Sculpture by the Lakes was opened to the public in 2010 by the sculptor Simon Gudgeon and his wife Monique, on twenty-six acres of lakeside grounds at Pallington outside Dorchester that were once gravel pits. Gudgeon's bronze pieces, including large-scale birds and figures, are set among the water and planting alongside changing work by other artists. The Makers Yard, comprising a gallery, a shop and a pantry café, is free to enter, while the wider sculpture park and gardens are ticketed separately. The gardens change through the seasons, with different plantings and light bringing out the bronzes differently in winter and summer. It has grown from a private project attached to the Gudgeons' home into one of the larger single-site art destinations in this part of Dorset, though it remains independently owned and run by the couple rather than by any trust or public body.
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