Whitworth Exhibition and Events leaflet Jan-Mar 2010-1.pdf

Exhibitions & Events January – April 2010

Welcome

Drawing of the south/park elevation and proposed Whitworth extension © MUMA, 2009

New Year brings many new things to the Whitworth.

Our biggest news is the selection of MUMA as architects for the extension and redevelopment of the Gallery. MUMA’s design features two new wings; a landscape gallery to the north and a transparent, slender café wing which celebrates the park’s spectacular avenues of trees to the south. These frame a new park-facing entrance and courtyard where art and events will take place. A lower ground floor provides improved access to the collection along with new learning, study and art facilities. Plans will be developed and presented for the final stage of the Whitworth’s Heritage Lottery Fund bid later this year.

We also have an extraordinary gift joining our collection. Trustees of the Musgrave Kinley Outsider Art Collection have gifted to the Whitworth a collection of almost 800 works created by so-called ‘outsider’ artists who have no formal art training, such as Madge Gill, Henry Darger and Scottie Wilson.

This collection has grown out of Monika Kinley and Victor Musgrave’s lifelong passion for outsider art and their friendships with these artists. The gift links with key works from the Whitworth’s current collection, particularly those by artists who have an affinity with outsider work: Alfred Wallis, Jean Dubuffet and the COBRA artists.

With a major new exhibition showing artist wallpapers as you have never imagined them, the New Year certainly rings in the changes at the Whitworth.

Maria Balshaw

Henry Darger, Attack of the Tuskahorians © Musgrave Kinley Outsider Collection

Gallery Café

24 Hour Access

Gallery Shop

‘A fantastic venue for a wonderful lunch. The menu is packed with mouth-watering choices.’ The Guardian Enjoy seasonal and locally sourced food served up by owner and chef Peter Booth and his team in the Gallery Café. The 2009 Good Food Guide’s Best Family Restaurant in the UK, the Café offers great coffee, delicious cakes, a seasonal lunch menu and healthy choices for kids’ all of which led Stylist magazine to name it one of the six best gallery restaurants in the UK. Opening hours, Mon to Sat: 10am – 4.30pm, Sun: 12 – 3.30pm

The Gallery is open 24 hours a day at www.manchester.ac.uk/ whitworth. There’s more information on exhibitions, including labels and text panels, as well as the thousands of items that are in our stores, complete with images and background information.

More objects are being added to the website day-by-day, helping visitors with their research interests.

Keep in touch with us via our email newsletter – go to www.manchester.ac.uk/whitworth and register.

Take a bit of the Whitworth home!

Our shop has an excellent range of postcards, greetings cards and gifts to help you remember your visit and a wide selection of books and magazines. Buying from our shop directly supports the work of the Gallery. University of Manchester staff, students and Friends of the Whitworth get a 10% discount.

Gallery Support There has never been a better time to support the Whitworth! Over the next three years we will be transforming the Gallery, making it an even better space for art and for visitors. The Gallery raises funds from a number of sources and you can help. For a discussion about corporate sponsorship, individual giving or leaving a legacy to the Whitworth please contact Jo Beggs, Head of Development & Resources on 0161 275 7474 or email jo.beggs@manchester.ac.uk.

Friends of the Whitworth Join the Friends of the Whitworth and get more involved with the Gallery and its work. From financial support towards activities and new acquisitions through to volunteering, the Friends make a valuable contribution to the Whitworth.

Annual membership is available for £20 single, £35 double.

For more information on the Friends of the Whitworth please telephone 0161 275 7496, email fow@manchester.ac.uk or write to the Friends c/o the Gallery.

Learning more about our collections Less than 5% of our collection is on display, there’s much more behind the scenes. If you want to learn more about items in our collection, you can use our study rooms by booking an appointment with a curator.

Cover Image...

Walls Are Talking: wallpaper, art and culture.

Exhibition pages 02-04

01

Main Exhibition

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Walls Are Talking wallpaper, art and culture 6 February – 3 May 2010 Wallpaper is out of the closet. No longer a joke with connotations of kitsch, it has become a legitimate medium for contemporary artists.

