveltext=\"\u00b7\" aria-setsize=\"-1\"><strong><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Four Moore bronzes sit alongside two contemporary world-premiere commissions and one UK premiere from artists Rana Begum, Rafael P\u00e9rez Evans and Paloma Varga Weisz <\/span><\/strong><\/li><li data-aria-level=\"1\" data-aria-posinset=\"1\" data-list-defn-props=\"{\" data-listid=\"1\" data-font=\"Symbol\" data-leveltext=\"\u00b7\" aria-setsize=\"-1\"><strong><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Autumn brings a new backdrop to the exhibition, with shifting light, weather and foliage continually reframing the sculptures in this unique outdoor gallery <\/span><\/strong><\/li><li data-aria-level=\"1\" data-aria-posinset=\"1\" data-list-defn-props=\"{\" data-listid=\"1\" data-font=\"Symbol\" data-leveltext=\"\u00b7\" aria-setsize=\"-1\"><em><strong><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Henry Moore and more<\/span><\/strong><\/em><strong>\u00a0<span data-contrast=\"auto\">runs until 23 May 2027 and is included in garden entry<\/span><\/strong><\/li><li data-aria-level=\"1\" data-aria-posinset=\"1\" data-list-defn-props=\"{\" data-listid=\"1\" data-font=\"Symbol\" data-leveltext=\"\u00b7\" aria-setsize=\"-1\"><strong><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Presented in partnership with the Henry Moore Foundation\u00a0<\/span><\/strong><\/li><\/ul><p>\u00a0<\/p><p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">At Kew Wakehurst, <a href=\"https:\/\/74n5c4m7.r.eu-west-1.awstrack.me\/L0\/https:%2F%2Fwww.kew.org%2Fwakehurst%2Fwhats-on%2Fhenry-moore-and-more%3Futm_source=press%26utm_medium=press%26utm_content=henrymoorepr%26utm_campaign=w-press\/1\/010201a0d3c2093d-3cc971be-617e-42f6-9bde-84227e2e4294-000000\/tpaNL_y-B1djiz9tiimWjluGulM=473\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Henry Moore and more<\/a> is entering a new season.\u00a0<\/span><\/p><p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">As autumn approaches, changing foliage, atmospheric light and shifting weather patterns are transforming the setting for the year-long outdoor exhibition, offering visitors a fresh perspective on works by Henry Moore and contemporary artists Rana Begum, Rafael P\u00e9rez Evans and Paloma Varga Weisz.\u00a0<\/span><\/p><p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">The decision to showcase these striking sculptures in <a href=\"https:\/\/74n5c4m7.r.eu-west-1.awstrack.me\/L0\/https:%2F%2Fwww.kew.org%2Fwakehurst%3Futm_source=press%26utm_medium=press%26utm_content=henrymooreautumnpr%26utm_campaign=w-press\/1\/010201a0d3c2093d-3cc971be-617e-42f6-9bde-84227e2e4294-000000\/BymNC8TjTD7-B3JmikAOHUUjyy8=473\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Wakehurst<\/a>\u2019s 535-acre wild botanic garden reflects a growing appetite for experiencing ambitious art beyond traditional gallery walls. Exposed to the elements and shifting seasons, the works are reframed by ever-changing light, weather, trees and terrain.\u00a0<\/span><\/p><p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Henry Moore was an early champion for seeing sculpture in the open air, where natural light and landscape could become part of the experience of the work. His four bronzes at Wakehurst: <em>Reclining Figure<\/em> (1982); <em>Mother and Child: Block Seat <\/em>(1983\u201384); <\/span><em><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Relief No. 1<\/span><\/em><span data-contrast=\"auto\"> (1959); and<em> Reclining Connected Forms<\/em><\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\"> (1969) are continually recontextualised as the landscape moves from the rich colours of autumn and the cooler hues of winter through to the bright tones of spring.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p><p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">For Bangladesh-born, London-based artist Rana Begum RA, weather is part of the work itself. Her 14-metre site-specific commission, <em>No.1604 Mesh<\/em>, plays with perception as it blends and contrasts with its natural surrounds when viewed from different angles across the seasons. Constructed using timber from fallen Wakehurst trees and industrial fencing, the zig-zag piece explores the tension between the man-made and the natural. Visitors can trace the colour palette that inspired Begum\u2019s piece through the year, from the golden amber of autumn to the vivid bark of the Dogwood (<em>Cornus alba \u2018Sibirica\u2019<\/em>) that flourishes in Wakehurst&#8217;s <a href=\"https:\/\/74n5c4m7.r.eu-west-1.awstrack.me\/L0\/https:%2F%2Fwww.kew.org%2Fwakehurst%2Fwhats-at-wakehurst%2Fwinter-garden%3Futm_source=press%26utm_medium=press%26utm_content=henrymooreautumnpr%26utm_campaign=w-press\/1\/010201a0d3c2093d-3cc971be-617e-42f6-9bde-84227e2e4294-000000\/EPcHNuH6CV1f8W_dKiZRIWBkGS4=473\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Winter Garden<\/a>.\u00a0<\/span><\/p><p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">In <em>Horizontals<\/em>, Rafael P\u00e9rez Evans gives new purpose to trees lost to Ash dieback at Wakehurst. Carefully carved into six wooden beds, the sculptures invite visitors to lie down amidst the UK&#8217;s official National <em>Nothofagus <\/em>Collection of southern beech trees and experience the landscape from a different perspective. Inspired by P\u00e9rez Evans\u2019 personal experience of lying beneath a tree at Wakehurst,\u00a0the work creates space to stop, rest and dwell on seasonal changes in the canopy, light, temperature, scent and more. Forming a radical statement in a world that seeks constant stimulation, <em>Horizontals <\/em>seeks to create time for relief and reconnection.\u00a0<\/span><\/p><p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">In the Mansion gardens, three bronze figures from Paloma Varga Weisz\u2019s <em>Wilde Leute<\/em> series, shown in the UK for the first time, bring a different dialogue with each season. As autumn&#8217;s bronze hues flush through the Acers (<em>Acer palmatum<\/em>) visitors can enjoy the reflected glory of both sculptures and nature across the Mansion Pond. The solid bronze sculptures remain constant whilst the living landscape changes around them, drawing attention to nature\u2019s continual cycle of growth, decay and renewal.