Henry Moore in Kew Gardens

The Palm House on an Autumn afternoon

11" x 16", pencil and coloured pencils
copyright Katherine Tyrrell

...otherwise known as monumental sculpture in a world heritage setting!

At the end of October last year, we visited Kew Gardens on a sunny afternoon in order to get a lot of a fresh air, see the trees on the turn, walk a lot, sketch a bit and view some of the very many works by Henry Moore which are currently dotted around the Gardens until the end of March. You can see images of all the works on the Henry Moore Foundation website

The Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew is hosting a landmark exhibition of monumental works by Henry Moore. 28 large-scale bronzes have been exhibited throughout Kew’s unique 300 acre World Heritage Site. There have been previous exhibitions of Moore’s work in the capital but never on such a scale and in a landscape setting and the exhibition will include some pieces that have never been seen in London......
Each site at Kew has been specifically selected to ensure maximum impact complementing and enhancing the 300 year old gardens. The selection includes Moore’s familiar figurative themes, as well as more rugged powerful works that hold their own alongside the historic buildings, exceptional landscapes and vistas at Kew.
Henry Moore Foundation

The sketch at the top is of the Palm House from the seat outside the Lily House. It was about three o'clock in the afternoon and the low sunlight was producing a very weird orange sheen on the glass.

I think we ended up walking round most of the Henry Moore sculpture trail before getting to a bit of a garden where we don't often stray - and where I found a big surprise - which is the subject of today's post on Making A Mark!

I'm amazed that Kew Gardens hasn't been used before for major sculpture shows - the works by Moore work terribly well in the gardens. Here are some of my photos of them

‘Landscape has been for me one of the sources of my energy… I find that all natural forms are a source of unending interest – tree trunks… the texture and variety of grasses… The whole of Nature is an endless demonstration of shape and form.' (Henry Moore; Energy in Space, 1973)

There are still some creative workshops taking place - including a wood carving one which starts tomorrow and a drawing one in March - Drawing Inspired by Nature.

You can also see how other people - including ordinary members of the public - have interpreted the exhibition in the Photo showcase site - the images displayed change each week and you can see all the photo showcase entries on Flickr.

Links:

• Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew
  
• Monumental sculpture in a world heritage setting (micro-site)
  
• Henry Moore at Kew Gardens (press release)
  
• The Henry Moore Foundation
• The Henry Moore Foundation: Henry Moore at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew
• Moore at Kew - photography
  
• photo showcase
• showcase entries on Flickr
  
• TimesOnline - Henry Moore in Kew Gardens