Beyond the Town: Conversations of Art and Land

The story of Iwan and Manuela Wirth's transformation of a derelict farmstead into the international art center Hauser & Wirth Somerset.

When Iwan and Manuela Wirth first encountered Durslade Farm on the outskirts of Bruton, an agrarian town located in Somerset, England, they saw more than verdant grounds and a derelict farmstead: they saw a refuge and a vision of home. In time, this vision expanded, materializing in the 2014 opening of Hauser & Wirth Somerset, an international contemporary art center, artists, locals, and visitors from near and far—a place full of energy, people, and ideas that remains a retreat, sanctuary.