Green Spaces, Shared Places: Past, Present and Future

If landscapes could speak, what would they tell us about how humans, animals and plants have occupied them through time? What would they ask us to do for the future?

Curated by young people, this exhibition remembers what once was and what has been lost, celebrates the breath-taking beauty and community spirit that remains, and showcases efforts to regenerate what we can in a changed environmental and social context. 

Using historic collections from Arlington Court National Trust, Dales Countryside Museum, the National Memorial Arboretum and Sunderland Museum & Winter Gardens, the stories told here shine a unique lens on what it means to be a Green Place, anchored in its history and with an eye to the future.

Young people across the country have worked together to co-curate this exhibition, selecting stories, objects and creative responses that explore the evolving relationship between people, plants and wildlife. Featuring historic collections, oral histories and new art commissions, the exhibition will be on display indoors and outdoors at the Arboretum, offering visitors a fresh perspective on what it means to be a ‘green place’.
 
Green Spaces, Shared Places: Past, Present and Future is part of Art Fund’s £5.36 million Going Places programme, a series of exhibitions touring the UK. The largest project of its kind, Going Places brings together 20 museums from all four nations to share and celebrate the UK's remarkable collections in collaboration with local communities.
 
Following display at the National Memorial Arboretum, Green Spaces, Shared Places: Past, Present and Future will tour to Dales Countryside Museum (3 October 2026 – 3 January 2027); Creative Smart City Hub Houghton and Rainton Meadows Nature Reserve, Sunderland (6 March – 26 June 2027); and Arlington Court and National Trust Carriage Museum (24 July – 7 November 2027).