Art - What’s On | The Crack Magazine

Michael Rakowitz: The Waiting Gardens of the North

Baltic has invited Michael Rakowitz to develop a major new commission in response to the idea of conflict to be presented in the Level 4 gallery. The artist has proposed to create a sprawling, immersive interior forest of trees, hedges, herbs, and medicinal plants that will be conceived and tended to in collaboration with local organisations. The project is imagined as a “Hanging Garden”, referencing the one in Babylon that is considered among the Seven Wonders of the World. The garden will be inhabited by Rakowitz’s cardboard sculptures that attempt to reappear the archaeological cultural heritage that has been looted or destroyed in Iraq and Syria since the US-led invasion of Iraq in 2003.

Venue:: BALTIC Centre for Contemporary Art, South Shore Road, Gateshead Quays, Gateshead, NE8 3BA
Date:: Jul 15th 2023 - May 26th 2024
Opening Times:: Sun and Wed-Sat 10:00 - 18:00
Price:: Free, donations welcome

Innovation Platform

Innovation Platform will inspire visitors with the inventiveness and ingenuity in rail. This exhibition highlights emerging ideas and extraordinary achievements from across the rail industry. Showcasing the latest and greatest in rail innovation, Innovation Platform celebrates the creative by focusing not only on the technology itself, but by giving just as much attention to the context in which objects were developed. Through imaginative problem-solving and original thinking, the railways are progressing, armed with technologies designed to improve all aspects of the industry. The Innovation Platform will show the very best of these to those who will feel their benefit most greatly—you!

Venue:: Locomotion, (previously Shildon Locomotion Museum), Dale Road Industrial Estate, Dale Road, Shildon, County Durham, DL4 2RE
Date:: Jan 11th 2023 - Dec 24th 2024
Opening Times:: Sun and Wed-Sat 10:00 - 17:00
Price:: Free

Project Art Works

A major new collaboration and exhibition with Project Art Works as part of their EXPLORERS programme. Now in its second iteration, EXPLORERS is a partnership programme of art and action that opens up routes into artistic practice for neurominorities, dismantling attitudinal and systemic barriers to representation and rights in art and society. The yearlong project will culminate in an installation of artworks and film in the Ground Floor gallery in autumn 2023. Bringing together research and learning from the collaboration, the exhibition will include a programme of workshops and events developed with neurodiverse communities, local partners and individuals.

Venue:: BALTIC Centre for Contemporary Art, South Shore Road, Gateshead Quays, Gateshead, NE8 3BA
Date:: Sep 23rd 2023 - Feb 25th 2024
Opening Times:: Sun and Wed-Sat 10:00 - 18:00
Price:: Free

Penned and Printed

Showcasing items from Durham University's Archives and Special Collections, this exhibition explores themes of medical progress, local stories of crime and punishment, and the journey to women's suffrage. These rarely displayed collections bring together the spectacular with the humble, the local with the national, and ideas which would change the world, with small details of the long forgotten.

Venue:: Palace Green Library, Palace Green, Durham, DH1 3RN
Date:: Jun 12th 2023 - Feb 29th 2024
Opening Times:: Daily 10:00 - 17:00
Price:: Free

Blue Futures

This exhibition explores our relationship with water and the coast in South Tyneside. Blue Futures is inspired by challenges around climate change and the natural environment. It brings together three projects BE THE SEA, Renewable Blue, and Sound Dig. Artists have worked with engineers, environmental teams, former miners, residents and young people to explore our past, present and future relationship with our marine environment and waterways.

Venue:: The Word, The National Centre for the Written Word, 45 Market Place, South Shields, NE33 1JF
Date:: Jul 20th 2023 - Dec 3rd 2023
Opening Times:: Mon-Thu 09:00 - 19:00 , Fri 09:00 - 17:00 , Sat-Sun 10:00 - 16:00
Price:: Free

Cosmovisions on Land and Entangled Futures

A group exhibition that is being developed through a collaborative research project that seeks to investigate land rights and the social and political agency of nature from non-extractivist perspectives. The project has an interdisciplinary approach that focuses on practices that reveal worldviews at the intersections between land rights and climate justice, questioning and opposing Euro-capital-centric and dominant narratives. Based on experimentation and collaboration, the project explores formats that challenge the hierarchical structures of production and presentation of knowledge, incorporating the voices of artists, and collaboration and exchange in the development process.

Venue:: BALTIC Centre for Contemporary Art, South Shore Road, Gateshead Quays, Gateshead, NE8 3BA
Date:: Nov 18th 2023 - May 26th 2024
Opening Times:: Sun and Wed-Sat 10:00 - 18:00
Price:: Free

People Powered: Stories from the River Tees

In partnership with the National Portrait Gallery, this exhibition features an action-packed programme of events focusing on histories and folk tales exploring how the magnificent River Tees has shaped the region. Explore untold stories from the River Tees, poetry, portraits from the National Portrait Gallery and unseen works from the Middlesbrough Collection, along with some old favourites.

