Today Kate gave us a talk on how a curator creates a group exhibition. She has lots of experience and makes it look easy! It isn’t.
Exhibitions can evolve from any number of reasons. During lockdown in the pandemic I started to watch Grayson Perry and his art t.v. programme . He definitely brought out the ‘art’ in so many ordinary people with one or two celebs thrown into the mix, (who were very well known but not for their art). The format at that time was of course quite restricted to brief glimpse’s of peoples work via online video but eventually as lockdown eased the peoples art was able to be properly collated and displayed in gallery exhibitions. It was a great achievement to all involved and I think gave the general public a bit more insight into the vast world of ‘art’.
Exhibitions can come from magazine publications, a series of books, shows, films, campaigns, etc.
Museums always have many permanent exhibitions but also regularly facilitate limited exhibitions.
We have seen that Photographic exhibitions can be intertwined with mixed media to make the viewer fully feel fully immersed in its content for a better overall experience.
My own Impossible Exhibition will be images of Bottle Ovens. I live in Stoke on Trent or the ‘Potteries’ as it is often fondly referred to, where in the early 20th century around four thousand bottle ovens baked ceramic wares that were shipped all over the world.
Now only forty-seven remain and although they are listed buildings, still a small number of them are allowed to fall into disrepair. I just LOVE them.
I have six images to display. They are black and white.
What is my theme? I am thinking along the lines of Social History? Celebrating the past? Historical Architecture? Local Art? Urban Dereliction
What other photographers work to I want to join my exhibition?
Sid Kirkham.
Susie Cooper.
Clarice Cliff.
And local Studio Artist of today
Claire Heath and her work drawing awareness to ecological plights of forest fires in Australia and the destruction of important landscapes to facilitate HS2
I have also included Lowry and some of his industrial scenes
Some of my own images:
I think the combination of historical, industrial and local artists will work well for the exhibition. It should give a broad range of interest for visitors.
The site I have chosen is well known in the area. Middleport Pottery has been supported for a number of years now by the Prince’s Trust. King Charles has visited several times.
Within Middleport Pottery there are rooms for hire alongside workshops and small artist retail units. The site was used for the television programme ‘The Great Pottery Throw Down’ it’s presenters/judges Keith Brymer Jones and Richard Miller are now well known in the area and will be invited.
Well placed on the canal site the exhibition will begin at the dilapidated Price Kensington Works on the A5271 (Station Street) at Lonport canal bridge where at dusk photographic images of pottery designers, ware and workers will be projected onto the bottle oven and the remaining building. The exhibition Continues along to Middleport for the main exhibition area with outdoor and indoor Tea Room facilities and extends to the last factory building with more projected images ending at bridge 125 on the canal and into Pidduck Street (which leads back to Middleport Pottery on foot).
On opening night of the exhibition a fully equipped drinks/dining narrowboat will travel to the venue and be available for visitors to enjoy the images from another perspective.