Virgil Marti, Bullies, 1992/2001 In collaboration with The Fabric Workshop & Museum, Philadelphia

Walls Are Talking, the first exhibition of its kind in the UK, features wallpapers by more than 30 internationally known artists, including Sonia Boyce, Thomas Demand, Robert Gober, Damien Hirst, Abigail Lane, Francesco Simeti, and Niki de St. Phalle. It shows how they have used historic wallpaper motifs, styles, and methods and how familiar patterns have been subverted.

Located across several of the Whitworth’s galleries, the exhibition includes commercial representations of gender-related themes, features specially commissioned work from artists, Michael Craig-Martin and Catherine Bertola, and explores the interface between wallpapers as artists’ works and products made for the domestic market.

A collaboration with the V&A, Walls Are Talking surprises, excites and challenges. It shows that wallpaper is rarely a quiet background – it can be very noisy indeed.

Walls Are Talking: Special Tours

Walls Are Talking: An Artist Talks

Saturday 6 February 2 – 5 pm, Free

Catherine Bertola gives an illustrated talk about her work, past and present.

Includes a tour of the exhibition.

A Tour of Walls Are Talking with the Curators and some of the artists whose work is featured in the exhibition, including Catherine Bertola, Sonia Boyce, Helen Knowles, Matthew Meadows, Francesco Simeti and Erwan Venn.

Gill Saunders will be signing copies of her book Walls Are Talking during the afternoon.

Saturday 27 February, 2 – 4pm, Free Saturday 27 March, 2 – 4pm, Free Saturday 17 April, 2 – 4pm, Free For details of other Walls Are Talking events that accompany this exhibition, please see pages 04 & 09.

03

David Shrigley, Industrial Estate, 1996

Events

Walls Are Talking Events

mintsource

Exhibition Tours, All Free

mintsource is the Whitworth Art Gallery’s programme of activities for young people.

February: Sat 6, 2pm Walls Are Talking: Special Tours. See pages 03 & 09 February: Tues 9, Sat 13, Tues 16, Sat 20, Tue 23 & Sat 27 March: Sat 20, Tues 23 & Sat 27 April: Tues 13, Sat 17 & Sat 24 Final tour date May: Sat 1 For details and times of the curators and artists who will be giving each tour, please see page 03 and 09 or visit www.manchester.ac.uk/whitworth

The Student Social Friday 12 February, 6 – 8.30pm, Free Join us for a night of design, art and music, curated by design students to celebrate the exhibition Walls Are Talking. All students welcome.

The Art & Social Club

Branch Out!

Every Saturday from 9 January, 2 – 3.30pm, £3

Saturday 20 February 2 – 5pm, Free

Every fortnight there will be a Textiles Class or Life Drawing Class for adults wishing to learn new skills, sharpen up old ones and meet new like-minded folk.

Classes will last 1 hour and cost £3, materials will be included unless stated otherwise. For further information or to book please visit: www.manchester.ac.uk/whitworth or telephone 0161 275 7450

Tuesday Talks 19 January – 9 March, 11.00am – 12.30pm, Free The Tuesday Talks series explores the driving forces, influences and sources of inspiration behind the work of contemporary artists. Speakers in this session will include Callum Innes and Corey McCorkle.

For updates join the Tuesday Talk email list: Email events.whitworth@manchester.ac.uk Telephone 0161 275 7450 The series is programmed by Professor Pavel Büchler, and supported by Manchester Metropolitan University.

04

‘It was really nice to be given free rein to take over a gallery – that never happens!’ Sam, 21

Join us to create tree-themed gigantic floor drawings using masking tape.

Watch us on Flickr: www.flickr.com/photos/ mintsource Join us on Facebook: search “groups” for “mintsource” Follow us on Twitter: www.twitter.com/_mintsource_ Talk to us: mintsource@manchester.ac.uk

Exhibitions

20 February – 25 April Contemporary Iran has a vibrant art scene and this exhibition showcases a remarkable work by one of Iran’s leading artists, Khosrow Hassanzadeh (b.1963), recently acquired by The British Museum. The centrepiece of the show is a large assemblage portrait of Gholamreza Takhti (1930-1968), one of the country’s national heroes, renowned for his Olympic medals for wrestling and for his social activism. He is an icon for today in the tradition of Iranian cultural heroes going back to the legendary stories of the Shahnameh (Book of Kings) circa 1000 AD. The John Rylands Library offers a celebration of some different Iranian heroes this spring, with a display of beautiful Shahnama illustrated manuscripts. The Shahnama, or Book of Kings, is an epic poem tracing the mythical and historical past of Iran. This exhibition celebrates one thousand years since the poem’s creation.

