Guided Tours
Gallery tours are a great starting point for first-time visitors or those who want to discover more about our art, artists, and architecture.
We welcome single visitors, couples and large organised groups. Explore the different options below and then contact us at groups@hepworthwakefield.org or complete the request a tour form here!
Collections Tour
In a comprehensive tour of our gallery spaces, you will discover the history of Wakefield’s art collection, as well as works by Barbara Hepworth, contemporary works currently on display, and an introduction to our temporary exhibitions.
For a shorter introduction to the gallery we also offer a free highlights tour at 11.15am on Wednesdays, Saturdays and Sundays.
See our What’s On page for information on the exhibitions currently on display.
Barbara Hepworth Tour
Trace the artistic development of Barbara Hepworth, whose early experiences of the industrial and rural landscapes of Yorkshire shaped her extraordinary life and career. The tour includes 44 prototypes in plaster, aluminium and wood, as well as drawings, lithographs and screen prints.
The tour will focus on our two galleries of Barbara Hepworth works and you can find out more about the galleries by visiting A Living Collection, and The Hepworth Family Gift
Garden Tour
Tom Stuart-Smith’s garden design draws inspiration from its unusual setting between 19th-century red-brick mills and a 21st-century art gallery, edged by the River Calder. It echoes the striking, angular shapes of the David Chipperfield-designed gallery while harnessing a naturalism that reflects Barbara Hepworth’s deep connection to the landscape.
Our Cultural Gardener will guide you through the history of the garden, detail on its design and build, and a selection of their favourite plants currently in season.
You can find out more about the garden by visiting The Hepworth Wakefield Garden
Sighted Guiding Tour
As part of our ongoing commitment to improving accessibility for our visitors, we are now able to offer Sighted Guiding, supported by our team of staff who have been trained in Sighted Guiding by Guide Dogs.
Our bespoke tours with Sighted Guiding are 45 minutes in duration and include works by Barbara Hepworth, Henry Moore, and others currently on display from our contemporary collection.
Throughout the tour you will be able to touch a small sample of works with gloves, as well as a range of samples and materials used by the artists on display.
You can also join one of our shorter, free Highlights Tours on Wednesday, Saturday or Sunday. Just contact us in advance of your visit by emailing hello@hepworthwakefield.org
Architecture Tour
In our Architecture Tour, you will learn how David Chipperfield’s design of the galleries allows the introduction of daylight through skylights, how we obtain most of the heating and cooling from the river’s flow, and how the pigmented concrete façade informs the sculptural and historical reading of the building.
You can find out more about our building and it’s architecture by visiting Our architecture, Our history
