new with the old

August 27th, 2009

courtesy of Barry Keen

Waddesdon Manor is sure to attract the Hoxton hipsters with the addition of a new modern art gallery at the trad manse outside London.

Waddesdon – one of the National Trust‘s most popular sites and free to visit for members of The Royal Oak Foundation  –  might be known best as the stomping grounds of the Rothschilds (yes, those Rothschilds) and now is set to be a modern art mecca, having converted the former stables into a sleek space.  A bona fide collector for decades, Lord Jacob Rothschild (recipient of ROF’s Timeless Design award in October) has turned his gaze forward with the new space, a slight departure from the classical works that decorate the walls and halls of the estate.  Case in point: the opening exhibition featuring the works of one of the original Young British Artists, Angus Fairhurst.

Fairhurst, a classmate of Damien Hirst at Goldsmiths College, was part of the now-famous student show Freeze, launching the YBAs.  Fairhurst tragically passed away last year, but visitors can appreciate his sculpture and work through the end of October.

The new space symbolizes the changing face of Waddesdon – a historic house with a difference, one looking forward rather than towards the past.

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