Venue:: Mima, Centre Square, Middlesbrough, TS1 2AZ
Date:: Jul 22nd 2023 - Jan 7th 2024
Opening Times:: Sun 12:00 - 16:00 , Tue-Sat 10:00 - 16:30
Price:: Free

The Magic of the Silver Swan

This landmark exhibition celebrates the 250th anniversary of the Museum’s most iconic object alongside the beauty and artistry of automata. With inventiveness and playfulness at its core, this show will feature objects, artefacts and artworks from the collection as well as moving objects and images and kinetic artworks by artists, makers, designers and inventors. Part of the Museum’s year of Movement, you can see work by contemporary artists including the Turner Prize nominated Yinka Shonibare CBE, North East based Helen Pailing and Kinnari Saraiya, Tobias Bradford, Bruce Lacey, Rebecca Moss, Martin Smith and Cabaret Mechanical Theatre.

Venue:: The Bowes Museum, Barnard Castle, County Durham, DL12 8NP
Date:: Jul 8th 2023 - Jan 7th 2024
Opening Times:: Daily 10:00 - 17:00
Price:: £17.50/under 18s Free

(Re)Grounding

Journeying from the industrial landscapes of Eastern Ukraine to former coal mines and community gardens of the North East, artists Alexandra Clod and Karolina Uskakovych respond to the climate crisis by exploring the shared industrial past of the UK and Ukraine and its impact today. (Re)Grounding is co-produced by D6: Culture in Transit and Kyiv-based IZOLYATSIA, with D6 curator in residence Lucy Nychai, and is part of the UK/Ukraine Season of Culture devised jointly by the British Council and the Ukrainian Institute.

Venue:: The NewBridge Project, Shieldfield Centre 4 - 8, Clarence Walk, off Stoddart St, Newcastle, NE2 1AL
Date:: Nov 18th 2023 - Dec 16th 2023
Opening Times:: Daily 12:00 - 17:00
Price:: Free

Ayo Akingbade: Show Me The World Mister

Comprising two films shot on location in Nigeria, the commission builds on Akingbade’s lucid interrogations of history and place, addressing the interwoven histories of industrialisation, colonisation and family. Akingbade works predominantly with moving image, addressing notions of power, urbanism and stance. Interested in the fluid boundaries between the self and the other, she gathers local and cultural experiences in intimate and playful interpretations.

Venue:: BALTIC Centre for Contemporary Art, South Shore Road, Gateshead Quays, Gateshead, NE8 3BA
Date:: Nov 18th 2023 - Apr 14th 2024
Opening Times:: Sun and Wed-Sat 10:00 - 18:00
Price:: Free

Martin Smith

Visitors to The Bowes Museum can see three artworks by the UK-based artist, Martin Smith. Sited in the Museum’s grounds throughout the Summer, Kinetic Arboretum’s (2018) three metal trees will respond to the elements with gentle, rhythmical movements. Inside the Museum, Bird Wave (2007) and Wishing You Well (2019) draw people’s attention to the parts of the functional objects we rarely see, highlighting rather than hiding, the moving mechanisms.

Venue:: The Bowes Museum, Barnard Castle, County Durham, DL12 8NP
Date:: Apr 3rd 2023 - Feb 25th 2024
Opening Times:: Daily 10:00 - 17:00
Price:: £17.50/under 18s Free

Len Tabner: Elements of Darkness

This new exhibition brings together a selection of Len Tabner’s drawings and paintings of Boulby Potash Mine on the North Yorkshire coast – the deepest mine in Britain. Len explored the unfamiliar underground world of the miner in the early 1980s, drawing and painting in situ in the mine.

Venue:: Mining Art Gallery, Bishop Auckland, County Durham
Date:: Nov 1st 2023 - Oct 27th 2024
Opening Times:: Sun and Wed-Sat 11:00 - 16:00
Price:: £5/£2.50 child

Jade Sweeting: 900 miles (from my home)

900 miles (from my home) is the first UK solo exhibition by Middlesborough born and Newcastle based artist-photographer, printmaker and researcher Jade Sweeting. The exhibition visually represents strong, confident women who ride motorcycles – inspired by, and dedicated to every woman who rides, who gets their hands dirty and who wants to be free. 900 miles showcases a new series of intimate 8×10 black and white photographic prints spanning the central space. The photographs, at once detailed and abstracted, document personal items such as biker jackets, motorcycle parts and clothing. Imbued with individuality and pride, community and solidarity they speak to a subculture born from the freedom of the open road and resistance to the mainstream. The prints sit within an immersive soundtrack of the artist’s much loved Ironhead bike.