Kings and Heroes: The Shahnama of Ferdowsi 18 February – 27 June 2010 Christie Gallery, The John Rylands Library, Deansgate, Manchester

Detail of Takhti by Khosrow Hassanzadeh Mixed media, 2007 © Khosrow Hassanzadeh

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The Manchester Indian Thomas Wardle and India To May 2010 The impact that India had on the work of textile entrepreneur Sir Thomas Wardle (1831-1909), forms the focus of this exhibition. Still perhaps best known for his collaboration with William Morris, Wardle’s efforts to reinvigorate the silk industry in India are highlighted here.

Spectacular saris, turbans, tailored garments and sample lengths collected by Wardle on a visit to India in 1885-6 are featured, together with fabrics printed and dyed by Wardle’s company in Leek, Staffordshire, revealing the influence of Indian design on British textiles of the Arts and Crafts Movement.

This exhibition has been co-curated by Dr Brenda King, author of Silk and Empire and lecturer at the University of Salford.

A series of films and guided tours accompany this exhibition, see page 09 for details.

Baluchar sari (detail), Berhampur, Bengal, 1885

Deep Rooted How Trees Shape Our Lives Herman Saftleven, Landscape with a Traveller and a Woodcutter, 18th century

To 25 April 2010

What do trees mean to you?

Drawing from the Whitworth’s internationally important collection of watercolours and drawings, this exhibition explores how trees and woodland have shaped our lives.

Deep Rooted investigates some of the many different uses of trees, from timbercarts to tanning, from shelter to shipbuilding. It also examines the mythic and symbolic tree, and focuses upon the oak tree as an enduring symbol of British identity. The exhibition includes work by J. M. W. Turner, Thomas Gainsborough, John Robert Cozens, William Hogarth and Paul Nash.

Share your photographs of trees at: www.flickr.com/groups/deeprooted.

Selections of these images are on show throughout this exhibition.

For guided tour details see page 09.

Photo: Joel Chester Fildes

Untitled (on a day unknown...)

Jason E. Bowman, Untitled (on a day unknown…), 2009

16 January – 28 February 2010 Drawings by an official court artist and pinhole photographs document a recreation of an infamous and spectacularised courtroom trial from the interwar years that forced the secret sex lives of a large number of men to become public. The exhibition questions the relationships between shame, portraiture, sexual identity and the legacies of the civic culture of that time to reveal how lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered (LGBT) histories must precariously negotiate between preserving secrets and puncturing confidences.

In Conversation Saturday 16 January, 2pm, Free Jason E. Bowman discusses the process of developing Untitled (on a day unknown…) and the issues it raises.

Lynn Hershman Leeson, Roberta’s Construction Chart (Roberta Breitmore Series) 1975

Jason E. Bowman’s performative artworks develop from dialogues with those who are also its cast. Out in the City, a Manchester group of senior LGBT people worked with Bowman on this commission.

MANCHESTER

The Complete Roberta Breitmore Lynn Hershman Leeson Summer 2010 In San Francisco in the mid-Seventies, Lynn Hershman Leeson created Roberta Breitmore and performed this persona as a work of art over a four year period, documenting it through artifacts, photography, film and sound. This extraordinary body of work, which raises questions about the complexities of identity and the nature of the work of art, has been purchased by the Whitworth in its final edition and is shown here for the first time in its entirety. Roberta Breitmore ended when ‘she’ went through a ritual exorcism in 1978, but her spirit survives in this documentation and the artist’s later work.

The purchase of Roberta Breitmore has been supported by MLA/V&A Purchase Grant Fund and the Friends of the Whitworth.

07

Families Free Artist Led Workshops For Under 5s and their grown-ups

Toddlertastic Booking is essential for all Toddlertastic workshops To book please telephone 0161 275 7450

Drama Adventures On Mondays 4 January 1 February, 1 March, 5 April 10.30 – 11.30am Bring the artworks to life through exciting and fun storytelling, role-play and drama techniques.

Art Adventures On Mondays 11 January 8 February, 8 & 29 March, 12 April 10.30 – 11.30am Come and enjoy a story adventure while creating your own mini masterpiece!

