International Women's Day: Hidden women at Manchester Art Gallery

Lately I've been spending one dinner break per week visiting Manchester Art Gallery. As someone who works in the city centre, I must say it is a tonic to step away from the traffic and hubbub and be able to stare some of my favourite art works in the face. I feel a thrill to see the brush strokes, signatures and dates that the artists inscribed sometimes centuries ago. It helps me to stay connected to the things that make me tick.

I find that having a limited amount of time per visit makes me look all the more intently at any art work that catches my attention and I have been pleasantly surprised to discover some interesting paintings by women artists that I'd never seen before. Here are some of my recent discoveries, well worth the visit if you wish to go searching for them, like an historic version of hide and seek!

Lady (Laura) Alma Tadema - Sweet Industry 1904

Snuggled in amongst the smaller paintings that line the stairwell of the the gallery's main entrance hall, this image jumped out at me. If I'm honest, a lot (but certainly not all) of the paintings on the stairwell are pretty ropey. Grandiose and poorly executed, many of these small paintings, I feel, are there to fill space rather than because they are of great artistic merit. Yet this unassuming piece really stands out. Bright and clear and perfect it has the tactile quality of a Faberge egg, jewel like and dainty.

This quiet painting draws the viewer into the intimate scene. It doesn't try to make a big statement but still impresses with it's technical ability and well thought out composition. I particularly like the slightly blurred cushion in the foreground and found myself staring intently at it and it's purpose in the composition. It's a very accomplished piece.

Lady Alma Tadema was the wife of her more famous and successful artist husband Sir Lawrence Alma Tadema. His works also have that effortless crystal like sheen that made his lounging ladies of ancient Greece seem so near and appealing. (A side note, one of Tadema's contemporaries John William Godward whose work was very similar also lines the stairwell). Yet Lady Tadema, specialised in domestic scenes set in the 16th Century akin to the themes of Vemeer, who she admired.

Elizabeth Southerden Thompson Butler - Balaclava 1876

This large canvas hangs near a door of one of the Victorian galleries in the original part of the building. I've walked past it so many times and never really looked at it until recently. War, has never held much fascination for me, but the film like quality of this painting caught my eye one lunch time. I spent a long time taking in each figure as the narrative unfolded. These men were the survivors of the doomed Charge of the Light Brigade, the famed attack against Russian Forces that, thanks to a miscommunication in command, sent them into head on fire and inevitable decimation.

All the figures were painted from models as Butler was never near the battle to witness it for herself, but she used the first hand accounts of soldiers who had survived to get across the action and emotion in the scene. The central figure staring with a shell shocked expression out at the viewer was posed by an actor who had actually fought at Balaclava. 

It's admirable that the artist chose to focus on the mental state of the men rather than a sense of misplaced glory. We see injured and dead soldiers and terrified horses, blood and distress. It only occurs to me now how on point this painting is regarding recent news. Although from another era and fought for another reason, it highlights how devastaing conflict is, and how wasteful.

Bulter concentrated on military paintings througout her career and became extremely successful in her field. She tapped into a sense of national patriotism but stated, '‘I never painted for the glory of war, but to portray its pathos and heroism’.

Annie Swynnerton - Illusions 1902

Lastly, this strange yet evocative painting stood out to me. Painted by Annie Swynnerton whose work I have seen before when Manchester Art Gallery held an exhibition showcasing her career back in 2018, I had yet to notice this piece hanging in a corner of the same gallery as Balaclava.

It's an odd image, a little girl with strikingly blue eyes wearing a suit of armour in a woods. What can it mean, especially with the title Illusions? Things become a little clearer when we delve into Swynnerton's life.

A staunch advocate of women's rights, the artist was a founding member of Manchester's Society of Women Painters  and aligned herself with the Suffragette movement. In 1922 she was the first elected female member of the Royal Academy of Arts (shockingly late in the scheme of things) and became known internationally for her inventive and bold painting style.

The armour worn by the little girl in 'Illusions' could well represent strength when put into the political framing of women's rights, but I can't help feeling it is also a symbol of protection too. For this little girl, the world was still going to be a difficult place for a woman to gain a sense of freedom or equality. Like many women today, she will have to face challenges while trying to acheive her ambitions in a male focused society. Perhaps the armour worn so comfortably here represents the beginning of a growing confidence brought on by the continuing efforts of women's movements and the small shifts in the right direction that have paved the way for future generations.

