ExtraOrdinary Measures saw Belsay Hall, Castle and Gardens transformed once more by contemporary artists.
Responding to this unique historic setting, six artists were commissioned to make new work that reflected upon the emotions that visitors experience as they walk through the Belsay site: where the miniscule was made massive, huge surroundings hid tiny surprises and the historic buildings held something new.
English Heritage commissioned new works all inspired by the setting of Belsay Hall Castle and Gardens. These were created by a range of internationally acclaimed artists, including Ron Mueck, Slinkachu, Mat Collishaw, Tessa Farmer, Mariele Neudecker and Freddie Robins. The theme of the exhibition explored and played with concepts of scale. It was developed by Judith King, curator of the English Heritage contemporary programme.
“Once again, Belsay Hall, Castle and Gardens has prompted imaginative and exciting new work from some of the world’s most inventive and prestigious visual artists. This is the sixth major exhibition to be held at Belsay and it attracted over 66,000 visitors to this exceptional heritage site where it was viewed in a new and unusual way.” said Judith.
Ron Mueck made four new works for Belsay and installed them within the vast rooms of Belsay Hall. Two existing works - 'Wild Man' and 'Spooning Couple' were loaned by TATE and The National Galleries of Scotland. These presented a stark and poignant visual when placed in the vast, empty Belsay library.
For the fourteenth century castle, Mat Collishaw made a new spinning zoetrope that took the Belsay Gardens as its starting point. One hundred and forty-eight hand-painted figures and animals spun and flashed before visitors' eyes to present a magical optical illusion.
Mariele Neudecker made an impressive sculptural work for the romantic quarry gardens - an eleven metre replica of the Belsay Hall Dining Room window, dwarfing visitors as they walked through the middle pane; whilst Freddie Robins’ mournful knitted version of the Greek tale of Theseus and Ariadne had to be peered at through a Victorian shop window front.
Street artist Slinkachu left his urban domain to leave his tiny population of day trippers to fend for themselves in the Belsay Gardens. Before abandoning them to their fate, he photographed them as they ate their sandwiches, lounged in deckchairs or stared bemused at giant cigarette stubs.
Evidence of their tiny and fleeting lives were presented as twelve photographic panels within the grounds.
Tessa Farmer created a tableaux of astonishing skill and imagination where her tiny, malicious fairies embarked upon a vicious battle with red and grey squirrels, located within the intimate rocky ‘grotto'.
As part of the ExtraOrdinary Measures education programme, Newcastle based Mosedale Gillat architects worked with Pete Young to create Scalesdale - a miniature model village that grew from a tiny cluster of houses to a sprawling urban environment, its development dictated by public vote.