Music Adventures On Mondays 18 January 15 February, 15 March, 19 April 10.30 – 11.30am & 11.30am – 12.30pm Explore the artworks through music and movement. Enjoy singing songs and musical games.

Dance Adventures On Mondays 25 January 22 February, 22 March, 26 April 10.30 – 11.30am & 11.30am – 12.30pm Join us and dance like a sculpture, boogie like a textile and wiggle like a painting.

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Drop in workshops for children of all ages, their families and carers

Arty Picnics Tuesdays 16 February, 30 March 6 April, Thursday 18 February Thursday 1 & 8 April 11am – 12.30pm Bring your family and some food (if you fancy lunch), and meet an artist for fun creative activities.

Don’t worry if it is a terrible Tuesday or Thursday and raining outside, we’ll have a picnic in the Gallery surrounded by sunny landscapes!

Colourful Sundays Every Sunday – all year round!

1.30 – 3.30pm Join friends, family and artists for our popular Colourful Sunday drop-in creative workshops and create exciting things from games to mask making!

Photo: Joel Chester Fildes

For over 6s, and their grown-ups

Artist Skills…

Wednesdays 17 February 31 March, 7 April Fridays 19 February, 9 April 1.30pm – 3.30pm Visit with your family and join an artist to learn a range of artist skills from printing to felt-making and create your own artwork to take home. With these new skills you can create your own family artwork back at home too.

For further details of dates and skills covered visit: www.whitworth.manchester.ac.uk/ whatson/families/ or telephone: 0161 2757450

Everyday activities...

The Gallery has lots of activities to pick up and enjoy any time including Arty Picnic and Textile Story sacks. Family favourites such as the Art Cart, dressing up clothes, textile trail, and story sacks are available every day.

Our award-winning Café serves child friendly meals, and there’s a park next door!

‘Quality family time, fun time, making friends, making art and even learning!’

Lee family

Calendar

All events are FREE unless otherwise stated, and it is advisable to book on 0161 275 7450 to avoid disappointment.

Want to learn more about our Gallery?

Every Tues, Wed & Thurs from 2 – 2.30pm Join our general tours looking at the past, present and future of the Whitworth.

January

Sat 16 Tues 19 & 26 Sat 23 Sat 23 Sun 24 Every Tues

February

Tues 2 Sat 6 Sun 7 Tues 9 Fri 12 Fri 12 Sat 13 Tues 16 Sat 20 Sat 20 Sun 21 Tue 23 Fri 26

11am – 12.30pm Tuesday Talks: An artist thinker or critic talks about what influences and inspires them and their work TK 1.15pm Deep Rooted Tour: Heather Birchall, Curator (Historic Fine Art) T 2pm Walls Are Talking: Special Tours Curators & Exhibition Artists. See page 03 T 12 – 12.45pm Performance by RNCM students C 1.15pm Walls Are Talking Tour: Christine Woods, Curator (Wallpapers) T 6 – 8:30pm Walls Are Talking, The Student Social: A night of design, art & music. See page 04 E 6.15pm The Manchester Indian Films: A Passage to India Tickets £6 on the door (Students free) F 2pm Walls Are Talking Tour: Christine Woods, Curator (Wallpapers) T 1.15pm Walls Are Talking Tour: Christine Woods, Curator (Wallpapers) T 2pm Walls Are Talking Tour: Dominique Heyse-Moore, Assistant Curator (Wallpapers) T 2 – 5pm Branch Out! A mintsource activity. See page 04 12 – 12.45pm Performance by RNCM students C 1.15pm Walls Are Talking Tour: Dominique Heyse-Moore, Assistant Curator (Wallpapers) T 6.15pm The Manchester Indian Films: Heat and Dust Tickets £6 on the door (Students free) F 2pm Walls Are Talking Tour: Curator & Catherine Bertola, Artist TK & T 2.30 – 4pm Poets and Players: Poets and musicians showcase new work E 12 – 12.45pm Performance by RNCM students C