\u00a0<\/span><\/p><p><strong><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Eva Owen, Programme Manager at Kew Wakehurst says,<\/span><\/strong><span data-contrast=\"auto\"> \u201cOne of the joys of <em>Henry Moore and more<\/em> <\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">is that the exhibition is continually being reframed by the natural world around it. In our living gallery, each season offers an opportunity to discover new viewpoints. We hope visitors will return, slow down and discover how the vivid colours and softer light of autumn followed by the more exposed backdrop of winter bring new dimension to each of the sculptures.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p><p><strong><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Sebastiano Bassi, Head of Henry Moore Collections &amp; Programmes at the Henry Moore Foundation says,<\/span><\/strong><span data-contrast=\"auto\"> \u201cShowing sculpture outdoors is never simply a case of finding space. The landscape becomes part of the curatorial conversation. Moore understood the profound importance of the relationship between a work and its surroundings, and how they change over time. At Wakehurst, the placement of each work has been shaped by careful consideration of the landscape itself and the contemporary artists each bring a fascinating new perspective to that conversation.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p><p><a href=\"https:\/\/74n5c4m7.r.eu-west-1.awstrack.me\/L0\/https:%2F%2Fwww.kew.org%2Fwakehurst%2Fwhats-on%2Fhenry-moore-and-more%3Futm_source=press%26utm_medium=press%26utm_content=henrymoorepr%26utm_campaign=w-press\/2\/010201a0d3c2093d-3cc971be-617e-42f6-9bde-84227e2e4294-000000\/e3beUNeTCke7yUu7kbY59LYLV5Q=473\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span data-ccp-charstyle=\"Hyperlink\">Henry Moore and more<\/span><\/a> <span data-contrast=\"auto\">runs at Kew Wakehurst until 23 May 2027 and is included in garden entry and free for Kew and Wakehurst Members.\u00a0 Visitors can also enjoy a landmark exhibition of Moore\u2019s work across Kew Gardens &#8211; <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/74n5c4m7.r.eu-west-1.awstrack.me\/L0\/https:%2F%2Fwww.kew.org%2Fkew-gardens%2Fwhats-on%2Fhenry-moore%3Futm_source=press%26utm_medium=press%26utm_term=henrymooreautumnpr%26utm_content=henrymooreautumnpr%26utm_campaign=w-press\/1\/010201a0d3c2093d-3cc971be-617e-42f6-9bde-84227e2e4294-000000\/9Ish3Buf6B1VbJbg7Vu4dp97HSI=473\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span data-ccp-charstyle=\"Hyperlink\">Henry Moore: Monumental Nature<\/span><\/a><span data-contrast=\"auto\"> is open daily and runs to 31 January 2027.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p><p>\u00a0<\/p><p><em>Image: Henry Moore, Reclining Connected Forms, 1969 \u00a9 Henry Moore Foundation, Photo: Jim Holden <\/em><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Year-long outdoor exhibition Henry Moore and more evolves through the seasons at Kew Wakehurst in Sussex Four Moore bronzes sit alongside two contemporary world-premiere commissions and one UK premiere from artists Rana Begum, Rafael P\u00e9rez Evans and Paloma Varga Weisz Autumn brings a new backdrop to the exhibition, with shifting light, weather and foliage continually [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":12,"featured_media":66505,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1635],"tags":[],"directory-category":[],"event_categories":[],"class_list":["post-66503","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-exhibition"],"acf":[],"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-10-02 13:39:28","action":"change-status","newStatus":"trash","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/thefamilygrapevine.co.uk\/midsussex\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/66503","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/thefamilygrapevine.co.uk\/midsussex\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/thefamilygrapevine.co.uk\/midsussex\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thefamilygrapevine.co.uk\/midsussex\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/12"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thefamilygrapevine.co.uk\/midsussex\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=66503"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/thefamilygrapevine.co.uk\/midsussex\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/66503\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":66509,"href":"https:\/\/thefamilygrapevine.co.uk\/midsussex\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/66503\/revisions\/66509"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thefamilygrapevine.co.uk\/midsussex\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/66505"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/thefamilygrapevine.co.uk\/midsussex\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=66503"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thefamilygrapevine.co.uk\/midsussex\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=66503"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thefamilygrapevine.co.uk\/midsussex\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=66503"},{"taxonomy":"directory-category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thefamilygrapevine.co.uk\/midsussex\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/directory-category?post=66503"},{"taxonomy":"event_categories","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thefamilygrapevine.co.uk\/midsussex\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/event_categories?post=66503"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}