Radical Landscapes

Throughout the 20th century artists have responded to the landscape in emotional, physical and political ways: exploring themes of belonging to the land by interrogating the relationship between landscape history and identity, the enclosure or militarisation of the land, to artists creating works that harness or dramatise natural earth processes. As custodian of the National Collection of British Art, Tate’s declaration of a Climate Emergency points to a wider concern and care for the environment that underpins the themes in Radical Landscapes. Structured into three broad thematic sections; Trespass, Landscape and Identity and Climatic Breakdown, there will be around 100 works in total from 1900 to today. Centring activism and how we value, care for, use and draw meaning from the natural landscape, the book will showcase a range of viewpoints reflecting the diverse perspectives in modern Britain, examining artists’ relationship to landscape and social history as a stimulus to the imagination as much as action and protest. It presents a radical, outward-looking image of Britain and its diverse peoples and landscapes to the world. These conversations present a rare opportunity to reframe Tate’s landscape art holdings, as well as explore how we might commune with nature and work collectively towards a more sustainable and equitable future. Artists include Henry Moore, Peter Kennard, Tacita Dean, Ingrid Pollard, Jeremy Deller, Rose English, Chris Killip, Derek Jarman, Yuri Patterson, Anthea Hamilton and many more.