2023 exhibition and event highlights
Image: Wilhelmina Barns-Graham, Harbour Scene, 1947, oil on board © Wilhelmina Barns-Graham Trust.
Visions of Ancient Egypt
28 January – 29 April 2023
Laing Art Gallery, New Bridge Street, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 8AG
Admission charge applies
This exhibition examines the enduring appeal of ancient Egyptian motifs in art and design by exploring how ancient Egypt has been imagined and re-imagined across time. Tracing how processes of reinvention, appropriation and subversion have generated multiple visions of Egypt since the Roman period, the exhibition exposes the links between power and knowledge to reveal how ancient Egyptian culture has been simultaneously exposed and obscured by these competing representations. It uses two important historic events as a point of departure – Jean-François Champollion’s 1822 decipherment of hieroglyphs and Howard Carter’s 1922 discovery of Tutankhamun’s tomb. It is a multi-media exhibition including paintings, sculpture, decorative art, costume and potentially film.
The art works range in date from ancient Egyptian objects to contemporary works by Chant Avedissian, David Hockney and Chris Ofili.
https://laingartgallery.org.uk...
Wilhelmina Barns-Graham: Paths to Abstraction
11 February – 20 May 2023
Hatton Gallery, King’s Road, Newcastle University, NE1 7RU
Free admission, donations welcome
This large-scale exhibition will explore the work of the celebrated Scottish artist Wilhelmina Barns-Graham, from her early work based on the Cornish landscape through to the abstract canvases she made during the 1960s and early 1970s. Highlights include Barns-Graham’s striking depictions of the Grindelwald Glacier in Switzerland. The exhibition features around seventy paintings and drawings and has been organised in collaboration with the Wilhelmina Barns-Graham Trust.
https://hattongallery.org.uk/w...
Myth Quest: Monsters and Mortals
25 March – 3 September 2023
Great North Museum: Hancock, Barras Bridge, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE2 4PT
Free admission, donations welcome
In 2023, the Great North Museum: Hancock will present a mystical adventure of an exhibition. This will be a different type of show – an original fantasy adventure in which visitors, can be the hero. Part story, part game, visitors will take on the role of an adventurer, navigating the museum to achieve the ‘reward’ at the end of their quest.
https://greatnorthmuseum.org.u...
To the Roar of the Crowd
8 April – 29 October 2023
Segedunum Roman Fort & Museum, Buddle Street, Wallsend, NE28 6HR
Children under 16 years and NE28 residents free, adult admission fee applies
The Romans used scenes from gladiator fights and chariot-racing as decoration on every-day objects such as oil-lamps, knife-handles and brooches. This exhibition looks at the themes selected, and explores the reality behind the imagery.
https://segedunumromanfort.org...
Essence of Nature: Pre-Raphaelites to British Impressionists
27 May – 14 October 2023
Laing Art Gallery, New Bridge Street, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 8AG
Admission charge applies
This exhibition will be curated from the Laing’s extensive permanent collection of landscape painting. It will be augmented by loans from other regional and national collections.
https://laingartgallery.org.uk...
The Late Shows
Friday 19 and Saturday 20 May 2023
Venues across Newcastle and Gateshead
Free admission
Newcastle and Gateshead’s free late night culture crawl is back in May 2023 with museums, galleries, studio collectives and landmark historical buildings opening after hours to offer hands-on workshops, behind-the-scenes tours, performances and parties. It's the perfect way to sample the best of Newcastle and Gateshead's cultural offer in short taster visits.
Food in South Tyneside (working title)
2 June 2023 – 13 January 2024
South Shields Museum & Art Gallery, Ocean Road, South Shields, NE33 2JA
Free admission, donations welcome
Explore food and beverage businesses in South Tyneside over the years from curry houses on Ocean Road to Coleman’s Fish and Chip shop, Minchella’s ice cream and Dickson’s butchers. The exhibition will also cover traditional home cooked food from a range of communities living in the borough, as well as the rise of food banks.
https://southshieldsmuseum.org...
BA Fine Art Degree Show
3–17 June 2023
Hatton Gallery, King’s Road, Newcastle University, NE1 7RU
Free admission, donations welcome
The Newcastle University Fine Art BA Degree Show brings together the work of emerging artists at the culmination of four-years of study on the BA in Fine Art. The exhibition displays a diverse set of contemporary voices, practices and media including painting, new media, film, video, sculpture, photography, print, sound and installation.
Works on Paper
1 July – 5 August 2023
Hatton Gallery, King’s Road, Newcastle University, NE1 7RU
Free admission, donations welcome
The Hatton’s summer exhibition features drawings, watercolours and prints from the Hatton Gallery and Laing Art Gallery collections. As works on paper are light sensitive, they can usually only be displayed for short periods in temporary exhibitions like this one, making this a rare opportunity to see lesser-known artworks from the collections. Examples on display range from the sixteenth century to the present day and feature artists including Samuel Palmer, Frank Auerbach, Laura Lancaster, Chris Ofili and Bronwen Sleigh.
https://hattongallery.org.uk/w...
Master of Fine Art Degree Show
19 August – 2 September 2023
Hatton Gallery, King’s Road, Newcastle University, NE1 7RU
Free admission, donations welcome
The Newcastle University Fine Art MFA Degree Show brings together works in a wide range of disciplines, materials, and individual responses from both mid-point and graduating artists on the MFA and PhD programmes.
Matt Rugg: Connecting Form
16 September 2023 – 13 January 2024 (dates are provisional)
Hatton Gallery, King’s Road, Newcastle University, NE1 7RU
Free admission, donations welcome
Matt Rugg: Connecting Form will be the first major retrospective of the work of the British abstract artist and teacher Matt Rugg (1935-2020). Taking place at Newcastle’s Hatton Gallery (September 2023- January 2024), 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.
