The Financial Times explores how contemporary art is bringing new audiences and new ideas to Britain’s historic houses, including Wolterton’s second season of exhibitions with Phyllida Barlow and Daisy Parris.
The feature places Wolterton within a wider movement encompassing houses including Claydon, Chatsworth and Houghton Hall, asking what happens when contemporary artists are invited to engage directly with historic architecture rather than simply exhibit within it.
Discussing Phyllida Barlow: Disruptor, Simon Oldfield explains that Barlow’s sculptures were positioned “deliberately to interfere with the Palladian sightlines”. Reflecting on the risks involved in bringing contemporary work into historic settings, he adds: “I take my hat off to the artists and houses who take the risk, the outcomes are always a bit unpredictable.”
The article considers the growing role contemporary art can play in making historic houses active cultural spaces — attracting new audiences while creating unexpected encounters between art, architecture and history.
Read the full feature in the Financial Times.