Midsummer’s Day brings with it a host of traditions. A lot of stone circles (famously Stonehenge) are aligned on the sunrise of the summer or winter solstice, probably so that the sun’s return to the north can be marked and celebrated.

As Christianity developed inevitably this affected the traditions and dancing and the devil are often involved. In West Sussex skeletons are reputed to appear and dance around an oak tree and many places have the legend that dancing round standing stones will raise the devil.

Bonfires are still lit for summer celebrations and in some parts, not long ago, wheels would be set on fire on hill tops to roll down to a lake or stream as a charm against summer drought.

One story survives of a tradition of fasting at Midsummer to find who would die in the next 12 months. The spirits of the doomed villagers would raise the knocker on the church door (apparently).

John Clare, the poet, mentions Midsummer Cushions in his writing. Now every year children of his home village make the cushions - usually an ice cream tub packed with moss into which flowers are pressed.

There is something special and poignant about the longest day. Although the turning of the wheel of year barely touches some of us the Midsummer Solstice retains its importance.

Some of the oldest art we have survives as part of the landscape. I always have a sense of shock and pleasure to see the Uffington White Horse carved into its hillside. The horse is made from the landscape itself, and it feels like it’s telling us something I’m sure - but what is it?

Beside the A1 as it approaches Gateshead, Anthony Gormley’s Angel of the North is a much-loved modern equivalent. Under its feet are the crushed remains of the buildings of a coal mine. It is literally rooted in the past while the rebirth of the industrial North evolves in the shadow of its wings.  Centuries apart there’s a sense of place in both of them. And what will the Angel say to people in 500 years?

There is a place near Wakefield which is home to hundreds of pieces of art in the landscape: The Yorkshire Sculpture Park. Sheep graze around enormous bronzes by Henry Moore. An old deer shelter, half sunk in the ground, has become a place to watch the clouds go by. By the espaliered apple trees in the walled garden contemporary artists pose questions in their work.

Walking through the park is a constant series of surprises. Artists choose where the pieces are set, often making them for their settings. They merge into the landscape or shine out in deliberate contrast. They make me think about the place, about the artist’s thoughts, about the nourishment art brings.

You can find details of the Yorkshire Sculpture Park HERE

If you’d like to create some art in the landscape Ian Scott Massie leads experiences from the Happy House in Masham. Details HERE