Manchester Art Gallery

Mosley Street
Manchester
Greater Manchester
M2 3JL
England

logo: Designated as an Outstanding Collection

Website

www.manchestergalleries.org

E-mail

r.fitzgerald@manchester.gov.uk

Telephone

Information desk

0161 235 8888

Textphone

0161 235 8893

Fax

0161 235 8899

0161 235 8805

All information is drawn or provided by the venues themselves and every effort is made to ensure it is correct. Please remember to double check opening hours with the venue concerned before making a special visit.
Manchester Art Gallery
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Here you'll find everything from fine art to a Levi jeans chair. Manchester Art Gallery's world class collection spans six centuries and contains over 25,000 items.

Winner of Large Visitor Attraction of the Year 2008 in the Manchester Tourism Awards and shortlisted for the Guardian Family Friendly Award, Manchester Art Gallery has something for everyone.

Regularly changing exhibitions, an award winning cafe and a gallery shop mean that you can pop in for 10 minutes, or spend a whole day there. You don't have to like everything inside. And you don't need to be an expert to enjoy a visit.

Manchester Art Gallery. Enjoy. Discover. Relax.

This gallery has a Designated Collection of national importance.

Venue Type:

Gallery

Opening hours

Monday - Sunday and Bank Holiday Mondays, 10am - 5pm.

Late night opening on Thursday's till 9pm.

Closed Monday (except Bank Holidays),Good Friday, 24-26 December, New Year's Eve and New Year's Day.

From 1 June 2012, Manchester Art Gallery and the Gallery of Costume will be opening their doors to the public seven days a week. For the first time, Manchester Art Gallery will also remain open until 9pm on Thursdays.

Admission charges

Free

Part of a Designated Collection of Fine and Decorative Art, which you can also see at Wythenshawe Hall and Heaton Hall, is on display here. Please contact Manchester Art Gallery for more information if you wish to see a specific item.

Manchester Art Gallery is renowned for its collections of fine and decorative art, including internationally famous Pre-Raphaelite paintings and significant holdings of English ceramics. The Art Gallery re-opened in 2002 after a £35 million expansion which doubled the amount of display space available.

Famous for its impressive collection of Pre-Raphaelite paintings, the gallery houses works by Hunt, Rosetti, Madox Brown and Burne-Jones among others. However, all periods are covered, including what’s happening now.

Collection details

Fine Art, Decorative and Applied Art, Archaeology

Key artists and exhibits

  • Designated Collection
Exhibition details are listed below, you may need to scroll down to see them all.

Focal Points: Art and Photography

17 May 2012 — 2 June 2013 *on now

Photography is at the heart of some of the most significant works of art of our times.

This new display of around 30 photographs explores just some of the different ways contemporary artists have used photography in their work. It reveals how they have used the camera to explore traditional artistic themes in new and exciting ways.

Taken from the 1980s onward, the photographs explore the body, reinvent still-life, examine our cultural identities and explore the places where we live, work and spend our leisure time. The artworks often find ways of making the familiar strange and the ugly beautiful.

The display features work by influential photographer Keith Arnatt, famous British artist Helen Chadwick, Turner Prize nominee Catherine Yass and Young British Artists such as Sarah Lucas and Jane and Louise Wilson.

It also includes a number of photographic works collected by the Gallery over the last 10 years, with support from the Contemporary Art Society’s Special Collection scheme. By artists including Craigie Horsfield, Cornelia Parker and Thomas Demand, these works explore the themes of photography and sculpture and the connections between the two. They are the inspiration for this photography display.

The photographs in this display come from the collections of Manchester City Galleries, The Arts Council Collection at The Southbank Centre, London and other lenders.

Suitable for

  • Family friendly

Admission

Free.

Website

http://www.manchestergalleries.org/whats-on/exhibitions/index.php?itemID=91

Events details are listed below. You may need to scroll down or click on headers to see them all. For events that don't have a specific date see the 'Resources' tab above.

Great Escapes

25 May 2013 *on now

Inspired by the theme of escape in our British Art Between the Wars exhibition, artists Katy and Michiko will help you to make your own creative haven in the gallery.

