Friends

Become a Friend and support your gallery

Our Friends membership allows you to attend inspiring talks, private tours, workshops and previews, and enjoy 10% off in the gallery shop and café.

Your support keeps the gallery free and helps us to create exhibitions and programmes that positively impact the lives of local people and encourage our littlest visitors to achieve their full potential.

Join in the gallery shop or on our website and let’s be Friends!

You can’t put a price on friendship, of course, but ours is just £36 a year.

Thank you for giving back!

Discover What’s On for Friends.

Join Manchester Art Gallery Friends and support your gallery

Become a Friend

Treat someone to the gift of Friendship

Treat someone you love to a year full of art with our Friends Gift Box!

Full of gallery goodies and a membership that includes inspiring talks, private tours, workshops, previews. And with a 10% discount in the gallery shop and café, it is the perfect gift that keeps on giving. Boxes begin at £45 for an individual gift membership or £68 for a joint gift membership for two people.

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What’s On for Friends

Friends Tour

Saturday 1 June, 11am

In Your Face! The Provocative and the Larger than Life at Manchester Art Gallery……..from August Rodin to Vivienne Westwood

Only for Manchester Art Gallery Friends.

Join gallery guide John Ward on an odyssey that will begin with a reflection upon the two formidable Rodin sculptures in the gallery’s entrance hall. An exploration of challenging and newly acquired contemporary pieces in Gallery 11 will then follow. But the culmination will be an encounter with three controversial dress designers in our innovative ‘Unpicking Couture’ show; these being Pierre Cardin, Alexander McQueen and Vivian Westwood.

Become a Friend

Friends online Talk

Wednesday 8 May, 6pm

From Sicily to Salford: The Artistic Heritage of Southern Italy and the Intriguing Revelations of LS Lowry’s Portraits.

Only for Manchester Art Gallery Friends

As we eagerly await the arrival of summer, Isabelle will be taking us on an epic adventure through Naples and Sicily. We will discover how the history and culture of these two enchanting destinations have been intricately linked over the centuries and also why they have been so consistently popular amongst international visitors, not least Isabelle herself. We are promised a fascinating array of artworks from Manchester’s collection and beyond.

Much like his early mentor Adolph Valette, LS Lowry is especially renowned for his populated urban landscapes, but Richard will be leading us into the less familiar world of his portraiture. Lowry’s childhood visits to Manchester Art Gallery will feature, as will his personal collection of portraits by the painters he most admired. Richard’s carefully selected examples will reveal much about both the artist himself and the wider human condition.

Become a Friend

New Friends Tour of Manchester Art Gallery

Date to be confirmed

Enjoy a fascinating introduction to the gallery in the company of one of our highly experienced guides who will provide an insight into the galleries and artwork, a peak at the history of the buildings and much more.

Become a Friend

Friends FAQs

Can I give more than £36 per year?

Yes, you can give as much as you like. A year’s membership starts at £36, but you can also become a Best Friend, or even a Patron, and add as much as you like to your memberships as an additional donation.

Can Friends Get Involved in Volunteering?

We couldn’t do what we do at the gallery without volunteers. Whether delivering guided Friends tours of our collections and exhibitions; supporting, and taking part in, our popular online talks; or assisting other gallery departments, our volunteers help the gallery on a daily basis.

Let’s Be Friends

Stay in touch—follow us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram

If you have any further questions about membership please email our Friends Coordinator at [email protected]