March

Tues 2 & 9

Untitled (on a day unknown...) In Conversation: A discussion with Jason E Bowman about the exhibition and the issues it raises TK 11am – 12.30pm Tuesday Talks: An artist thinker or critic talks about what influences and inspires them and their work TK 2pm The Manchester Indian Tour: Frances Pritchard, Curator (Textiles) T 2.30 – 4pm Poets and Players: Poets and musicians showcase new work E 12 – 12.45pm Performance by RNCM students C

Sun 7 Sat 13 Tues 16 Sat 20 Sun 21 Tues 23 Sat 27 Sat 27

11am – 12.30pm Tuesday Talks: An artist thinker or critic talks about what influences and inspires them and their work TK 1.15pm Takhti Tour: David Morris (Head of Collections) T 6.15pm The Manchester Indian Films: Bride and Prejudice Tickets £6 on the door (Students free) F 12 –12.45pm Performance by RNCM students C 2pm Takhti Tour: David Morris (Head of Collections) T 1.15pm The Manchester Indian Tour: Dr Brenda King, (Exhibition Co-Curator) T 2pm Walls Are Talking Tour: Christine Woods, Curator (Wallpapers) T 12 – 12.45pm Performance by RNCM students C 2pm Walls Are Talking Tour: Dominique Heyse-Moore, Assistant Curator (Wallpapers) T 2pm Walls Are Talking Tour: Curator & Catherine Bertola, Artist TK & T 2.30 – 4pm Poets and Players: Poets and musicians showcase new work E

April

Sat 27 Sat 27 Sun 28

2pm

Tues 13 Sat 17 Sat 24

1.15pm 2pm 2pm

Tues 2 Fri 5

T = Tour

C = Concert

Walls Are Talking Tour: Dominique Heyse-Moore, Assistant Curator (Wallpapers) T Walls Are Talking Tour: Curator & Catherine Bertola, Artist TK & T Walls Are Talking Tour: Gill Saunders, Author & Co-Curator T

TK = Talk

E = Event

F = Film Supported by the Friends of the Whitworth

Concerts: Supported by the Friends of the Whitworth Gina Miller Bequest.

09

Opening Times

How to find us

Monday to Saturday 10am – 5pm, Sunday 12 – 4pm

Entry to the Gallery is free.

The Gallery is in Whitworth Park, opposite Manchester Royal Infirmary. It is about 1.5 miles south of Manchester city centre, at the south of the University of Manchester campus.

Access

By train: The Gallery is about 1 mile from Oxford Road station.

We aim to be accessible to visitors with disabilities.

Wheelchairs and a rollator are available on request.

There is a toilet for disabled visitors. The lecture theatre is fitted with an induction loop. Large print information is available. If you require assistance during your visit, please email whitworth@manchester.ac.uk telephone 0161 275 7450 or ask at the Welcome Desk.

Learning and Interpretation For more information about visits for schools and colleges, please telephone 0161 275 7453. To make the most of your visit, book in with our Learning and Interpretation team.

The Manchester Museum The Museum is 10 minutes walk from the Gallery with collections and activities for families and adults.

Telephone 0161 275 2648 or visit www.manchester.ac.uk/museum

By bus: There is a frequent service along Oxford Road to and from Piccadilly Gardens. The 147 from Piccadilly station passes the Gallery, stopping at Nelson Street (Mon to Fri).

Travel information line: To check bus and train details telephone 0161 228 7811.

By car: There are three designated spaces for visitors with disabilities and two short-stay spaces (max 20 mins). Parking is available in the University Car Parks at Cecil Street (daytime and evenings) and Dilworth Street (evenings only).

See map.

Staying in Manchester Situated near Piccadilly Station, City Inn Manchester is a leading contemporary hotel that boasts state of the art facilities, stylish destination bars and al fresco restaurant. www.cityinn.com City Inn is the Whitworth’s official hotel sponsor.

Paints by Little Greene Created in association with English Heritage, Little Greene’s range of environmentally-friendly paints and wallpapers bring timeless elegance and enduring appeal to your home. www.thelittlegreene.com Little Greene is the Whitworth’s official paint sponsor.

The Whitworth Art Gallery The University of Manchester Oxford Road Manchester M15 6ER T: 0161-275 7450 F: 0161-275 7451 E: whitworth@manchester.ac.uk www.manchester.ac.uk/whitworth

Designed by Epigram: 0161 237 9660

The Gallery is closed on Good Friday, 2 April and is open as usual on Bank Holiday Monday