Ban the Nymph - Manchester Art Gallery and moral censorship

He leans down to place his pitcher into the clear water of the pool but is startled to find himself surrounded by a group of beautiful red haired nymphs. They emerge from the water, bare breasted with flowers clinging to their long tresses. He looks down and finds one of the women has taken hold of his arm, she looks deep into his eyes and he can't resist the power of her gaze.

Hylas is never seen or heard of again.

Yesterday I heard that Manchester Art Gallery have decided to 'temporarily' take down one of it's paintings from the PreRaphaelite gallery in order “to prompt conversations about how we display and interpret artworks in Manchester’s public collection”

The removal is part of a gallery takeover for a forthcoming exhibition by Sonia Boyce and hopes to prompt debate about how females have been portrayed, as either passive decoration or femme fatales, and also raise awareness of how works should be contextualised in the future. I think it's a genius publicity move but one that could be so so detrimental to how we acknowledge historic art in the future.

Hylas and the Nymphs created by JW Waterhouse in 1896 is the painting in question and despite the curator Clare Gannoway insisting the move isn't to censor or deny the painting's existence I can't help feeling that to make an example of it in this way will forever mar its appreciation.

She said, 'For me personally, there is a sense of embarrassment that we haven’t dealt with it sooner. Our attention has been elsewhere ... we’ve collectively forgotten to look at this space and think about it properly. We want to do something about it now because we have forgotten about it for so long'  

I find this very unsettling. It somehow implies that as a society we can't handle anything that questions a safe and sanitised version of the world. Why must we judge the aims and morals of a painting that is over a century old by today's standards? Surely it is better to study the context from the era in which it was painted to place into the framework of our own understanding so that we can learn from it, not point a finger at it.

I understand that the story inspiration for the painting fueled a Victorian erotic fantasy. As a classical myth it gave license for a society that was easily morally outraged to enjoy a bit of titillation and sensuality. Young, beautiful naked girls (the same girl in fact, painted seven times) all wet and covered in flowers suggestively tugging at a young man's arm to join them for... well who knows what, the myth never actually says, and the Victorian imagination could be very kinky.

I also understand that the painting holds layers of meaning. The usual male and female stereotypes being turned on their head. The strong Hylas is struck passive by the intense energetic sexual force of the nymphs. As he enters the water he loses himself... a little death... The power of the female sex overwhelming and destroying him. Victorians reveled in their fascination with sex, and more importantly their fascination and fear of female sexuality.

The painting's style is inspired by the PreRaphaelite Brotherhood (PRB) which strived to show truth in nature, both of the natural world and natural psyche. It wanted to do away with the sterile primness that had become the fashion and show real feelings and ideas that subsequently shocked and upset the art elite of the time. They painted about love sex and death. As a long time lover of the PRB's I very much appreciate Waterhouse's work for these very reasons.

The ideology behind the female form was so different from what is acceptable today but I understand how and why it was and that doesn't make me appreciate the work any less. I can clearly separate what the artist was trying to achieve from my own modern feminist values and enjoy the art from a place of pure pleasure. Taking away the painting denies future generations an opportunity to learn it's background or enjoy what is truly a beautiful piece of art. 

Also it does seem ironic that a painting that aimed to shake up the art world back in the 'stuffy' Victorian era is now being treated in a similarly 'stuffy' way by an easily outraged age.

In a week when F1 has just announced that it will no longer have 'Grid Girls' at its Grand Prix and Darts PDC is to scrap its 'walk on girls' it's a clever move to then take away a provocative 'girl' heavy painting from a city art gallery, but I just can't see how the two eras can be compared.

As a society we are definitely at a stage where having women appear in part, for decoration and male enjoyment should be questioned. But this opens up further questions still about a woman's right to choose to appear in this way, for what is feminism if not to support female choice? This in turn asks questions about promoting the 'wrong' image of women and how that feeds into the everyday sexism that many of us face. 

If Waterhouse's Hylas and the Nymphs were to be created today then we would have every right to ask the same questions. But it remains an historic art work and should only be judged by historic values. We can hypothesise about its relevance to today's standards, and we should, but if we begin to judge every art work from the past from a modern moral platform we lose sight of all the things they could tell us. We could be setting a dangerous precedent that dismisses any art work that hits an over sensitive nerve.

