An art gallery featuring large sculptures made of rope. The space is bright and minimalistic, with various rope structures of different heights and textures. A wooden tripod stands in the centre, surrounded by intricate rope designs.
Plan your visit

LR Vandy: Rise

– The Weston Gallery, The Weston, Outdoors

About LR Vandy: Rise

Rise is an ambitious first solo museum exhibition by LR Vandy, created for The Weston Gallery with many works made on site at YSP.

Vandy has transformed the gallery into an immersive environment dominated by a soaring rope maypole. The twisting structure draws on the idea of the maypole as a site of communal gathering, ritual, and collective movement. Using the form and texture of rope, Vandy's work explores the textile industry’s role in Britain’s industrial history, and ongoing examination of labour, pattern, and material legacy.

  • A large, sculptural installation made of thick, coiled rope hangs from the ceiling, resembling a spinning top. The minimalist gallery space features a white wall with a star-shaped artwork in the background, enhancing the contemporary aesthetic.
  • An art installation featuring large, intricately woven rope sculptures in a bright, modern gallery. The central piece resembles a conical shape, surrounded by smaller sculptures on pedestals, with natural light streaming through the skylights above.
  • A person stands in an art gallery, observing a sculpture on a pedestal. Surrounding them are large, intricate rope installations hanging from the ceiling and walls, creating a textured and immersive environment. Natural light filters in through skylights.

Standing five metres high outside The Weston, Dancing in Time: The Ties That Bind Us was commissioned by National Museums Liverpool for the International Slavery Museum’s Martin Luther King Pop Up series. First displayed on the Liverpool Waterfront it will now overlook the Park's historic landscape.

Entry to The Weston Gallery is free. To discover more artworks throughout the Park, purchase a YSP General Admission Ticket. Parking is free and kids go free.

  • A large, textured broom with a thick, woven handle and a bushy bristle head stands against a cloudy sky. The focus is on the broom's intricate details and natural materials, creating a striking silhouette.
  • A large, artistic broom made of natural fibres stands against a textured wall. The broom's bristles are bushy and light, contrasting with the earthy tones of the wall and the muted background of trees and a modern building.
  • A large, artistic broom sculpture stands in a gravel area, surrounded by greenery and stone features. The broom has a woven base and a bushy bristle top, contrasting with the modern building in the background under a cloudy sky.
A person with long, grey hair sits on a chair in a workshop, carefully working with thick ropes. Surrounding them are large, woven structures and tools, creating a creative and industrious atmosphere. Natural light filters through the space.

It is an honour to show my work at YSP. This opportunity to create a site-specific installation is a first for me, offering space to expand the scope of my work and ideas to mount a complex, sensory experience rooted in materiality.

My practice centres the hidden human costs of colonialism, transportation systems and commodities, and the knotted histories of trade and power they contain. The title, Rise, references ideas of resilience, protest, liberation and collective joy explored through rituals and dance.

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LR Vandy

  • A close-up of hands wearing grey gloves, holding golden scissors, trimming a large bundle of natural fibre strands. The background features a textured wall of tightly packed, hanging fibres, creating a warm, earthy atmosphere.
  • A collection of thick, natural fibre ropes hanging against a textured background. The ropes are tied with colourful bands of red, blue, and yellow, showcasing various lengths and frayed ends, creating a rustic and industrial aesthetic.
  • A close-up of two hands skillfully working with natural fibres, twisting and shaping them. The background is softly blurred, focusing on the intricate details of the fibres and the hands, suggesting a traditional craft or weaving process.

LR Vandy: Rise is in collaboration with October Gallery.

Exhibition Accessibility

The exhibition is located at The Weston, which has it's own dedicated car park, with disabled parking spaces available. It is an approximately 20-minute walk from the main Visitor Centre through the country park, down a steep sloping hill. Off-road mobility scooters are available to hire from YSP Centre free of charge.

There is flat access to The Weston, via a metal walkway at the front entrance when entering from the car park, or via gravelled pathway at the rear of the building when approaching from the Country Park. The restaurant, shop and gallery space have flat access throughout.

There is bench seating available inside the gallery space, as well as in the restaurant. There are all gender toilet facilities at The Weston, including a dedicated disabled cubicle with grab bars and additional access space. For detailed information on accessibility at The Weston, please see our accessibility guide.

One work is located outdoors at the rear of the building on a gravelled surface. This work can also be viewed from inside the gallery via large windows. 

Accessibility Resources

The following resources are available for this exhibition. If you would like to make use of any of them, just ask a member of YSP staff.

Large Print interpretation
Braille interpretation
Audio version of the exhibition interpretation

Gallery Activities

In The Weston Gallery, pick up the activity sheet, designed to help curious minds of all ages connect to the exhibition, or download it to help you prepare for your visit.

Grab a sensory bag, filled with objects to help you get closer to the artworks in the exhibition, and spend some time enjoying books exploring the themes of the exhibition.

A wooden box filled with various types of rope, including manila rope and synthetic hemp. Each rope is neatly coiled and labelled with blue tags indicating their type. The textures of the ropes are visible, showcasing their natural fibres.

LR Vandy Events

  1. A group of adults and infants interacting with a mirror.
    Event

    Sculpture Baby: LR Vandy

    –
    Spend creative time with your baby and enjoy this sensory session inspired by the dynamic LR Vandy exhibition in The Weston Gallery.
  2. A collection of thick, natural fibre ropes hanging against a textured background. The ropes are tied with colourful bands of red, blue, and yellow, showcasing various lengths and frayed ends, creating a rustic and industrial aesthetic.
    Event

    Patrons and Friends: Curatorial Tour of LR Vandy and Nicola Turner exhibitions

    Exclusively for YSP Patrons and Friends, join curators Sarah Coulson and Louise Lohr for a rare out-of-hours tour of new exhibitions by LR Vandy and Nicola Turner.

LR Vandy Products

Browse the LR Vandy collection at YSP Shop.

  1. LR Vandy: Dancing in Time

    £175.00
    More info

  2. LR Vandy: Concertina Postcard

    £6.00
    More info

  3. LR Vandy: Mini Print

    £12.00
    More info

  4. Jane Sedgwick: Square Brush Pin

    £150.00
    More info

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