Lygia Clark
in ‘Making New Worlds: Li Yuan-chia & Friends’, Kettle’s Yard, Cambridge
11 November 2023 – 18 February 2024
‘Making New Worlds: Li Yuan-chia & Friends’, 2023, exhibition view, Kettle’s Yard, Cambridge. Courtesy: © Kettle’s Yard, Cambridge; photo: Jo Underhill. Lygia Clark represented by Alison Jacques.
Lygia Clark is included in ‘Making New Worlds: Li Yuan-chia & Friends’ at Kettle’s Yard, Cambridge. This group exhibition is based on the pioneering vision of artist Li Yuan-chia (1929 – 1994) and the LYC Museum & Art Gallery which he founded and ran between 1972 and 1983 in the Cumbrian village of Banks, alongside Hadrian’s Wall.
The exhibition retraces Li’s commitment to fostering creativity, his interest in play and his investment in new ways of being in the world. Through the LYC, Li showcased Roman artefacts, works by major figures of British modernism, local artists and contemporary practices including kineticism, land art and video. The LYC’s children’s room provided a place for young people to experiment with art making, while craft workshops played host to communities of making. Much like Kettle’s Yard, the LYC also had a library, a garden, and spaces to socialise, transforming how we encounter art.
The exhibition puts the LYC into conversation with Kettle’s Yard. Both projects evolved over time, with collections (in the case of Kettle’s Yard) and exhibitions (in the case of the LYC) being shaped through friendships and personal affiliations, including with the artist Winifred Nicholson, who was an important presence at both the LYC and Kettle’s Yard.