Sheffield’s much-loved Graves Gallery is set to welcome visitors again from Friday 3rd September following a six-month programme of refurbishment and redisplay.
Sheffield Museums’ initial programme of redevelopment has seen walls re-cladded in three of the main galleries, which had remained largely unchanged since the gallery opened in 1934, as well as redecoration to breathe new life into the display spaces. In addition to the improvements, the gallery has also seen a complete changeover of a third of the artworks on display.
The first new exhibition in the gallery celebrates the work of sculptor Mark Firth. Precision as a State of Mind will include 83 new and recent works, showcasing Firth’s preoccupation with geometry and his exploration of the meeting point between art and engineering. Firth’s practice reflects a long family connection to Sheffield’s engineering history – his great, great grandfather was the steel magnate and philanthropist Mark Firth, who helped found the University of Sheffield.
Also on display will be Pandemic Diary by Phlegm, a collection of 67 pen and ink drawings and one engraving, which are going on public display for the very first time. This new acquisition chronicles the artist’s response to lockdown and joins the city’s visual art collection.
Another new highlight is a powerful exploration of alternative and outsider perspectives on our recognised histories curated by artist Keith Piper, one of the co-founders of the seminal Blk Art Group. Alongside his own work, Piper presents objects from the city’s collection offering visitors a chance to reflect on the histories they represent, including currency issued by the Royal Africa Company, which transported more people into slavery than any other British company in the history of the Atlantic slave trade, and t-shirts protesting South African apartheid in the 1980s.
The final gallery redisplay embraces the theme of landscape and showcases many of the remarkable landscape paintings and works on paper from the city’s collection.
These redevelopments were made possible thanks to donations from The Ampersand Foundation, who will continue to support the gallery with further redisplays, conservation of the city’s art collection, work with schools and artists and even more over the next four years.
Kirstie Hamilton, Director of Programmes at Sheffield Museums said:
“The Graves Gallery is one of the city’s cultural jewels. The generous support from the Ampersand Foundation has enabled us to breathe new life into its spaces through refurbishment and redecoration, develop displays which bring compelling new perspectives and create a vital and vibrant programme of continuing change over the coming years.”
The Graves Gallery will reopen on Friday 3rd September – entry to the gallery is free.
