For a man who was born in the remote Swiss village of Sent, Not Vital is a seriously global sculptor. The nomadic artist has ongoing projects as far-flung as Rio de Janeiro, Bataan, Niger – and now Wakefield.
Until January next year, Yorkshire Sculpture Park in the Bretton Hall Estate will display an extensive range of Vital's work. Each nook of the 18th century grounds has been occupied by a visionary Vital piece, including Let 100 Flowers Bloom (2008), which is scattered across the park's lengthy terrace. This complex installation comprises a century of elegant lotus buds on 3m-long stems, rendered in stainless steel.
Vital's smaller works are equally as eye-catching. Down in the Underground Gallery, visitors stumble upon Snowball (1999), a delicate glass globe encasing what appears to be a hand-formed ball of snow, evocative of Vital's wintry birthplace. Here, paintings and more fragile works are sensibly shielded from the Yorkshire elements.
Back in the open air of the parkland, Big Tongue (1996–97) nestles near the mouth of Bothy Gardens, and HEADS (2014) stand tall against the dark green of a historic yew hedge. Despite their contemporary shine, YSP director of programme Clare Lilley notes that 'the works bear resemblance to 18th century follies' – it feels like they could have lived in the grounds for years.
Their natural appearance belies their tricky installation. 'Siting an almost 8m-high tongue in a late snow blizzard wasn’t the easiest,' confirms Lilley. 'And the huge ceramic HEADS came from Jingdezhen in the south of China on a very slow boat. They nearly missed the party.'
Despite the diverse and eclectic range of sculptures, the display is effortlessly cohesive. 'It’s not easy to imagine an exhibition when you’ve only ever seen its components in different parts of the world, but this far exceeds my expectations,' she concludes. Each sculpture poetically reflects the place it was created, but all bear Vital's signature, unifying touch.
The nomadic artist has ongoing projects in locales as far-flung as Rio de Janeiro, Bataan and Niger. Pictured: Moon, 2015
The 18th century grounds have been filled with visionary Vital pieces. Pictured: Let 100 Flowers Bloom, 2008, is scattered across the park's lengthy terrace
Vital's smaller works are just as eye-catching as his larger, monumental ones. Pictured: installation view of the Underground Gallery
Down in the Underground Gallery, visitors stumble upon Snowball (1999), a delicate glass globe encasing what appears to be a hand-formed ball of snow, evoking Vital's wintry birthplace. Pictured: Snowball, 1999
Here, paintings and more fragile works are shielded from the Yorkshire elements
Back in the open air of the parkland, Big Tongue nestles near the mouth of Bothy Gardens. Pictured: Big Tongue, 1996–97
YSP director of programme Clare Lilley explains, 'the huge ceramic HEADS came from Jingdezhen in the south of China on a very slow boat. They nearly missed the party.' Pictured: HEADS, 2015
INFORMATION
'Not Vital' is on view until 2 January 2017. For more information, visit the Yorkshire Sculpture Park website
Photography coutesy the artist and YSP
ADDRESS
Yorkshire Sculpture Park
West Bretton
Wakefield, WF4 4LG
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