Conversations with History: Past, Present and Futures of Manchester’s Art Ecology

200 Years of Manchester Art Gallery

Part 1: 1 June 1-3pm at Manchester Art Gallery

Join us for a thought-provoking evening exploring the vibrant arts and cultural landscape of our city, past and present. This special two-hour event will feature insightful presentations and lively discussions from three esteemed speakers, offering unique perspectives on the evolution of our city’s arts ecology over the years.

Don’t miss this unique opportunity to gain valuable insights, exchange ideas, and be part of a thought-provoking conversation about the past, present, and future of our city’s arts ecology.

Castlefield Gallery: 40 Years of the Future

Part 2: 13 June 6-8pm at Castlefield Gallery

The second event in the series will take the form of a chaired conversation between artists, curators and researchers with connections to organisers within Manchester and neighbouring cities. The histories of marginalised artists in the first event will serve as a prompt for discussing the emergence of current and future initiatives in the city region and regions that aim to amplify less visible or peripheral voices in the art world today, including artist-led groups and organisations.

The event will invite us to consider the continued need for these kinds of groups and spaces in our contemporary social, economic and political context. We ask: What has changed since the founding of Manchester Art Gallery and Castlefield Gallery, respectively? How have artists looking for spaces that fulfil their needs shaped the city? What role do art institutions play within Manchester’s art ecology today? And what the future for artists in our city and surrounding regions could or should look like?

Learn more and book tickets for the second event here