Venue:: Northern Gallery for Contemporary Art, c/o National Glass Centre, Liberty Way, Sunderland, SR6 0GL
Date:: Sep 16th 2023 - Jan 21st 2024
Opening Times:: Daily 10:00 - 17:00
Price:: Free

Mike Nelson: Hybrid Scripts

Hybrid Scripts is the first solo exhibition in the North East in nearly 30 years by internationally acclaimed British artist Mike Nelson. Nelson produces immersive worlds which draw on international political movements, science fiction, counter culture, film and literature. His monumental installations invite the viewer to step into an alternate reality filled with a vast array of objects and personal effects which convey human presence while presenting a world eerily familiar to our own. The exhibition comprises two seminal early sculptural installations Taylor and Lionheart in direct dialogue for the first time. Both works reflect on Britain’s colonial past, migration, trade and travel.

Venue:: Northern Gallery for Contemporary Art, c/o National Glass Centre, Liberty Way, Sunderland, SR6 0GL
Date:: Sep 23rd 2023 - Jan 21st 2024
Opening Times:: Daily 10:00 - 17:00
Price:: Free

Powering the Future: South Tyneside and Beyond!

Throughout Spring 2023, school pupils from across South Tyneside were invited to take part in an invention challenge with Little Inventors, a creative education organisation that stimulates children’s imaginations by taking their ideas seriously and bringing them to life. Inspired and funded by Dogger Bank Wind Farm, the challenge explored the role of wind and other forms of renewable energy in helping address climate change. Hundreds of ideas were submitted and six were chosen by a panel of young inventors and industry representatives to be brought to life and displayed at the Word.

Venue:: The Word, The National Centre for the Written Word, 45 Market Place, South Shields, NE33 1JF
Date:: Jul 20th 2023 - Dec 3rd 2023
Opening Times:: Mon-Thu 09:00 - 19:00 , Fri 09:00 - 17:00 , Sat-Sun 10:00 - 16:00
Price:: Free

A Collector's Story: A Private Collection of Vivienne Westwood

Discover a snapshot of the late Vivienne Westwood’s career through the eyes of collector, Peter Smithson. Peter has collected Westwood clothing and accessories for more than 25 years, focusing on Mini-Crini (1986) to Storm in a Teacup (1996/7). Westwood was inspired by art, fashion, culture and social history. This capsule display features items from the Museum’s collection that echo and contextualise the historical references in Westwood’s work, allowing visitors to examine materials and techniques.

Venue:: The Bowes Museum, Barnard Castle, County Durham, DL12 8NP
Date:: Jul 22nd 2023 - Feb 4th 2024
Opening Times:: Daily 10:00 - 17:00
Price:: £17.50/under 18s Free

Middlesbrough Collection: Soft Structures

Soft Structures reflects on the invisible threads and undocumented connections that underpin creative lives and communities. Through drawing, painting, video, installation, textile and ceramics, the exhibition presents newly commissioned artwork by Fiona Larkin and Ian Giles and pieces from the Middlesbrough Collection cared for by MIMA.

Venue:: Mima, Centre Square, Middlesbrough, TS1 2AZ
Date:: Sep 19th 2023 - Mar 31st 2024
Opening Times:: Sun 12:00 - 16:00 , Tue-Sat 10:00 - 16:30
Price:: Free

Hassina Khan

Hassina Khan completed her MA in Glass at the University of Sunderland in 2022 and returned in 2023, taking part in a residency kindly funded by the Glass Society. Hassina uses glass to express English words written in Urdu text, mimicking her experience as a bi-racial, English-Pakistani person.

Venue:: National Glass Centre, Liberty Way, Sunderland, SR6 0GL
Date:: Sep 16th 2023 - Mar 10th 2024
Opening Times:: Daily 10:00 - 17:00
Price:: Free

Bernard Lloyd Collection

In 2022 Bernard Lloyd donated his substantial collection of Studio Glass to National Glass Centre. This presentation of selected works from the collection continues the theme of internationalism drawing attention to the significant variations in style and technique adopted by artists working in different countries at different times.

Venue:: National Glass Centre, Liberty Way, Sunderland, SR6 0GL
Date:: Sep 16th 2023 - Mar 10th 2024
Opening Times:: Daily 10:00 - 17:00
Price:: Free

The Architect Has Left the Building

An exhibition built around a dual-screen film installation, weaving together moments of architectural joy and intimacy drawn from the professional archives of renowned photographer and filmmaker Jim Stephenson. Commissioned by the RIBA where it was on show over the summer, the film offers a series of cinematic vignettes that subtly document the ways that people use architecture when left to their own devices. Featuring recent projects by Grafton Architects, Henley Halebrown, Carmody Groarke, Jamie Fobert Architects and others, the films engage at different scales to quietly disrupt the traditionally ‘neat’ visions of these perhaps already familiar buildings, as usually presented to the public.

