Press Release 26/10/20 Yorkshire Sculpture Park announces the reopening of its award-winning gallery, restaurant and shop, ‘The Weston’.
Yorkshire Sculpture Park (YSP) announces the reopening of its award-winning building The Weston, comprising gallery, restaurant and shop. Following a period of closure due to the COVID-19 outbreak, YSP is pleased to welcome visitors back to The Weston from Tuesday 10 November 2020. The Weston will offer an especially warm welcome during the forthcoming winter months, with menu deals and activities mindful of those who might be making solo visits.
Unveiled in 2019 at the East Entrance to YSP, The Weston has become a destination for food, shopping and art in the Yorkshire region. Its RIBA award-winning design, reopens to the public with a new menu, exclusive new products and an exhibition of rare prints by Joan Miró – one of the most important artists of the twentieth century.
The restaurant, with open kitchen and Scandinavian-inspired interior, including a wood-burning stove, offers table service and a fresh, seasonal, and sustainably produced menu. It reopens with a new autumn/winter menu serving festive lunch throughout December – visitors can drop in or reserve a table in advance. The Weston Shop reopens with a selection of new products made exclusively for YSP. The team has recently worked with Black Bridge Distillery to create a new, bespoke gin available only at The Weston. The unique list of ingredients contains botanicals sourced from the YSP landscape including Angelica, pine spruce and lavender – hand-picked by the master distiller to create a delicious blend of flavours. The label for the bottle is designed by artist and illustrator Tom Frost who has previously exhibited at YSP.
YSP has collaborated with independent British designer brand Ally Capellino on a new bag and accessories range including a rucksack, crossbody bag, satchel and toiletry bag, all of which are available at The Weston Shop. Having grown up in Yorkshire, Alison Lloyd, founder and designer of the brand, took inspiration from sculptures in the open-air galleries for this functional, stylish collection made exclusively for YSP. The range features grey waxed canvas outers with a striking shot of mustard lining, together with elements such as the zips, which reference the laser-etched steel plates of the Walk of Art and Walk of Art 2 at the entrance to The Weston.
YSP also reopens The Weston Gallery with an exhibition of vibrant hand-made prints by Spanish artist Joan Miró. Signed or stamped by the artist in his studio in Palma Mallorca, the prints are a legacy of the 2012 exhibition, Miró: Sculptor. The prints, which are also available for sale starting at £330, offer a unique opportunity to own affordable work by this distinguished artist.
YSP Deputy Director, Helen Featherstone, says,
“We are delighted to be reopening The Weston after seven months of closure. We have taken every measure to ensure the building is safe, with one-way systems and capacity reduction in place. We’re looking forward to welcoming people back and hope that it provides a tranquil and comfortable environment for people to relax, enjoy a delicious meal, and peruse a fantastic exhibition and shop.”
The Weston opened at Yorkshire Sculpture Park in March 2019. It was shortlisted for the RIBA Stirling Prize 2019 after winning several awards including the RIBA Yorkshire Award 2019, RIBA Yorkshire Client of the Year Award 2019, RIBA Yorkshire Building of the Year Award 2019, and RIBA National Award 2019. The Weston is reopening to the public with the support from The Garfield Weston Foundation.
Joan Miró, Paysanne Endormie, 1981. Photo © Jonty Wilde, courtesy Yorkshire Sculpture Park. Press enquiries Hannah Pearson, YSP: [email protected] Download images at ysp.org.uk/media
The Weston Listings Information Entry to and car parking at The Weston are free of charge. Tickets continue to be required for access to the rest of YSP. Please visit YSP’s website at ysp.org.uk for further details ahead of your visit. To make a restaurant reservation, please email [email protected] or phone +44 (0) 1924 930004.
Near Wakefield and Barnsley – M1 Junction 38 +44 (0)1924 832631 | ysp.org.uk The Weston open Tuesday – Sunday, 9am – 5pm YSP open seven days a week
Notes to editors
About Yorkshire Sculpture Park Yorkshire Sculpture Park (YSP) is the leading international centre for modern and contemporary sculpture, which celebrated its 40th anniversary in 2017. It is an independent charitable trust and registered museum (number 1067908) situated in the 500-acre, 18th-century Bretton Hall estate in West Yorkshire. Founded in 1977 by Executive Director Peter Murray, YSP was the first sculpture park in the UK, and is the largest of its kind in Europe, providing the only place in Europe to see Barbara Hepworth’s The Family of Man in its entirety alongside a significant collection of sculpture, including bronzes by Henry Moore and site-specific works by Andy Goldsworthy, David Nash, Alfredo Jaar and James Turrell.
YSP mounts a world-class, year-round temporary exhibitions programme including some of the world’s leading artists across six indoor galleries and the open air. Recent highlights include projects by Giuseppe Penone, Chiharu Shiota, Tony Cragg, KAWS, Bill Viola, Fiona Banner, Ai Weiwei, Ursula von Rydingsvard, Amar Kanwar, Yinka Shonibare MBE, Joan Miró, Shirin Neshat, and Joana Vasconcelos. More than 80 works on display across the estate include significant sculptures by Phyllida Barlow, Katrina Palmer, Ai Weiwei, Roger Hiorns, Sean Scully, Elisabeth Frink and Niki de Saint Phalle.
Attracting almost half a million visitors a year prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, YSP’s driving purpose for over 40 years has been to encourage, nurture and sustain interest in and debate around contemporary art and sculpture, especially with those not typically familiar with art participation. It enables open access to art, situations and ideas, and continues to re-evaluate and expand the approach to considering art’s role and relevance in society. Supporting 40,000 people each year through YSP’s learning programme, this innovative work develops ability, confidence and life aspiration in participants.
YSP’s core work is made possible by investment from Arts Council England, Wakefield Council, Liz and Terry Bramall Foundation, and Sakurako and William Fisher through the Sakana Foundation. YSP was named Art Fund Museum of the Year in 2014. www.ysp.org.uk | @YSPsculpture
Creative Case for Diversity Yorkshire Sculpture Park was founded in 1977 to enable fairer cultural access and opportunity and we are committed to being part of change towards a fairer world. We do not tolerate discrimination in any form and are proactive in our programme, policies and behaviours to address inequalities locally, nationally and internationally. We recognise that economic, social and cultural disadvantage is complex and intersectional, and shape our activity accordingly. Diversity and equality are crucial to the arts because they release the true potential of our nation’s artistic talent – from every background. At YSP, we support Arts Council England’s mission – great art and culture for everyone. We share ACE’s commitment to promote and embed diversity in our workforce and cultural programme. This is called the ‘Creative Case for Diversity’.
Yorkshire Sculpture Park core funders: