The festival offers visitors
the chance to hear from experts about the work involved in managing landscapes
of all kinds, from country house estates to woodlands to farms, coasts and
mountains.
The East of England region
of the National Trust is hosting three of the seven weekends –testament to the complexity
and beauty of the landscapes of this part of the country. On 5/6 October, visitors
will be able to hear about how the Trust manages its land at Wimpole, one
of the very few National Trust farms that is managed in hand. The following
weekend offers a rare chance to take an in-depth look at Northey Island
in Essex, a tidal island off the coast near
Maldon which was among the earliest places where coastal realignment policies have
started to be pursued in the face of rising sea levels.
The point of these events is
that they speak to the many different facets of landscape. Landscape is
simultaneously natural and human-made. All landscapes speak to the history and
development of society, communities and economies, and carry different sorts of
cultural significance as a consequence.
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| The 1812 Repton exhibition at Sheringham |
This point was emphasised
most emphatically at the Sheringham uncovered
weekend last weekend. Here, the focus was on trees and woods in the landscape,
but it was impossible to ignore the huge cultural resonance that woodlands
have. Humphry Repton, who laid out a plan for the creation of Sheringham Park in
his Red Book of 1812, was very aware of this. He contrasted fast-growing pines
with the ancient oaks of England,
as a commentary on the way new money was crowding out the landed aristocracy in
the early decades of the 19th century.
Repton’s plan for Sheringham
incorporated many of the older features of the woody landscape there. At the
same time, he was making a landscape for the future, for the young couple (the
Upchers) whose patronage he had secured and in whom he vested his hopes for the
future of the landscape and of society more generally.
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| Steve Daniels and Lucy Veale at Uncovered, Sheringham September 2013 |
Appropriately, therefore,
our Uncovered weekend featured both a presentation on Repton’s designs (from
Stephen Daniels and Lucy Veale of
the University of Nottingham), as well as bringing the story up to date with
nature conservationists from today’s Trust, talking about the challenges and
threats facing our woodlands.
It was a very entertaining
mix of talks, walks and activities, and all who came saw Sheringham in a new
light. It was the perfect complement therefore to the exhibition about Repton’s design at Sheringham,
now enjoying its second year and still looking great. (Thanks to the AHRC
for their support.)
Although we walked the
estate with a copy of the Red Book, this was of course a facsimile. The
original, usually held at the V&A, is currently on show at the Sainsbury Centre, UEA, as part
of the Masterpieces
of East Anglian Art exhibition. It’s reminder of just how culturally
significant Sheringham continues to be.
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