Venue:: Farrell Centre, The Sir Terry Farrell Building, Eldon Place, Newcastle, NE1 7RD
Date:: Oct 6th 2023 - Feb 25th 2024
Opening Times:: Sun and Wed-Sat 10:00 - 17:00
Price:: Free

Dudley Edwards: Tranquil Echoes

Dudley Edwards was the co-founder of ground-breaking Pop collective BEV in the 1960’s. Their vibrant murals and designs played a defining role in the era and led to painting commissions including Paul McCartney’s ‘Magic Piano’. In this exhibition, Dudley presents a collection of paintings and prints that draw on an expressionistic and graphic style developed over 50 years.

Venue:: The Biscuit Factory, 16 Stoddard Street, Newcastle, NE2 1AN
Date:: Oct 28th 2023 - Jan 14th 2024
Opening Times:: Daily 10:00 - 17:00
Price:: Free

Stepping Softly on the Earth

A research-led exhibition presenting the work of 20, mostly non-Western and Indigenous, artists. The exhibition invites you to consider human’s relationship to land and territory from a decolonial and anti-colonial perspective. The exhibition showcases a range of artistic practices that approach our relationship to land and territory through the understanding of the world as a pluriverse – a world in which many worlds coexist and support each other. In this world, all things and beings are interconnected and human and nature are not separated.Stepping Softly on the Earth includes artworks exploring questions around ancestral cosmovisions, spirituality, inter-species communication, embodied knowledge, oral traditions, autonomy, mapping and legal frameworks.

Venue:: BALTIC Centre for Contemporary Art, South Shore Road, Gateshead Quays, Gateshead, NE8 3BA
Date:: Nov 18th 2023 - Apr 14th 2024
Opening Times:: Sun and Wed-Sat 10:00 - 18:00
Price:: Free

Glass World

In recent years National Glass Centre has developed a permanent collection of international Studio Glass that includes work by artists from or based in thirty different countries, from Sweden to New Zealand and the United States to Japan. This exhibition presents a wide selection of the works held in our collection and creates an opportunity to celebrate the international reach of artists working in glass.

Venue:: National Glass Centre, Liberty Way, Sunderland, SR6 0GL
Date:: Oct 14th 2023 - Mar 10th 2024
Opening Times:: Daily 10:00 - 17:00
Price:: Free

Voices: contemporary art and craft from the Middle East and North Africa

An exhibition celebrating the work of emerging contemporary artists and designers from the Middle East and North Africa recently acquired by the Oriental Museum. The artists featured in the exhibition come from Syria, Iran, Lebanon, Egypt, Morocco, Yemen, Jordan and Palestine. Some still live in their home countries, while others have been forced to flee due to conflict or oppression. Working in a variety of media including digital collage, photography, mixed media, textile and ceramic their work highlights topics of identity, history and politics, while also drawing on traditional art and craft. Their work reflects the variety of artistic expression seen across the MENA region, there is no single, unifying style but many voices.

Venue:: Oriental Museum, Elvet Hill, (off South Road), Durham, DH1 3TH
Date:: Sep 29th 2023 - May 12th 2024
Opening Times:: Sat-Sun 12:00 - 17:00 , Tue-Wed and Fri 10:00 - 17:00 , Thu 10:00 - 19:00
Price:: Free

Hjem by Jamie Sinclair

Frustrated by current media bias towards people seeking asylum in the UK, Jamie decided to return to his hometown to explore and help share the stories of some of the most recent migrants to Ashington; those seeking sanctuary. Jamie became actively involved with the Northumberland County of Sanctuary (NCOS) a local, volunteer-led charity that has welcomed and supported asylum seekers being settled in the county since 2016. ‘Hjem’ is an exchange of care and culture, capturing the importance of community and how simple acts of kindness can help people feel at home.

Venue:: Woodhorn Museum , Queen Elizabeth 2nd Country Park, Ashington, Northumberland, NE63 9YF
Date:: Oct 14th 2023 - Feb 25th 2024
Opening Times:: Sun and Wed-Sat 10:00 - 16:00
Price:: Free

Powering the Past

In this new display explore how we generated power for our daily lives in the North East over the years. From fossil fuels to renewable energy sources to nuclear power, Powering the Past features newly conserved objects on display from the collection. See a model of the Chimney Windmill at Newcastle’s Spital Tongues, a model of an overshot water wheel, an electricity pylon model and a model of a modern coal face.

Venue:: Discovery Museum, (Closed on all Bank Holidays) Blandford Square, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 4JA
Date:: Oct 28th 2023 - Feb 25th 2024
Opening Times:: Sat-Sun 11:00 - 16:00 , Mon-Fri 10:00 - 16:00
Price:: Free

Behind the Heads: Natural History, Empire and the Abel Chapman Collection

As they reassess our collections in the context of the twenty-first museum, this display explores some of the stories behind the Great North Museum: Hancock’s taxidermy objects. It takes a closer look at the origins of hunting trophies donated to the museum by the Sunderland-born hunter Abel Chapman in 1929. Recent research into these trophies shows how these objects can illuminate the relationship between hunting and the British Empire. We examine how and why these trophies were made and the often brutal impact of European hunting safaris on indigenous African people and wildlife.

Venue:: Great North Museum: Hancock, Barras Bridge, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE2 4PT
Date:: Oct 1st 2023 - Jan 7th 2024
Opening Times:: Mon-Fri 10:00 - 17:00 , Sun 11:00 - 16:00 , Sat 10:00 - 16:00
Price:: Free

Natalie Bamford's Direct Me: Getting to Know Newcastle, Walking in your Footsteps

Direct Me is a display of the outcomes of Natalie Bamford’s interdisciplinary PhD research, which explores the possibilities that that the study of spatial knowledge could have on how we view our cities. The display presents knowledge that Bamford has uncovered about Newcastle by following the spatial directions of residents that lead her through their personal journeys around the city. Bamford has been able to step into the shoes of those that know Newcastle best and has learnt something new about the city. In this display she invites visitors to see if what she has discovered in her research rings true with their own experiences and offers new ways for the public to explore the city themselves.

Venue:: Farrell Centre, The Sir Terry Farrell Building, Eldon Place, Newcastle, NE1 7RD
Date:: Oct 6th 2023 - Feb 25th 2024
Opening Times:: Sun and Wed-Sat 10:00 - 17:00
Price:: Free

Redcar Palace Open

Redcar Palace is gearing up for the third in their highly successful Open Call seasons. Of their latest show they say: “We are delighted to present the third exhibition in Redcar Palace’s highly successful Open Call series. We started our exhibition programme in 2023 with six solo shows, exhibiting artists during our Spring open call out. This was such a fantastic opportunity to meet new artists. We’re culminating 2023 with another series of solo shows, which seems like the perfect way to end the year. Alongside the two open solo shows we have made a selection of individual works from other artists available to view to give a flavour of the range of artists who applied and to signal an intention for future working relationships.”

Venue:: Redcar Palace, 28-29 Esplande, Redcar, Cleveland, TS10 3AE
Date:: Nov 11th 2023 - Dec 30th 2023
Opening Times:: Sun 12:00 - 16:00 , Mon-Wed and Fri-Sat 10:00 - 16:00
Price:: Free

Mary Ann Rogers Open Days

Northumberland-based artist Mary Ann Rogers’ vibrant watercolours have been exhibited in shows right across the UK, and her work is also held in many private collections worldwide. These popular events let you check out her paintings along with a whole raft of gift ideas such as calendars, diaries, throws, stationary and more – all adorned with her magnificent works. Guests this year include Linden Craven who make silver jewellery that should be filed under “utterly divine”.

Venue:: Mary Ann Rogers Gallery, Leam Cottage, West Woodburn, Hexham, Northumberland, NE48 2SE
Date:: Dec 2nd 2023 - Dec 10th 2023
Opening Times:: 2nd, 3rd, 9th, 10th December 10:00 - 17:00
Price:: Free

LANDMARKS by Ellie Gair and Tom Ownsworth

A new collaboration between GAIR(ish) Paints and PLYable Design. This exhibition showcases the first phase of a journey into exploring how paint, plywood and mark making can be combined. Ellie Gair and Tom Ownsworth have pooled their talents to produce a series of pieces examining depth, perspective, colour, and contrast. Painted landscapes inform compositions of graphic cut marks, outlining elements and structures. Plywood provides the canvas, with layers of grain being revealed by cut marks through the painted surface.

Venue:: rePUBlic Gallery, Access Through The King's Head Cafe, 85 Bridge Street, Blyth, NE24 3AE
Date:: Dec 2nd 2023 - Jan 27th 2024
Opening Times:: Sun and Tue-Sat 08:00 - 16:00
Price:: Free

The Congruence Engine Project

This new display will uncover and explore unknown stories from Newcastle’s industrial history, through specially made films. The films link together machines, folk songs, photographs and maps from Newcastle and beyond, bringing the city’s heritage to life and allowing visitors to explore historical spaces and stories.

Venue:: Discovery Museum, (Closed on all Bank Holidays) Blandford Square, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 4JA
Date:: Nov 1st 2023 - Feb 25th 2024
Opening Times:: Sat-Sun 11:00 - 16:00 , Mon-Fri 10:00 - 16:00
Price:: Free

The Ouse Burn Way

The Ouse Burn Way is a proposed seven-mile trail that will connect communities with nature. It follows the Ouse Burn from its mouth at the River Tyne in the Lower Ouseburn Valley to Weetslade Country Park and beyond. It also includes improvements to the River Letch, which connects Longbenton in the east to the Ouse Burn and a proposed western extension, linking to Newcastle Great Park in the north west. After commissioning Newcastle University to deliver a study of both rivers, the Foundation and Ryder Architecture have created an aspirational programme that looks to improve the current degradation of these environments as well as creating an accessible corridor strategy with positive community opportunities. This display illustrates the problems that need to be addressed, the potential of the Ouse Burn and the Letch as a recreational resource for the residents of Tyne and Wear, whilst highlighting the need for multiagency involvement to make it a reality.

Venue:: Farrell Centre, The Sir Terry Farrell Building, Eldon Place, Newcastle, NE1 7RD
Date:: Oct 19th 2023 - Feb 25th 2024
Opening Times:: Sun and Wed-Sat 10:00 - 17:00
Price:: Free

The Pre-Raphaelites: Women in the Picture

Women were the heartbeat of the Pre-Raphaelite movements. Through Tullie House’s superb collections they explore how women were the objects of the artists’ gaze often becoming a symbol for morality. Featuring favourite works by Gabriel Dante Rossetti, Elizabeth Siddal, Edward Burne-Jones, Phoebe Anna Traquair and Arthur Hughes, they look at the pioneering nature of the Pre Raphaelites, asking the question: when before had gender been so central to art?

Venue:: Tullie House Museum and Art Gallery, Carlisle Street, Carlisle, Cumbria, CA3 8TP
Date:: Sep 1st 2022 - Sep 1st 2025
Opening Times:: Mon-Sat 10:00 - 16:00
Price:: £10/under 18s Free

Matt Rugg: Connecting Form

The first major retrospective of the work of the British abstract artist and teacher Matt Rugg (1935-2020). The exhibition will display previously unshown work alongside well-known pieces and provide a platform for an outreach and learning programme exploring radical shifts in art education.

Venue:: Hatton Gallery, The Quadrangle, University of Newcastle, 6 Kensington Terrace, Newcastle, NE1 7RU
Date:: Sep 23rd 2023 - Jan 13th 2024
Opening Times:: Mon-Sat 10:00 - 17:00
Price:: Free

North of England Art Club Exhibition

The North of England Art Club has over 70 members who are based in studios at Newcastle Art Centre and have a busy programme of workshops, events, exhibitions and talks. This exhibition brings together a selection of work by some of the current members, showcasing the talent and variety of the artwork created.

Venue:: Gateshead Central Library, Prince Consort Road, Gateshead, NE8 4LN
Date:: Nov 11th 2023 - Jan 6th 2024
Opening Times:: Sat 09:00 - 13:00 , Tue-Wed and Fri 09:00 - 17:00 , Mon and Thu 09:00 - 19:00
Price:: Free

Bright!

A Christmas Exhibition by the Artists of Newcastle Arts Centre.

Venue:: Arts Centre Washington, Biddick Lane, Fatfield, Washington, NE38 8AB
Date:: Nov 11th 2023 - Jan 6th 2024
Opening Times:: Mon 09:30 - 17:00 , Tue-Sat 09:30 - 20:00
Price:: Free

New to Us

See some of the Museum’s recent acquisitions in this beautiful new display in the Art Gallery. Sunderland Museum & Winter Gardens continues to grow its collections through the generous support of benefactors, bequests and funders. New commissions cast a new light on areas of their historic collections, and they showcase both new and established artists.

Venue:: Sunderland Museum & Winter Gardens, Mowbray Gardens, Burdon Road, Sunderland, SR1 1PP
Date:: Jun 19th 2023 - Dec 30th 2023
Opening Times:: Mon-Fri 09:30 - 17:00 , Sat 10:00 - 16:00
Price:: Free

SCRAN! A history of Food & Drink in South Tyneside

Food and drink is the mouth-watering theme for South Shields Museum’s latest exhibition. The exhibition charts the story of food and drink across South Tyneside and celebrates the traditional cuisine of the North East, from regional favourites such as stottie cakes and leek pudding, to singing hinnies and panaculty. In this exhibition, visitors can discover South Tyneside’s evolving food and drink story, from Roman times up to the present day, and learn of the origins of some of the borough’s most iconic eateries, including Colmans fish and chips, Dicksons pork butchers and Minchella & Co’s ice cream.

Venue:: South Shields Museum & Art Gallery, Ocean Road, South Shields, NE33 2JA
Date:: Jul 18th 2023 - Jan 25th 2024
Opening Times:: Sat 11:00 - 16:00 , Mon-Fri 10:00 - 17:00
Price:: Free

Elmer and Friends, the Colourful World of David McKee

Elmer and Friends is a major retrospective of the late author and illustrator David McKee. See striking illustrations and celebrate over 30 years of Elmer the Patchwork Elephant, McKee’s most well-known creation. First stop is Elmer’s world, where visitors can walk through Elmer’s jungle, encountering characters and stories along the way. As well as illustrations from the Elmer series there’s original artwork from McKee’s other children’s classics Not Now, Bernard, Mr Benn, and King Rollo plus the opportunity to visit the fancy dress costume shop featured in Mr Benn.

Venue:: Sunderland Museum & Winter Gardens, Mowbray Gardens, Burdon Road, Sunderland, SR1 1PP
Date:: Sep 11th 2023 - Jan 6th 2024
Opening Times:: Sat 10:00 - 16:00 , Mon-Fri 09:30 - 17:00
Price:: Free

Closed Enough Exhibition

An exhibition of nine artists based in or associated with Iceland. It was conceived by Icelandic artist Una Björg Magnúsdóttir and Newcastle-born Joe Keys, who emigrated to Iceland in 2018, and is curated by Gateshead-based curator Mark Rohtmaa-Jackson. It features work by artists at different stages of their careers, all of whom have exhibited frequently in Iceland: Amanda Riffo, Brák Jónsdóttir, Ingibjörg Sigurjónsdóttir, Eygló Harðardóttir, Halla Einarsdóttir, Una Björg Magnúsdóttir, Martha Lyons Haywood, Joe Keys and Logi Leó Gunnarsson.

Venue:: Gateshead Central Library, Prince Consort Road, Gateshead, NE8 4LN
Date:: Nov 30th 2023 - Dec 16th 2023
Opening Times:: Sat 09:00 - 13:00 , Tue-Wed and Fri 09:00 - 17:00 , Mon and Thu 09:00 - 19:00
Price:: Free

Yevonde: Life and Colour

A new exhibition showcasing the ground-breaking work of 20th century British photographer Yevonde will be shown at the Laing Art Gallery on loan from the National Portrait Gallery. Yevonde Middleton, also known as Madame Yevonde or simply Yevonde (1893-1975), was a London-based photographer whose work focused on portraits and still lives. She was introduced to photography through her involvement with the suffragette cause and she was committed to colour photography when it was not considered a serious artistic medium. Yevonde’s work often integrated elements of Surrealist iconography, humorous still life compositions, and models in tableaux.

Venue:: Laing Art Gallery, New Bridge Street, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 8AG
Date:: Nov 11th 2023 - Apr 20th 2024
Opening Times:: Mon-Sat 10:00 - 16:30
Price:: £8/£7.20

New Perspectives: L-INKing Communities

We are all part of a community. Some communities we choose; some are chosen for us. We find community where we live, learn, socialise and practise our beliefs. Our communities include the families we are born into, the families we select, our friends, colleagues, and the society we are all part of. Our communities offer us space and support to share interests, ideas and values. Community means different things to different people. This display, curated by L-INK, brings together artworks that explore the architecture and activity that communities share. To us, community offers comfort, it means home, it means belonging.

Venue:: Laing Art Gallery, New Bridge Street, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 8AG
Date:: Nov 1st 2023 - Jul 1st 2024
Opening Times:: Mon-Sat 10:00 - 16:30
Price:: Free

Vince Rea

This new exhibition charts the life of Vincent Rea, a local artist and gallery-owner who was best-known for transforming a disused Cold War bunker in Springwell Park, Jarrow, into the nationally recognised Bede Gallery. The exhibition showcases a wide variety of Rea’s creative works, including ceramics, abstract artworks, line drawings and photographs.

Venue:: South Shields Museum & Art Gallery, Ocean Road, South Shields, NE33 2JA
Date:: Nov 20th 2023 - Apr 13th 2024
Opening Times:: Mon-Fri 10:00 - 17:00 , Sat 11:00 - 16:00
Price:: Free

Hygge

Hygge is a Danish word which evokes a quality of cosiness and a sense of well being and contentment. This art exhibition will use that idea to bring a sense of cosiness and warmth into the gallery for the EDAN winter members' exhibition.

Venue:: EDAN Gallery, The Art Block, 74 Church Street, Seaham, County Durham, SR7 7HF
Date:: Nov 7th 2023 - Dec 20th 2023
Opening Times:: Tue-Fri 11:00 - 15:00 , Sat 10:00 - 16:00
Price:: Free

Hartlepool Art Club’s 76th Annual Exhibition

A showcase of the imagination and skills that have established Hartlepool Art Club’s reputation as one of the leading art societies in the north of England.

Venue:: Hartlepool Art Gallery, The Tourist Information Centre, Church Square, Hartlepool, TS24 7EQ
Date:: Nov 18th 2023 - Jan 13th 2024
Opening Times:: Tue-Sat 10:00 - 17:00
Price:: Free

Merchant Navy: Tyneside Stories

A volunteer lead exhibition which takes a broad look at the Merchant Navy during the 20th and 21st centuries and the very big part it played and still plays in the lives of people on both sides of the Tyne. The exhibition materials cover everything from local shipping companies and repair yards, the world wars, the support and training offered to visiting seafarers of all nations, a boarding school for children who had lost a parent in the service, the Merchant Navy of today and the future, as well as stories from individuals and families.

