The Future of the Country House and its Local Communities
Elena Gibson is a PhD candidate from the University of Leeds. Before her BA in History of Art with Museum Studies and her MA in Arts Management and Heritage Studies, she worked in museums and galleries in her hometown, Athens, Greece. At Leeds, Elena leads art history and visual culture seminars, and has recently formed the Historic House Society. Connect with her here
My fascination with country houses stems from their complex role as spaces of architectural, artistic, and historic value, as symbols of heritage, as well as evolving spaces of community engagement. What does the future hold for these historic spaces? How can they adapt to serve their local communities, especially in the face of climate change and the ongoing impact of the Anthropocene? Interestingly, the Anthropocene can be seen as both a disruptor and a creator via its impact on the accelerating scale of environmental damage, which in consequence encourages interdisciplinary approaches in mitigating this very damage, promoting sustainability, and aligning technology and policy under an ecological threshold. According to Haraway, the ‘potential gift of the Anthropocene is its push radically to rethink the ‘Anthropos’’(human in Greek).
The future appears uncertain, as does the fate of heritage: its conservation and preservation, as well as the interrelated heritage qualities of storytelling, memory and salvage. Sterling links heritage discourse and practices to the immediate threats of the Anthropocene, whilst DeSilvey and Harrison interpret heritage’s prospect of loss via the perception of risk and endangerment as ‘a fundamental element in the production of heritage value’. Subsequently, the question of ‘the relationship between heritage, ecology, sustainability, health, and resilience is raised’. These themes have become central to my research journey, supported by the guidance of my supervisors, Dr Kerry Bristol and Dr Helen Graham.
A pivotal part of my research focuses on Wentworth Woodhouse in Rotherham, South Yorkshire - one of the largest private homes in Europe - which was purchased by the Wentworth Woodhouse Preservation Trust in 2017. The house officially opened its doors to the public in the summer of 2020, just as the first pandemic lockdown restrictions were easing. This moment marked not only a new chapter for the site but also an opportunity to explore how country houses can engage with and serve their local communities.
My thesis examines how Wentworth Woodhouse’s recent opening has affected the local community - how the residents perceive this change, whether they feel supported by the initiative, and what community cohesion might mean for the survival of their local heritage site. To uncover these insights, I am using Cathy Charmaz’s Constructivist Grounded Theory - 1 Colin Sterling, ‘Heritage as Critical Anthropocene Method’, in Deterritorializing the Future: Heritage in, of and after the Anthropocene (2020), pp. 188-218, (p. 190). 2 Caitlin DeSilvey, and Rodney Harrison, ‘Anticipating loss: rethinking endangerment in heritage futures’, International Journal of Heritage Studies (2020), 26:1, 1-7 (p. 1). 3 Rodney Harrison, ‘Beyond "natural” and "cultural” heritage', Heritage & Society (2015), 8:1, 24-42 (p. 28). a method that allows theories to emerge from the data through stakeholder interviews and analysis.
The study of Heritage Futures encourages a shift in perspective from seeing heritage as static to acknowledging it as a flexible, evolving resource that can be utilised to foster societal resilience and drive sustainable development. Therefore, this project reflects a broader exploration of how country houses can serve their communities in the age of the Anthropocene. In doing so, it seeks to uncover not only the challenges but also the opportunities that lie ahead for heritage sites in an evolving world.