Visual Arts

Visual Arts previews from around the region

PR1V4TES

Wolverhampton Art Gallery, until Sun 26 March

“It was while I was driving that the idea came to me,” explains Wolverhampton-based artist Suki Chumber in talking about his ongoing project, PR1V4TES. “I saw that there was a pattern emerging. A number of private registration plates on cars - and particularly on fancy cars had Asian names; the owner’s nickname maybe, or something else about them, such as their caste. From there, the question for me was: Why is having a private reg something which is so popular within the Asian community? “I do feel there is a deeper meaning behind the number plates,” Suki explains to desiblitz.com, “especially if the owner is reflecting on their own identity and ‘caste’. In my experience so far, there is a huge number of people who are very ‘proud’ and egotistical about boasting their caste, religion or status. “Capturing people and their plates through photography is very important. It captures the person in that exact moment, keeping the image organic, and also adds a totally new perspective to the idea.”

One Dance, One City Birmingham Hippodrome, until Mon 30 January

Birmingham’s commitment to providing an environment in which first-class dance not only exists but positively thrives, is here celebrated in a special photographic exhibition by Dani Bower. Dani is the marketing manager of One Dance UK, the sector support organisation which moved from London to Birmingham in 2019 and has since worked tirelessly to champion the artform across the second city and out into the wider West Midlands. The photographs on display are the result of a project which saw One Dance UK invite some of the region’s finest dance artists to partner with the city itself, exploring and celebrating the sights, venues, culture and surroundings which make Birmingham so vibrant, diverse and unique.

Here&Queer

New Art Gallery, Walsall, until Sun 28 May

Here&Queer sees members of the LGBTQ+ community reinterpreting artworks from a queer perspective. The steering group explored the gallery’s Garman Ryan Collection displays and also delved into the venue’s Permanent Collection to find works with which they connected. As well as aiming to illustrate the fact that there is no one, single, definitive queer experience, the project also gives visitors the chance to gain new insights into works in the gallery’s collections.

Dutch Flowers

Compton Verney, Warwickshire, until Sun 15 January

The 17th-century emergence of Dutch flower painting - a genre of art that saw Netherlandish painters produce work which exclusively depicted flowers - has been attributed in part to the development of scientific interest in botany and horticulture and the Dutch Golden Age phenomenon of ‘tulip mania’. In the period which followed, Dutch flower painting blossomed, reaching the peak of its popularity in the late 18th century... This fascinating exhibition traces the development of the genre and features a selection of paintings from the National Gallery’s collection. The show includes works by leading artists in the field, such as Ambrosius Bosschaert the Elder, Rachel Ruysch and Jan van Huysum.

Visual Arts

Grown Up In Britain - 100 Years Of Teenage Kicks

Herbert Art Gallery & Museum, Coventry, until Sun 12 February

Featuring photographs, objects and stories, Grown Up In Britain has been curated by and drawn from the extensive photographic collections of the Museum of Youth Culture, an emerging organisation dedicated to the styles, sounds and social movements innovated by young people over the last 100 years. The Museum has been gathering together photographs of youth and subculture movements for more than 25 years. Its impressive collection includes everything ‘from the bomb-site bicycle racers in post-war 1940s London, to the Acid House ravers of 1980s northern England’.

Living Traditions

Barber Institute, Birmingham, until Mon 30 January

Recently retired Barber Institute Director Nicola Kalinsky is the curator behind this celebration of the venue’s impressive collection of works on paper. During her nine years as the Barber’s sixth director, Nicola acquired 53 such pieces, by artists including Carracci (pictured below), Cox, Dix and Jaray. The exhibition presents a selection of these, with the chosen artworks primarily having in common the fact that they feature the human figure. In making the 53 purchases, Nicola joined each of her predecessors in having made a significant contribution to the Barber’s collection of works on paper, with the Institute now owning 343 drawings and 596 prints.