Venue:: The Old Low Light, Clifford's Fort, North Shields, Tyne & Wear, NE30 1JA
Date:: Oct 10th 2023 - Apr 30th 2024
Opening Times:: Tue-Sat 10:00 - 15:00
Price:: £4/free for members

Makers in Clay: British Studio Pottery

The studio pottery movement introduced a new way of making to early 20th-century Britain. Rather than mass produced ceramics, the work of many hands, individual potters began to create one-off pieces which were an expression of their creativity in clay. This was not a nostalgic return to pre-industrial processes but a movement that repositioned potters as artists. A status that they retain today. The Shipley Art Gallery’s outstanding holdings of ceramics was greatly enhanced with over 500 pieces from the John Christian Studio Ceramics Collection acquired in 2019. This display features highlights from the collection and it is the first time that many of these pieces have been on public display.

Venue:: Shipley Art Gallery, Prince Consort Road, Gateshead, NE8 4JB
Date:: Oct 21st 2023 - Dec 15th 2023
Opening Times:: Tue-Fri 10:00 - 16:00 , Sat 10:00 - 17:00
Price:: Free

Rachel Lancaster: In The Wake

Continuing her longstanding interest in the intersections of cinema and painting, the artist’s new body of work explores a quiet tension between familiarity and mystery, capturing the uncanny backlit glow of pre-digital media. Based on films from the 1980s and 90s, the new series of paintings further draws out the ‘noise’ and visual distortion of analogue footage. Rooted in the artist’s own formative experiences with VHS tapes and other physical media, the resulting works reflect the particular light and colour of a past time, evoking a culturally specific aesthetic sensibility through a painterly quality that is equally haunting, curious and dream-like.

Venue:: Workplace Gallery, The Old Post Office, 19/21 West Street, Gateshead, Tyne & Wear, NE8 1AD
Date:: Nov 25th 2023 - Jan 10th 2024
Opening Times:: Tue-Sat 11:00 - 17:00
Price:: Free

Gateshead Arts Society Annual Exhibition 2023

The 75th Annual Exhibition of the Gateshead Art Society takes place at the Shipley Art Gallery. Highlighting art created by the society’s members over the year, the exhibition comprises nearly 100 paintings with a mixture of mediums, styles and subject matters.

Venue:: Shipley Art Gallery, Prince Consort Road, Gateshead, NE8 4JB
Date:: Nov 20th 2023 - Dec 16th 2023
Opening Times:: Tue-Fri 10:00 - 16:00 , Sat 10:00 - 17:00
Price:: Free

Gathering

Northern Print’s final show of 2023 - presenting original prints by some of our 150 studio artists. The exhibition brings together the many people, ideas and prints that have contributed to the life of Northern Print over the last year. All works are available for sale with prices starting at just £20.

Venue:: Northern Print, Stepney Bank, Newcastle, NE1 2NP
Date:: Nov 15th 2023 - Dec 21st 2023
Opening Times:: Wed-Sat 12:00 - 16:00
Price:: Free

REYNOLS: 30th Anniversary Exhibition

The exhibition is curated by TQ zine & Invisible City Records with approval and assistance from the band. There will be many items on display including some which are exclusive to this exhibition.

Venue:: Newcastle Contemporary Art, High Bridge Works, 31-39 High Bridge, Newcastle upon-Tyne, NE1 1EW
Date:: Nov 16th 2023 - Dec 16th 2023
Opening Times:: Thu-Sat 12:00 - 17:00
Price:: Free

Tyne & Wear Music / Youth & Collectivism in the 80s

The exhibition will explore the legacy of Tyne and Wear Youth Music Collectives that started in the 1980s, to identify engagement methods that can inform current and future practice. It will feature Archival material from DIY music collectives and venues: The Garage (Newcastle), The Station (Gateshead) and The Bunker (Sunderland), that grew out of the disenchantment of rapid de-industrialisation of the region, to create a space to explore the impact these collectives had on people's lives as part of our living cultural history.

Venue:: Newcastle Contemporary Art, High Bridge Works, 31-39 High Bridge, Newcastle upon-Tyne, NE1 1EW
Date:: Nov 18th 2023 - Dec 16th 2023
Opening Times:: Thu-Sat 12:00 - 17:00
Price:: Free

The Sound of a Landscape

MiE Fielding and Cullercoats poet Harry Gallagher present 'The Sound of a Landscape' featuring art, poetry and sound from the Northumberland Coast. There will be a book signing and poetry reading on Saturday 16th December as part of the exhibition.

Venue:: Newcastle City Library, Charles Avison Building, 33 New Bridge Street West, Newcastle, NE1 8AX
Date:: Dec 14th 2023 - Dec 20th 2023
Opening Times:: Sat 10:00 - 16:00 , Tue and Thu 10:00 - 19:00 , Mon, Wed and Fri 10:00 - 17:00
Price:: Free