David Nash Seventy One Steps 2010 in the snow at Yorkshire Sculpture Park

David Nash: Seventy-one Steps

Art Outdoors /

David Nash: Seventy-one Steps

David Nash often works with natural materials to make interventions in the landscape. He has a longstanding relationship with YSP and in 2010 was invited to make a permanent work to coincide with his major exhibition in the indoor galleries and open air. After exploring the site, he proposed replacing the existing, worn steps that led up from the lakes towards Oxley Bank and the highest points of the Park.

71 oak slabs were charred and oiled on site before installing, and were placed to work with the lie of the land. The steps are completed by 30 tonnes of coal surrounding the steps, creating a stunning installation that will erode and change over time. Integrated into the landscape and as well as being functional, the work provides a humble reference to our deep-rooted connections with nature.

  • A series of wooden steps cut into a hillside. Trees are in the background.
  • A group of people walking through woodland down David Nash's Seventy One Steps.
  • People walking on a series of wooden steps cut into a hillside. Trees are in the background.

You might also like

  1. A dead tree, suspended between two dry stone walls.
    Art Outdoors

    Andy Goldsworthy: Hanging Trees

  2. David Nash Black Mound 2013 at Yorkshire Sculpture Park
    Art Outdoors

    David Nash: Black Mound

    Black Mound was made for the YSP landscape by David Nash in 2013. Once in place, he charred the oak forms through a carefully controlled burning process that relates to his interest in the four elements.
  3. A cylindrical rusted metal sculpture
    Art Outdoors

    Serge Spitzer: Untitled

    The sculpture creates, encloses and protects its own interior, which can be glimpsed through the spaces held open by rubber pads. Spitzer chose to reflect upon the character and history of the location for his sculpture and to encourage active looking and questioning. It is not immediately clear if the beam emerges from, or supports, the quarry face. When seen from different angles, the sculpture creates different senses of stability and balance, of open and closed spaces.
  4. Three large stones, with trees growing behind them
    Art Outdoors

    David Nash: Three Stones for Three Trees