Programming Art in Open Air: Inside Yorkshire Sculpture Park with Dr. Alex Hodby

Yorkshire Sculpture Park is one of the most distinctive arts institutions in the UK, and indeed in Europe, being the largest sculpture park on the continent. Set across 500 acres of West Yorkshire countryside, it has worked with over 1,000 artists across its 49-year history, and the landscape itself is as much a part of the experience as the work within it.

In this conversation, Alex takes us inside what it means to programme at that scale and in that context.

We talk about

• her path to the role, including her earlier time at YSP and what brought her back
• and what makes programming in an outdoor setting so fundamentally different from working in a traditional gallery or museum

We get into

• how YSP builds and sustains its artist relationships over time
• how accessibility plays out when your gallery is essentially a landscape
• and how the broader conversation around land, ecology, and heritage has shaped the curatorial direction of the programme.

I had a wonderful time up at YSP, so a huge THANK YOU to the team there as well as the lovely team at Sutton for getting me to the sculpture park, allowing me to walk amongst the adorable sheep 🐑, and experience the wonderful ways of outdoor art. ✨👉 I 1000/10 recommend making a trip to West Yorkshire to experience it for yourself! 👈✨

You can follow YSP on Instagram here: https://www.instagram.com/yspsculpture/?hl=en

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ABOUT THE HOST:

I am an Austrian-American art historian, curator, and writer. I obtained my BA in History of Art at University College London and my MA in Arts Administration and Cultural Policy at Goldsmiths, University of London. My specializations are in contemporary art and the contemporary art market along with accessibility, engagement, and the demystification of the professional art sector.

SOCIALS: 

• Instagram⁠ @alexandrasteinacker https://www.instagram.com/alexandrasteinacker
• and LinkedIn at ⁠Alexandra Steinacker-Clark⁠ https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexandra-steinacker/

This episode is produced at Synergy https: //synergy.tech/the-clubhouse/the-podcast-studio/ 

COVER ART: Lisa Schrofner a.k.a Liser⁠ ⁠⁠https://www.liser-art.com/ and Luca Laurence https://www.graffitikunst.at/