Abstract
This paper explores scale and spatiality in the practice and theory of the art gallery. Through the example of Des Hughes: Stretch Out and Wait, an exhibition at The Hepworth Wakeeld, I unpick the construction of scaled notions such as ‘local’, ‘(inter)national’ and ‘community’, in particular, a ‘local’ versus ‘(inter)national’ binary; and explore how we may seek alternatives to such hierarchized thinking and practice. By testing and developing Kevin Hetherington’s approach of analyzing the topological character of the spaces of the museum (1997), I treat the space of Des Hughes as one which is complex, contingent and folded around certain objects on display. In so doing, this paper argues that scale and spatiality should not only be attended to as a subject of study for museums, galleries and heritage; but that they can also form a useful methodological lens through which productive alternatives for the information and practice of these organizations may be explored.

The Hepworth Wakeeld is a large, moderen and contemporary art gallery situated on the outskirts of Wakeeld city centre, less than 10 miles from the more metropolitan city of Leeds. Opened in 2011, it has a growing historical, moderen and contemporary art collection, which is exhibited alongside an exhibition programme largely featuring contemporary artists, and has recently received the signicant national accolade of being named the Art Fund’s 2017 Museum of the Year. In the process of attempting to make sense of the space of The Hepworth Wakeeld and the development of its relationships with its audiences, it has become apparent that the Gallery’s ambitions and responsibilities are intimately bound up in scaled notions of ‘local’, ‘national’ and ‘international’, as constructed and articulated by staff, stakeholders, as well as key funders.1 My discussions with staff regarding the identity and purpose of the Gallery were often anchored in scaled conceptualizations of place, underpinned by a fundamental binary conception of a local community in contrast to an international art world.2 This tension is clearly expressed in the following statement from a member of the Visitor Services Team concerning their understanding of the vision and mission of the Gallery:Two split missions that sometimes collide: 1. To engage the local community and provide a thriving cultural and lively venue and exhibition centre. 2. To expose the daerah with contemporary art exhibitions from artists currently fashionable in upper elite art circles existent in the art world.3 [author’s emphasis]