Houghton Hall to present works by acclaimed British sculptor Stephen Cox with pieces conceived and produced all over the world
A major exhibition by an acclaimed British sculptor will be presented across the park, gardens and interiors of a historic stately home.
Stephen Cox’s exhibition at Houghton Hall will represent the largest and most comprehensive group of work he has ever shown - running from May 4 until September 28.
Spanning more than 40 years, it will include work conceived and produced all over the world from India to Egypt, Italy and the UK.
Around 20 sculptures in marble and stone will be placed in the landscape, while smaller works will be installed in the state rooms on the first floor of the house, where William Kent’s exuberant decorative scheme has hardly changed since it was created in the early 18th century.
A modern gallery space in the south wing of the house will show a group of works on paper together with a large marble and porphyry sculpture, Shrine, which was created for the celebrated Encounters exhibition at the National Gallery in 2000.
A spokesperson for Houghton Hall said: “Stephen Cox is one of the most acclaimed British artists of his generation, best known for his monumental works in stone.
“His work is known worldwide, with celebrated exhibitions including MOMA, New York, The National Gallery and Tate Britain in London.”
Using traditional techniques, he has carved marble, alabaster and porphyry, and was the first artist for many centuries to gain access to the Imperial Porphyry Quarries in the Eastern Mountains of Egypt.
His works are in many private and public collections around the world, with government and corporate commissions in India and Egypt as well as in Britain. He was elected a Royal Academician in 2006.
Stephen said: “I work amongst diverse cultures and look for the imaginative which, like poetry, gives us ‘meaning’ without definition.
“We speculate on our origins, but we carry the answers in the very ‘matter’ of our being. In India the ancient cycles of Hinduism are rendered with narratives elicited from stone-forming magical spectres, where dance initiates the beginning of Time and creatures in its thrall.
“From the geology of ancient Egypt, we see ‘drawing’, in intractable mediums, the creation that describes the architecture of our Earth floating in the starstruck heavens.”
Lord Cholmondeley, owner of Houghton Hall, said: “Twenty years after we installed his elegant sculpture, Interior Space, in the woods at Houghton, we are delighted to be hosting this major retrospective of Stephen's work, spanning four decades.
“With the ancient civilisations of Egypt, India and Rome as his inspirations, he is unique amongst contemporary artists in using the rarest of marbles, Imperial Porphyry, as one of his main materials."
The exhibition is organised by the Houghton Arts Foundation, supported by the Rothschild Foundation and with key assistance from the artist.
Tickets to attend the exhibition are £22 when booked online and £24 at the gate.
Those who are 18 years old and below can enter for free and students can attend for a reduced cost of £10. To book tickets visit: https://www.houghtonhall.com
Houghton Hall welcomes pre-booked groups, schools and colleges and runs an education programme.
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