FANCY a spot of cloud gazing?
Visitors to Castle Howard can sit back and connect with the skies above us this summer with a dedicated cloud gazing area. They can relax and watch the clouds go by from a comfortable beanbag in the estate’s tranquil Walled Garden.
A section of the garden, normally closed to the public, has been turned into a dedicated zone for gazing towards the heavens where you could spot wispy cirrus, fluffy cumulus, layered stratus or dark grey nimbus scudding across the North Yorkshire countryside.
Included in the price of admission tickets, cloud gazing is also taking place beside the lake at Castle Howard Arboretum, a separate attraction which lies beside the stately home. Both run until Sunday September 6.
Watching clouds is very relaxing. Picture: Pixabay
Artist Es Devlin with her creation. Picture: Rick Walker/PA
Visitors of all ages can experience architecture through play at Castle Howard this summer with Playshapes: Castle Constructors, an interactive and colourful artwork inspired by the bold imagination of Sir John Vanbrugh, the architect of the grand building.
Created by Yorkshire artist Pippa Hale and supplied by Yorkshire-based playground equipment supplier Timberplay, Playshapes is a large-scale, hands-on installation made from six one metre coloured cubes that can be broken down into steps, triangles, polygons, cylinders and prisms.
Set out initially in a simple grid, the forms are transformed by children and adults into towers, follies and dens, before being reassembled at the end of each session.
Echoing Vanbrugh’s experimental approach to architecture, the activity is a fun way for visitors to dismantle, reconfigure and rebuild big colourful shapes - turning structure into possibility. The installation introduces ideas of colour, form and three-dimensional space through physical play rather than instruction.
Playshapes: Castle Constructors invites people of all ages to rediscover play as a powerful tool for imagination, collaboration and change.
In the setting of one of the UK's most dramatic and inventive buildings, the exhibition offers a playful tribute to Vanbrugh’s radical spirit, 300 years on. Running until Saturday October 31, this is included in house admission tickets.
Castle Howard
Castle Howard corridors. Image: Newsquest
Also this summer, younger visitors can find out about architecture by following the Mini Architect Trail around the house, to find hidden shapes and objects. Children can put their drawing skills to the test. This is also included in house admission tickets.
Running until October 31 is a new installation by the celebrated British artist and designer Es Devlin.
This luminous, revolving artwork takes over the Temple of the Four Winds on the edge of Castle Howard’s Gardens.
Called the Library of the Four Winds, a sculpture made from hundreds of books sits inside the temple, while four concentric tables, where visitors can sit, read, draw, talk or listen to a soundscape, are outside. The views across the surrounding countryside are stunning.
The artwork invites people to join in communal reading, honouring 2026 as the National Year of Reading. It runs until Sunday September 27.
The installation has been created as part of Vanbrugh 300, celebrating Castle Howard’s architect Sir John Vanbrugh in his tercentenary year.
Open daily from 10am - 4pm It runs until September 27. There is a late-night event on Friday September 4.
*Castle Howard, York YO60 7DA; for more information and prices visit castlehoward.co.uk