HOME Opening - The Heart Is Deceitful Above All Things

Manchester's newest neighborhood, First Street,  launched into its opening weekend over the last couple of days. HOME was one of the first buildings in the cultural hub to open, with 'The Heart Is Deceitful Above All Things' exhibition opening on Friday night. HOME's inaugural exhibition centers around heartbreak and desire. We are all connected through affairs of the heart and 'The Heart Is Deceitful' can speak to each visitor in a very unique way. 

The exhibition is an eclectic collection of art that includes digital video installations, photography, prints and a temporary tattoo vending machine. 'The Heart Is Deceitful Above All Things' is a fitting exhibition to open HOME, a touching subject that can be very close to the bone for some people but also incites reminiscence of both happy and bittersweet memories. 

Douglas Coupland's 'Slogans for the 21st Century' seemed to be a particularly popular piece; a large collection of prints shouting out slogans that particularly relate to the 21st Century individual. Most exhibition visitors spent a while drifting in front of the piece reading the slogans that could be humorous one minute and food-for-thought the next. 

Gemma Parker's 'The Tattooed Lady' was also constantly surrounded with admirers. Modeled to reflect a 20th century penny arcade machine, 'The Tattooed Lady' became a tattoo lucky-dip for its admirers; the audience were invited to turn the handle and dispense their tattoo, an attendant was on hand to apply the tattoos instantly (and yes of course I got one!). 

The exhibition opening seemed to be a success with a large attendance and both the cafe and restaurant packed out with excitable visitors. (It's on the list to visit very soon!) The menu is apparently very similar to the original Cornerhouse menu and I have previously had a very nice pizza there so hope is high for HOME's First Floor Cafe Bar. HOME's opening weekend has definitely gone off with a bang and seems set to become a primary cultural location for Manchester's newest neighborhood. 

Yorkshire Sculpture Park

Last week I visited Yorkshire Sculpture Park as part of my Curating Art module at the University of Manchester. The majority of the sculptures are outside and luckily we had a nice day (for the majority of it anyway!) The whole park is dotted with sculptures and with such vast grounds it is easy to spend a whole day wandering the park and soaking in the sights.

Yorkshire Sculpture Park has a lovely, modern visitors center with a quaint little sop full of products that were designed especially for sale in the park. The cafe is beautiful, with a huge glass wall that overlooks the park and a large and varied menu that has something for everyone (I helped myself to the delicious homemade chips served in a cute little bucket). 

The sculptures that are placed outside have a certain affinity with the surrounding landscape. They seem as if they were always meant to live in the park and be at one with nature. It is also particularly novel for the avid museum-goer that you can also touch many of the sculptures on display outside, adding another dimension of engagement between the visitor and artwork.

The park is so appealing because of its exploratory value. The main sights are marked out on the park map but on the way there are plenty of other sculptures and statues to discover around every corner and behind every tree. A variety of different sights and scenes keeps the visitor entertained, one minute you are in a rose filled green house and the next you are on a bridge overlooking a trickling stream. The delightful variety of sculptures and the exploratory nature of the park means that Yorkshire Sculpture Park offers something for everyone and would be a delightful day out if you are 7 or 70. Even though I did not have brilliant weather on the day that I visited, I enjoyed the natural atmosphere of the park immensely, so I can only imagine how beautiful the park would be in the height of summer! 

The Whitworth Art Gallery, Manchester - Grand Re-opening!

On Saturday I visited the Whitworth Art Gallery in Manchester for the first day of its grand reopening weekend after being out of action for a £15 million refurbishment. As a Museum studies student and a member of the University of Manchester, it was a very important and exciting event in this year's calendar and has been highly anticipated, especially by the University's AGMS students (Art Gallery & Museum Studies). Having only lived in Manchester since September, I didn't have the fortune to see the gallery before its transformation so I can not successfully give a comparison between the old building and the new. However, what I did find was a beautiful, contemporary space that still held the charm of the original 19th century building while treating the visitor to a modern, open plan gallery. 

Upon entering on Saturday morning, the gallery was already busy and bustling and the staff were obviously excited and eager to help all of the visitors that came through the doors. The new look galleries are spacious, modern and beautiful and highlight The Whitworth's stunning collections. 

I was particularly interested in Cornelia Parker's work, which is the gallery's first major temporary exhibition to mark the reopening. I am the first to admit that I have never been a fan of modern art; I can not often see the beauty in it, (something which bemuses me and annoys my modern-art-loving friends who have to put up with my disappointed sighs) however I found Parker's work to be both fascinating and beautiful. There is a curiosity in her work and often a hidden beauty in the mediums that she uses that I found particularly interesting. I am looking forward to visiting again in order to properly soak in all of her work, as I found the mass of visitors to the gallery that day made it extremely difficult to focus on any one art work for too long. 

With wonderful temporary exhibits alongside beautiful permanent displays, it is no wonder that The Whitworth gained thousands more visitors on its opening weekend than was estimated. I unfortunately couldn't take the crowds after nearly two hours of battling our way around the various rooms and reluctantly retreated to the gardens. However, my next trip is already planned (with part of that plan being to visit the delicious-looking cafe) and I can't wait to soak up all that The Whitworth has to offer!