Lynn Chadwick at Houghton Hall

Opening on 2 May 2026, Houghton Hall presents a major exhibition of sculpture by the celebrated post-war British artist Lynn Chadwick CBE (1914–2003). Spanning four decades of the artist's career, from the 1950s to the 1990s, this presentation showcases previously unseen and rarely exhibited works alongside Chadwick's best-known sculptures, set across the house and grounds.

It is the largest exhibition of Chadwick's work in the UK in more than two decades, following his death and the 2003 retrospective at Tate Britain's Duveen Galleries. Curated by Pangolin London, the exhibition presents thirty works across multiple exterior and interior sites at Houghton, including early works, a powerful group of dynamic beasts, kinetic sculptures, and a selection of his celebrated paired figures ('Couples'), all set in dialogue with the Neo-Palladian architecture and extensive parklands.

Chadwick came to sculpture through unconventional means — originally training as an architectural draughtsman before turning to mobile constructions for trade fairs. Unlike many of his contemporaries, his practice was rooted in construction rather than modelling. Working primarily in bronze, he moved from kinetic mobiles in the late 1940s to the iconic angular figures — often paired and drawn from human and animal forms — from the 1950s onwards. The work is characterised by tension, attitude, and rich surface textures.

Chadwick came to international prominence in 1952 with his inclusion in the British Council's New Aspects of British Sculpture at the XXVI Venice Biennale. In 1956 he returned to the British Pavilion, where he won the International Prize for Sculpture, beating Alberto Giacometti. He remains the youngest sculptor ever to receive the award. Seventy years on, this anniversary offers a timely moment to revisit Chadwick's pivotal role in the history of post-war British sculpture.

The exhibition is organised by the Houghton Arts Foundation, supported by Pangolin London and the Estate of Lynn Chadwick.