Salvaged steel sculptures by one of the UK's most significant 20th-century artists, Anthony Caro, and his successor James Capper are on free display in the Oxfordshire countryside. The exhibition, titled Heavy Metal, is hosted at Albion Barn and Fields, where visitors can explore fields, woods, and an orchard while encountering striking works made from reclaimed industrial materials.
Free access to art in nature
Michael Hue-Williams, director and owner of Albion Barn, said he dislikes conventional sculpture parks. 'I like the idea of suddenly seeing a sculpture emerge. You walk around for a while and just discover something wonderful as if by chance.' Visitors can book free tickets but must not climb on the sculptures.
Anthony Caro's repurposed metal works
Caro, who died in 2013, is known for his use of scrap metal and was involved in designing London's Millennium Bridge. The show includes pieces such as Erl King, which uses a ship's anchor to resemble a medieval helmet, and Star Flight, made from galvanised steel with views of St James's Church or the Wittenham Clumps. Another work, Slow Passage, is made from a cattle crush and features red-painted sections that Hue-Williams compared to Piet Mondrian's abstract paintings.
James Capper's moving sculptures
Capper's standout piece, IRIS, includes a repurposed industrial grabber that opens like a flower petal. Another sculpture in a converted tractor barn features nipping blades on a girder, resembling stag beetles. According to the exhibition catalogue, Capper once interviewed as a welder for Caro, who advised him to focus on his own work. Capper now works in a studio on a former military airfield in Wiltshire.
A hidden gem in the countryside
The woods at Albion Barn were planted by Hue-Williams's father, Giles Hue-Williams, an early rewilding project. He died after a bee swarm while working in his orchard. The site has no gift shop or cafe, but a nearby thatched pub benefits from extra visitors. Lucca Hue-Williams, director of Albion Jeune and co-curator of Heavy Metal, said: 'It's a hidden gem but I thought it was important to have an intergenerational show. It's a dialogue between Anthony Caro and an artist he inspired, James Capper. People can come, wander in the fields. It's very British but fun.'
The exhibition is open Thursdays and Fridays by appointment, not suitable for under-12s; children 12-17 must be supervised.
