Introduction – 30 years of the Harewood Contemporary

30 Years of the Harewood Contemporary

founded by Diane Howse, Countess of Harewood, in 1989

In 1989 artist and curator Diane Howse (now the Countess of Harewood) transformed a space Below Stairs, the Sub-Hall, into what would be the first dedicated contemporary exhibition space in an English Country House, the Terrace Gallery. Other country houses and heritage sites have subsequently embraced the idea of showing the work of contemporary artists alongside their historical collections, but we’re proud to say that Harewood was the first.

Since then Harewood’s contemporary art programme has spread from the Terrace Gallery out into the House, the Gardens, All Saints Church and the wider landscape, reflecting and engaging with the wide range of issues and viewpoints that are represented in today’s cultural and social debate. This exhibition reflects on those 30 years, with a new film – Postcard to the Future – showing here for the first time. We are also launching another first: a publicly accessible online archive 30years.harewood.org which you can browse on iPads in the Gallery.

POSTCARD TO THE FUTURE

The film Postcard to the Future celebrates 30 years of the contemporary programme at Harewood.

In it, Diane Howse discusses her own role and talks to several key figures from Britain’s vibrant cultural sector, including Iwona Blazwick, (Director, Whitechapel Gallery, London); Ronnie Duncan (Art Collector); Peter Murray (Director, Yorkshire Sculpture Park), Nima Poovaya-Smith, (Senior Visiting Research Fellow, University of Leeds); Lins Wilson from the creative team Lord Whitney and Jane Marriott, (Director, Harewood House Trust) Together, they remember some of the highlights of the last 30 years and share their thoughts on Harewood’s impact on Yorkshire’s cultural landscape.

FUTURE FORWARD

Harewood has an extraordinarily rich cultural heritage. But how relevant is this today – and how relevant will it be tomorrow?

Harewood Contemporary has been at the heart of our ongoing re-imagining of what Harewood might be and what it can be. To do that, we will continue to welcome artists, writers, thinkers, designers and makers and encourage them to share their own perspectives on art, nature and life in the 21st century. This year’s exhibition Useful/Beautiful – why craft matters, the first Harewood Biennial celebrating contemporary craft and design and the biggest show of its kind outside London, is one such platform, part of our continued commitment to contemporary art practice, research and education.

BEYOND THE GALLERY

While showing the work of visual artists has been at the heart of Harewood Contemporary, the programme has also included a wide range of events and performances across the other art-forms: poetry, dance, music, film and theatre have all been presented here.

We have embraced everything from Geraldine Connor’s theatrical spectacular Carnival Messiah in 2007 to partnerships with Opera North, Northern School of Contemporary Dance, RJC Dance, Alchemy and Kala Sangam (among many others), giving a platform to everyone, student performers and professional producers alike.