Henry Moore Institute in Leeds puts blind artists at the heart of sculpture

Leeds has a proud connection with sculpture, and the Henry Moore Institute sits at the centre of it. Run by the Henry Moore Foundation, the institute stages exhibitions, research and learning programmes devoted to sculpture in all its forms.

Its 2025 programme showed just how wide that definition can be. The year opened with SUNLIGHT: Roger Ackling, which ran from 4 April to 22 June 2025 and was described by the Foundation as the most expansive exhibition of the late artist's work.

Summer brought Fragment and Form, featuring Emii Alrai, Mónica Mays and Dominique White. Running from 18 July to 2 November 2025, it brought together three contemporary artists exploring the relationship between history and materiality in sculpture.

The year closed with something genuinely groundbreaking. Beyond the Visual was described as the UK's first major sculpture exhibition in which blind and partially blind practitioners were central to the curatorial process. It brought together sixteen international artists, including seven new commissions alongside historical and contemporary work, and the Foundation lists it as running until 19 April 2026.

The exhibition invited visitors to experience sculpture through more than sight, and it sparked conversations well beyond the gallery, including podcast discussions with participating artists.

The 2026 programme continues in an imaginative vein. Phantasmagoria: Folkloric Sculpture for the Digital Age is listed to run from 15 May to 30 August 2026, exploring how folklore and new technology meet in contemporary sculpture.

Alongside exhibitions, the institute runs learning activity and research, making it a place where curious visitors, students and specialists can all find something to spark their thinking.

It is a programme that rewards repeat visits. Each exhibition approaches sculpture from a different angle, and together they make a strong case for spending an hour or two with work that asks visitors to look, touch, listen and think differently about the objects around them.

Details of current and upcoming exhibitions are published on the Henry Moore Foundation website, and visitors can plan a trip to the institute in Leeds city centre from there.