Play with paper, scissors and stones to create real and unreal worlds.
Drop-in session from 12 til 4.

Suitable for

When

1-4pm

Admission

Free

craft

Great Escapes

26 May 2013

Inspired by the theme of escape in our British Art Between the Wars exhibition, artists Katy and Michiko will help you to make your own creative haven in the gallery.

Play with paper, scissors and stones to create real and unreal worlds.
Drop-in session from 12 til 4.

Suitable for

When

1-4pm

Admission

Free

paint

Light Catchers

28 May 2013

Use all of your senses as we search for textures and colours around the gallery then listen to music whilst you drip and dab paint onto huge light-flooded panels. Plus make your own see-through painting to take home.

Free, drop in event, no need to book. Suitable for families with children age 0-11

Suitable for

When

1-4pm

Admission

Free

paint

Light Catchers

29 May 2013

Use all of your senses as we search for textures and colours around the gallery then listen to music whilst you drip and dab paint onto huge light-flooded panels. Plus make your own see-through painting to take home.

Free, drop in event, no need to book. Suitable for families with children age 0-11

Suitable for

When

1-4pm

Admission

Free

paint

Light Catchers

30 May 2013

Use all of your senses as we search for textures and colours around the gallery then listen to music whilst you drip and dab paint onto huge light-flooded panels. Plus make your own see-through painting to take home.

Free, drop in event, no need to book. Suitable for families with children age 0-11

Suitable for

When

1-4pm

Admission

Free

paint

Light Catchers

31 May 2013

Use all of your senses as we search for textures and colours around the gallery then listen to music whilst you drip and dab paint onto huge light-flooded panels. Plus make your own see-through painting to take home.

Free, drop in event, no need to book. Suitable for families with children age 0-11

Suitable for

When

1-4pm

Admission

Free

Resources listed here may include websites, bookable tours and workshops, books, loan boxes and more. You may need to scroll down or click on headers to see them all.
Digital and online resources

KS2 Interactive: Ford Madox Brown's Work

http://www.manchestergalleries.org/ford-madox-brown/

This Flash online interactive uses the famous painting Work to bring Victorian social history to life. Characters come alive, a series of clues encourage children to investigate the painting closely, and a series of different objects are used to explore the different responses people have to objects and their meanings, encouraging pupils to empathise with different characters. The interactive ends with a quiz to assess what has been learnt, and there's also a handy teacher's guide.

Stepping Inside a 1910 painting with Tony Ross

http://www.mylearning.org/overview.asp?journeyid=646

Acclaimed children's author and illustrator Tony Ross responds to a 1910 painting called Old Cab at All Saints, Manchester by Adolphe Valette, producing a witty comment on the original. Good worksheets to help you try it yourself.

Publisher

  • This resource was produced as part of the MLA-funded My Learning project.
Face to face resources

Family Art Club

http://www.manchestergalleries.org/whats-on/events/index.php?itemID=606

Play games, be creative and get messy at Manchester Art Gallery's free family art club. Workshops are designed for you to play, create and enjoy as a family. Workshops are suitable for children aged 6-11 years and their families. The workshops run for two hours to give you the chance to relax and enjoy some quality creative time with your children.

How to obtain

Sessions are free and there's no need to book but places are limited so turn up early.

Family Art Club - Under 5s

http://www.manchestergalleries.org/whats-on/events/index.php?itemID=610

Make friends. Make noise. Make a mess! Activities for children aged 0-5 years from 13.00 to 15.00. All children must be accompanied by an adult.

How to obtain

Under 5s Family Art Club sessions are free but places are limited, so arrive early to avoid disappointment.

Mini Family Art Club

http://www.manchestergalleries.org/whats-on/events/index.php?itemID=611

Make friends. Make noise. Make a mess! Activities for children aged 5 and under. Come along on Fridays 10.30-11.30 with your little ones and spend some quality fun time in a safe environment. All children must be accompanied by an adult.

How to obtain

Activities are free and there is no need to book but places are limited so arrive early to avoid disappointment.

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