I am impressed with Manchester Art Gallery for having the gumption to create modern debate about historic art. How often does art, or specifically British historic art make the headlines? It is heartening to know that the public care enough to get involved and make their voices heard. I for one felt compelled to write this to get my feelings out in the open because this REALLY MATTERS!

I just worry that this could start a trend that gives an increasingly self absorbed generation the right to sneer with contempt at the past and ignore all the lessons it has to teach us. Who is to say that in a century from now the art work of today won't be viewed in the same way?

Please Manchester Art Gallery give us our nymphs back and don't treat us with kid gloves. You say this wasn't to censor, but by taking away the very thing that prompts the debate you rob us of the chance to make up our own minds.

Hidden treasures

In a basement below Manchester there is a hidden room of treasure.

Racks of paintings and boxes of drawings by some of the worlds greatest artists lie in darkness waiting to be viewed. Unseen and unknown by public eyes.

I followed the curator down the stairs not knowing what to expect but with excitment bubbling in my veins.

The heavy doors were pulled open and the lights switched on.

A room with unassuming grey metal racks lining the walls met my eyes.

The curator pulled a rack out towards me and I came face to face with a beautiful woman; Her eyes looked out at me with depths of emotion, her lips were a perfect rosebud. In one exquisite hand she toyed with a red flame, her other hand rested in the masses of her raven hair.

I gazed with fascination at the Rossetti chalk drawing I never even knew exisited. La Donna Della Fiamma (The Lady of the Flame). This was just one of the many wonders I saw on my visit to Manchster Art Gallery to meet collections curator Rebecca Milner.

I'd emailed the art gallery some weeks before hand to ask if someone could give me some insight into the creative process the Pre Raphaelites used to work a narrative into their painitngs. This was to be research towards my Pre Raphaelite inspired portrait I will be doing of Grace Oni Smith to investigage transgender femininity. (See past posts to learn more about this challenging project)

My expectations were supassed when the art gallery replied with the offer to view some rarely seen Rossetti drawings and the chance to chat about my project with the curator.

 Rebecca Milner Collections Curator at Manchester Art Gallery

So, there I was standing before this image of a mysterious beauty. I was in awe of the softness of the chalk which made up her skin, lips, hair and diaphanous gown. So velvety yet so strongly defined.

Next was a glimpse of a study for 'Pandora'. The same evocative face looked down at me. This was again modeled by one of Rossetti's favourites, his lover, Jane Morris.

As I studied the layers of colour which made up her towering neck and strong features, the details I'd read about the artist and his muse filled my mind; Their illegitimate affair and enduring passions. To think that both these people were present as this picture was created was a true link to the past and a nod to the power of the image. Something about this woman fuelled Rossetti's creativity.

I asked Rebecca the collections curator why she thought the Pre Raphaelites were so inspired by women. 

'They were total romantics. They were inspired by medieval poetry and art and they used women as muses to draw this notion out. As young men they were highly interested in women anyway. They helped to create a new kind of beauty by using women with a truthful contemporary look that was inspired by the past'

My ears pricked up. Wasn't this why I was drawn to working with Grace? 

Grace has a very specific look, and as a transgender woman, she is certainly a product of modern times. There were no trans gender people back in the Victorian era, but I am still drawn to using a style from the past in order to convey her story. Grace's likeness to a Pre Raphaelite painting is uncanny.

Rebecca continued,

'The Pre Raphaelites were drawn to their models because they looked like 16th Century paintings. In painting them they were not using a general version of beauty but something specific'

In using Grace as the starting point to a Pre Raphaelite inspired portrait I hope to highlight her individual beauty and personal story.

I then asked about the use of symbolism to tell stories within Pre Raphaelites paintings. We discussed the use of repeating motifs from the paintings into the frames, as seen in 'Astarte Syriaca' where stylised fruits and flowers can been seen in the the frame and the girdle of the godess within it, helping to underpin the message of fecundity. A repeating motif could be something to think about for my own work...

But what about the audience, I asked, would the ordinary joe be able to decipher these symbols?

'Victorian's loved narrative. They made paintings to be read. So certainly a good number of them would be able to understand what was going on in the [Pre raphaelite] work. The language of flowers was prevalent in their culture with things such as greetings cards and they would have understood the religious symbolism.'

This made me wonder... would a modern audience still be able to read an art work using this form of narrative?

'Audiences today don't use the same language. We don't use signs or symbols from the classical myths. I think a modern audience would find it interesting but not know what it signifies. That's one reason why Pre Raphaelite work fell out of fashion during the early half of last century. It was considered too fussy and too much like hard work to read. It wasn't until the 60's that they began to become popular again.'

It seems obvious when you think about it. As soon as Rebecca said this I realised that I would need to invest time into finding a modern equivelant to the Victorian use of symbols. It was always my intention to use a mix of the classic and comtemporary within this work but now I will only use the Pre Raphaelites as a starting point. The finished piece will have the Victorian aesthetics that a modern audience will recognise but the content will be full of modern signifiers.

It's going to be fun figuring out what things to put in and how to use them!

I immediatly thought of Grayson Perry whose work I love! He is an artist who takes massive inspiration from the past to make sense of the present. For instance his work The Vanity of Small Differences took the work of William Hogarth's, 'The Rakes Progress', as the template for his huge tapestries which tell the story of modern class mobility and the influence social class has on our aesthetic taste. 

Each tapestry is full of details helping to push the narrative.

Incidentally this work is now on show at Manchester Art Gallery and will definatley be a field trip for this project. Get down to see it if you can!

Back in the picture store beneath the galleries, Rebecca showed me more treasures from the past. We flipped past gorgeous watercolours and drawings by countless artists including tiny intricate drawings by Rembrandt no less! We settled on a pencil study of Lizzie Siddal, Rossetti's first muse and wife. I tried to get my eyes as close to the page as I could without my nose smudging the line work and Rebecca thinking I was a bit odd. It was so beautiful up close.

 
Then on to another box of tissue wrapped gems. She folded back the rustling paper to reveal another Rossetti piece, this time a study for a painting called 'Silence'. Jane Morris again, this time she sat on a chair her hand resting on the heavy folds of a curtain behind her. No other information was within the drawing. This was a good example of a subject matter being symbolised by a woman. The sitter personifiying the topic, becoming and idea. 

We discussed Rossetti who as you have read is a big influence in this project; In his later work especaiily he would work with a single abstact idea such as Silence, or Music for instance and deptict them through the beauty of women and nature. For him beauty was something to be celebrated and revered. This simplicity makes his work immediatly accessable and is probably one of the reasons I admire him so much.

Rebecca pointed out how 'Silence' like much of Rossetti's work flattened the space within it. 

'Something stops the viewer from going further into the picture, and makes it immediate and intense'

I love this idea and will use it in my portrait of Grace. I want it to invite the viewer into her personal world, a space that is unique just to her.

As my visit to the gallery wound to an end and the art works were locked away in dark saftey once more, I thanked Rebecca for giving up her time to help me in my research. I certainly feel I got a lot out of it. I have many things to think about and ideas to work on. Plus I got the opportunity to view art work that fires me and fuels my imagination. Next time you take a stroll down Mosely Street, spare a thought that nearby somewhere deep beneath your feet lie glorious images that are just waiting to be seen and inspire!

New art project part 2: Something about Grace...

 

Last week myself and Grace Oni Smith, visited Manchester Art Gallery to view some of the Pre-Raphaelite works there in preparation for the new art piece based on her. (find out about this spectacular lady in my last post: New art project: A date with Grace)

More specifically, we went to perv at the lovely Pre-Raphaelite models who take pride of place in many of the paintings. These lovely gals are to be the inspiration for my portrait of Grace, a stunning transgender woman who put me in mind of the Victorian pin ups; Something about Grace was niggling me for ages after I first met her. Then weeks later while waiting for the bus it hit me. Not the bus....a thought! Grace reminds me of Jane Morris. She is tall and willowy with strong features and dark hair. Was it the shape of her nose, the placement of her lips? I'm not sure but that similarity fueled my ideas and now here we are staring dreamily at Dante Gabriel Rossetti's Bower Meadow.

'Look at her nose!' Grace said running a well manicured finger down her own work of art, her newly refurbished schnoz (not long tweaked by a nose job). 'It's me!'. It's true, looking at any of the Pre-Raphaelite girls especially Rossetti's, it's easy to find elements that ring true with Grace's features.

Pre nose job, Grace is still reminiscent of a Pre-Raphaelite stunner!

The Victorian models were painted as ideals of femininity. Yet it's interesting to note many of the women who found acclaim through their modelling were originally a bit, how can I put it, odd looking for the fashions of the time. It was the artists' vision and ideas which helped to open society's mind and soon had the art crowd knocking down the doors to celebrate these unique women.

Far from claiming that vision as my own I want to use the Pre-Raphaelite ideal as a platform to air Grace's story and challenge our society's views on femininity. Using two of my favourite things artifice and theatrics I want to stage a Pre-Raphaelite style scene with Grace as the icon and muse.

Lots of things need to be taken into consideration for this piece: Story, styling, symbolism, pose and paint technique to name but a few. But during our visit to the gallery, Grace and I were most involved in looking at the details in the paintings; the beautiful way hands and shoulders were showcased; the models never really revealing much but still oozing sensuality and fierce femininity.

Joli Coeur by Dante Gabriel Rossetti is one of the paintings we went to see at Manchester Art Gallery. This small and intimate picture has pin up girl written all over it! Looking like she just threw her jacket on to open the front door to the milkman this minx embodies the Pre-Raphaelite style. Her decolletage hands and wrists are the only flesh on show heightening the eroticism of her pose and expression.

Words which Grace and I used to describe the feel and look of these paintings included:

Luminous

Irredescent

Glossy

Sensual

Strong

Rosy

Soft

Voluminous

Lit from within...

Certainly when looking at works such as Vivien by Frederick Sandys you get a feeling this lady is lit from within. Grace and I spent a good while studying this work. Not only did we like the way she dominated the viewers attention, we were intrigued by the items placed in the painting with her. What did they tell us about her, and what did they symbolize?

In case you're wondering, Vivien here is not a very nice piece of work. She is an evil enchantress from Arthurian legend and this can be backed up by reading the symbols around her. The apple for instance, represents man's fall, the flowers she toys with are poisonous Daphne and the all obliterating Opium Poppy. Teamed with her aloof  look, I think she's best kept at arms length

 

We discussed possible items to be placed within Grace's portrait and played around with the ideas of the Star of David and menorah to symbolize her Jewish faith and upbringing and butterfly motifs as used to reference transformation and transgender. But I feel the items need to be cohesive so maybe placing Grace as a mythical/historical character who shares similar cross references of transformation and strength might work too. This needs to be looked into further. One thing I really want to do is create something that references Pre-Raphaelites but is still contemporary, so I definitely want to put modern items and references in with the classic styling.

Grace was inspired by the clothes and faces we saw and has already begun to plan her look. Being a professional make up artist I know she will come up with something striking and spot on. I've asked her to keep me posted with any experiments she does and I will post them up here to share with you. You can see an example of Grace's fabulous work in this video for Tranarchy. She certainly isn't afraid of a little lipstick put it that way:

I think the next step in this project will be to get some drawings of Grace done, so I can get used to representing her face, and start to experiment with poses and ideas, kind of like brainstorming with pictures. This will be a good chance gather our ideas and work with what we have already thought about. I'll let you know how we get on next time...

New art project: A date with Grace

We met over a make up counter, I looked up and gasped. 'I love your eyebrows!' I said.

'Thanks, I'm trying to channel Liz Taylor' she replied. It was the beginning of something fabulous, the meeting of two minds, the beginning of a new art project!

Grace is a stunner, tall and slender with striking features and raven hair: She is a burlesque performer, drag artiste and professional make up artist. All these things tick my boxes and excite me! With my work exploring themes of femininity I couldn't miss the opportunity to work with her and I knew I wanted to paint her!

We met up some time later to chat about ideas at Manchester's Richmond Tea Rooms. Over a civilized afternoon tea I asked Grace what make up meant to her. The answer to this simple question gave me a candid insight into her life and, as a transgender woman, it helped to explain what makes Grace who she is. She once told me 'I'm an open book' so with her blessing I will transcribe her story in brief here to help set the scene...

As a child growing up in a small town she knew she was different from the other boys in school but she wasn't like the girls either (one sweet story she told me about was, when asked by her teacher what she wanted to be when she grew up she answered "a mermaid"). As a teen she began to experiment with make up to explore her identity. In a small town a boy wearing make up couldn't help but stick out like a sore thumb and her increasingly individual style soon began to get attention.Unfortunately it wasn't the best attention; getting beaten up and being verbally abused soon became the norm on an everyday basis.

Some people might have tried to conform to stop the bullying, but Grace being the free spirit she is made her appearance more provocative, goth like and severe. At this point in her life make up became her armor. The more she wore the more it stated, stay the f*ck away from me! It was her mental shield, yet ironically it was also the very thing which drew attention to her in the first place.

Make up however was to be Grace's key to success. After beginning a fashion course at college her make up got noticed once more but this time people were asking why she wasn't a make up artist, her skills were amazing! It was then she took up make up seriously and studied it. Her work was so good she landed a role as make up artist to The Irrepressibles on their world tour.

Now living in Manchester Grace continues to work as a professional make up artist. She also performs regularly at nights such as Bollox and the soon to open Cha Cha Boudoir with her brand of glamorous drag/burlesque. This type of performance is a chance to create characters and embody another person but it isn't about escapism, Grace says that it allows her to hold up a magnifying glass to herself and invite others to do the same. It is empowering and joyful. I feel it is her way of taking control. In this way, make up is now an extension of her personality and an act of liberation. It is exactly this philosophy that I stand by and try to celebrate in my own art work!

Grace's strong looks put me in mind of Pre-Raphaelite models, those women with the towering necks, voluptuous mouths and abundant hair. I knew this was going to be our starting point. If you've read my blog before you will know that I am a huge Pre-Raphaelite fan and have often put forward my theory that those paintings depicted one of the first brand of pin up girl. Those women are painted as uber versions of themselves, with heightened sexuality and feminine power. In many cases as goddesses and femme fatales. 

I feel this will be an interesting platform to use in my painting of Grace. I also want to reference the Pre-Raphaelite's use of symbolism. I would like to use classic and modern symbolism to tell Grace's story and create a picture that is both a mix of Victorian and contemporary in flavour. I am aiming to paint something that will ultimately question the ideals of beauty and what it means to be a female in the eyes of the world in general. This project will bring up issues of identity, objectification, sexuality and empowerment to name but a few.

With our of  love of theatrics and artifice I think this is going to be a really exciting project! Keep posted to find out more as we work step by step through the process. Next post will be about our visit to Manchester Art Gallery where we met some of the Pre-Raphaelite girls face to face!

What's on in Manchester right now!...

Uptown, Leonard Pytlak 1939

Now that I have just about finished rushing around like a maniac putting shows up and doing art fairs I have some time to reflect on the world around me... and what better way than to take in some culture! So here are some of the current local exhibitions I have seen or plan to see in the near future!

The American Scene, prints from Hopper to Pollock
The Whitworth Art Gallery Manchester
19th September - 13th December 09

This show focuses on American artists creating prints from the 1930's. Each image explores the American Scene, the urban environment and cityscapes. The big draw here for me is the evocative pull of the pre war era; being able to experience something of what America was like for the artists during what we now consider a vintage period. I also love the work of Edward Hopper, most famous for his paintings such as Night Hawks painted in 1942. I particularly like this image for its timeless feel, and the intense loneliness it exudes;

The Half, Photographs of actors by Simon Annand
The Lowry Salford Quays
19th September 09 - 3rd January 2010

I have a personal interest in this show as I helped to put it up! The work is a series of over 100 photos taken by the artist in the West End dressing rooms of some of the best known and well loved actors of the past 20 years. 'The Half' describes the 30 minutes before a stage show begins and Simon Annands pictures capture the actors as they transform from their everyday persona to the character they are about to portray. I really like the photos of Alex Kingston and Daniel Craig, and also the nation's favourite, Stephen Fry;

Image taken from www.simonannand.com

Angels of Anarchy, Women Artists and Surrealism
Manchester Art Gallery
26th September 09 - 10th January 2010

I'm not a big surrealist fan in truth; I like my art to invite the viewer in not confuse them, however, that isn't to say I don't appreciate surrealist art and understand it's massive importance in the scheme of things. This exhibition aims to 'explore the crucial role that women artists played in the surrealist art movement' and includes work by Freida Khalo amongst others. It is also divided down into different themes including landscapes, fantasy and self portaiture.

Claude Cahun, Self Portrait 1927

Other shows worth noting include:

Fantasies, Follies and Disasters: the Prints of Francisco de Goya
Manchester Art Gallery
Until 31 Jan 2010

All at Sea by Gemma Parker
Taurus Canal Street Manchester
Until 31st Oct (Catch it while you can!)
See my last post for details.

Bloomberg New Contemporaries 2009
Cornerhouse
Until 25th Oct
I'm hoping to see this one next week...