Whitworth Art Gallery
Sundays are quiet days. It’s that time when you leave the clutter of the past week and charge your batteries for the following one. Sundays are slower days, when you tread with care and wander around the city searching for a tranquil spot to soothe your tired mind. We found our place at the Whitworth Art Gallery. The intricate architecture and the clever design of the exhibitions combine vast open spaces with cozy secluded ambients providing the perfect setting to connect with art.
The journey begins with the textiles gallery, from typical hunting scenes on British tapestry to Indian woven dresses and Japanese yogi. Dimming lights help the tired eye adjust to the elaborate details of the fabrics revealing exquisite patterns. On the same note, the wallpaper collection is bursting with colour and psychedelic designs.
Photography © Claudiu Mihăilă
It’s easy to lose track of time and soon enough you forget about the suggested tour and start browsing aimlessly, one room after another, attracted by various art pieces and displays. We passed Pavel Büchler’s diary overwhelmed by his thoughts gathered year after year and scribbled on the same sheet of paper. We stopped in the South gallery to admire the playful geometric constructions bathed in the crisp Manchester summer sunshine. A nice surprise were the sculptures of Kenneth Martin, famous for his aluminium installation in Cambridge. In contrast, the soft glow of Turner’s oil paintings and William Blake’s drawings warmed our spirits and our hearts.
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- Oscillation, by Kenneth Martin, 1967
The Continental Drift exhibition was, along with the impressive William Turner collection, the highlight of our visit. The quality of the prints, the mixture of styles, genres and influences, the density of outstanding artists were simply breathtaking: Albrecht Durer Renaissance Apocalyptic prints sitting next to Paul Klee’s modern drawings; the Impressionist suite – Edgar Degas, Camille Pissarro, Henri Matisse, Henri Toulouse-Lautrec, followed by Vincent van Gogh, Paul Gauguin, Pablo Picasso, Edvard Munch and Francisco Goya. Each turn, each corner, each piece of art brought some new insight into the work of these famous painters.
To encourage visitors, photography is not allowed in the temporary exhibitions. With this in mind, we selected a few artworks that caught our attention and we urge you to go see them. The Whitworth Gallery is closing at the beginning of September for an extensive redevelopment project aimed to expand the existing space and connect it to the Whitworth park. This year’s performance is ending with a party on Fri 30 Aug – Sun 1 Sept. The gallery is scheduled to re-open in June 2014. Meanwhile, you can follow the progress of the construction and, more importantly, visit and spot this beautiful artwork.
Photography © Claudiu Mihăilă
The Gallery café is an experience in itself. With gorgeous food brought by The Modern Caterer, the atmosphere is that of a cozy house where friends gather around the kitchen or fill the patio on a sunny day.
More information about visiting hours, permanent and temporary exhibitions, children’s workshops and events are available on the Whitworth Art Gallery website.
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So glad you enjoyed your weekend visit to the Whitworth. Thank you for encouraging visits to my up-dates in the progress of the building development and hope you can make it to the Whitworth Weekending.
Thank you, we had a great time at Whitworth and we hope the new building will enhance the cozy and friendly atmosphere. Good luck with the project! We’d love to hear more about it at the Weekending.