Edinburgh Art Festival 2010: Jupiter Artland; William Wegman; Edward Weston

Jupiter Artland: Charles Jencks 'Cells of Life'

Richard Dorment on a quirky sculpture park, and two displays of US art .
 
By Richard Dorment

Sculpture parks usually bore me stiff. They’re so predictable with their exquisitely sited Henry Moores, Richard Longs or Tony Craggs screaming the owner’s classic (but cautious) good taste. But if you are in Edinburgh this month, I urge you to take the time to visit Jupiter Artland, a privately owned sculpture park in West Lothian, about half an hour’s drive west from the city centre. What makes a walk through the woods and gardens here more entertaining than any other outdoor display of sculpture I know is the sure but quirky taste of the collectors Robert and Nicky Wilson.

From Jim Lambie’s mural-size chrome panels set into an outside wall to Cornelia Parker’s giant shotgun leaning against a tree, most of the artists in the collection have come up with unexpected responses to specific sites on the property.