Radical Horizons at Chatsworth

 The Radical Horizons sculpture festival has been running all summer at Chatsworth, but, true to form, it took me till last week, with the event closing at the end of the month, to actually get round to going. As with a lot of things I haven't done this summer, I'm blaming the heat. 

I always looked forward to the Sotheby's exhibitions that were held in the Chatsworth gardens each autumn but these works are on a totally different scale - huge structures that definitely need the wider spaces offered by the parkland.

Wings of Glory by Adrian Landon

The trail around them is a couple of miles in length, so the actual walking doesn't take long - it's the admiring, the getting-up-close-to-see-details, sometimes the wondering-whatever-it-is, that takes time. 

The Flybrary by Christina Sporrong

Transmutation by Arturo Gonzalez and Maru Izaguirre

Wings of Wind by Bryan Tedrick

Chatsworth Bottle Towers by Shrine

Lodestar by Randy Polumbo

Relevee by Rebekah Waites

Le Attrata by Margaret Long and Orion Fredricks

My favourites were those in which metal had been sculpted to take on the appearance of flesh and muscle (Wings of Glory), gossamer wings ( Le Attrata), or the human face and shimmering scales of a mermaid (Coralee)

Coralee by Dana Albany

Mum by Mr and Mrs Ferguson

Stone 40 by Benjamin Langholz 

Stone 40 is definitely the most 'Chatsworth' of the exhibits - stones to represent the Peak District, a work of art which can be played on (though tbh I found it rather wobbly) 

Most of these are in the open park, but Murder Inc by Charles Gadeken is inside the entrance gates to the house, which were shut by the time we arrived. At first  we couldn't spot the sculpture at all, and assumed it must be slightly hidden from the gates. Then we realised the crows pecking at the grass weren't real, but a metallic gathering, or 'murder'. I wonder if some real crows were hiding among them?

Lakeside Walk at Kedleston

The weather forecast for this week was looking pretty dire - rain interspersed with thunder and lightning - so when Monday looked unexpectedly dry we seized the day and headed to Kedleston. 

It turned out to be a lovely day. The sun came out, blue sky reflected in the lakes, and a gentle breeze blew. I thought it was just right, but the sheep still found it best to hide under trees in an attempt to keep cool!

From the Hall we ambled (because let's face it, I'm not hurrying anywhere) upstream, past weirs and lakes till we reached the steeping stones which are almost at the furthest extent of the grounds.

Here we crossed over, (very carefully but at least I didn't fall in) and headed back down the opposite bank of the stream. It's not a long walk but it's quite a lovely one, and there are geese, ducks and other wildfowl to be spotted along the way - plus the excitement of stepping stones!

 

Starting to feel like autumn

The end-of-August Bank Holiday is here, families are getting ready for back-to-school, and autumn definitely feels just around the corner.

At Shipley Country Park earlier this week there were plenty of signs of the subtle slide towards winter.

 

The leaves crunching underfoot were mainly due to the drought rather than shortening days but seeds are drifting on the breeze, apples and plums ripening in the community orchard, and berries and nuts hanging on the trees. 

It's time to start thinking of harvesting allotment produce, of filling the freezer with tomatoes and blackberries as reminders of summer,  of hearty dinners made with brassicas and beans, and of spending rainy days indoors knitting. Maybe with luck there'll be a few more weeks of sunshine before that though.

 

Up Among the Heather

After our visit to Chatsworth last week, I wanted to head up to the moors above Baslow to see the heather in bloom.

It's only a few miles away, and stretches an afternoon trip out into an evening one instead of dashing home, There's a car park almost at the top - so no uphill walking involved - and I could see for miles around, with purple flowers underfoot and colouring the distant hillsides.

It was getting late in the day and although the sun was still shining it wasn't quite as fiercely as earlier, so cooler and pleasanter for walking. 

We walked south from the National Trust car park, following Baslow Edge with its weirdly shaped rock formations.

Looking back north, beyond the car park (hidden behind trees to the right) to Curbar Edge.

After a kilometer or so the edge starts to drop down towards Baslow village but a track leads east to Wellington monument, and then leads back in a straighter line across the moor. 

Somewhere in the middle distance is Chatsworth, though the house is hidden by trees.

This is the first time I've walked to the monument, and for some reason I was expecting something taller and grander. It seems quite modest.

The route back took us by the Eagle stone, which sits in the middle of moorland like it's just been dropped from space. 

I saw some people climbing it but even without going to that much effort the views are magnificent.

 The only thing to spoil the evening was our choice of day - every few yards along the path flying ants were struggling out of their nests and trying to take to the air.  It's a beautiful place to sit and watch the sun go down - but not with so many ants around!