Caleb White

It is a short walk from the tram stop to Bury Art Museum and Sculpture Centre. The sky is clear, but the cold of the winter lingers in the mornings. I am visiting for a dual purpose. Firstly, for this review series. Secondly, to scope the place out for an interview the following week. While ultimately I didn’t get the job, it was a fun experience to run reconnaissance on the place – going more in depth on specific art works to prepare for a mock tour I was to be delivering. I had researched the institution before hand – its origin in the collections of paper merchant Wrigley, and its purpose-built building, with certain architectural quirks. Decals symbolising Manchester’s trades sit above in the rafters, glass tiles allow light into the lower floors, where the museum sits. Upstairs, Tina’s tea room. A healthy amount of patrons are sipping cups of tea and nibbling on slices of cake. The café is odd. It wraps around a central opening which looks back down to the ground floor. Off fr...

After touring London and Edinburgh since 2023, Women in Revolt! – curated by Lindsey Young - arrives in Manchester at the Whitworth. This is the first time the exhibition has been free of charge.     Originally I had planned to visit Women in Revolt! with a friend, but the plans fell through, so here I am, camera in hand, back in the Whitworth. Living so close to the venue, I walk through Whitworth Park – it is a beautiful day – and take the back entrance into the gallery. I only mention this because one of the first things I encounter is a slice of text informing me that this is room 5 of 7, and that I should instead start from the entrance in the Special Collection’s Gallery. So, rather than interrupt the pre-determined flow, I track round and begin the exhibition again. By indicating a correct path, the gallery signals that this is – counter to my expectations – a social history exhibition through the lens of artists and their artworks. And this is indeed the case....

The train down to Oxford was atypically pleasant. I'd set off early, leaving Manchester at 07:25, and watched the muted sunrise usher in the day as we trundled down south. Arriving in Oxford, the weather still bitingly cold, I walked east - stopping by Gloucester Green to pick up a few pairs of earrings from the market - towards the Ashmolean.    I'd come south this particular day for my dad's birthday and thought to double up the visit with, yet another, explore of Oxford's museums and galleries. Today, The Ashmolean were opening their new exhibition on Anselm Kiefer, but - in a typically frugal fashion - I chose to go instead to their free temporary exhibition.   After making my way to the basement floor - not the most auspicious location for a temporary exhibition - I became once again distracted by the spectacle of the museum. You see, this floor contains the bulk of the performative introspection for the Ashmolean. An exhibition on the history of the instit...

Mere minutes away from where I currently live sits the Whitworth. After spending plenty of time there already, I was excited to visit their new exhibition, so set the morning that it opened to take it all in. I was not alone in this want, as, by 10:30, it was already pleasantly busy. A very skilfully curated and executed exhibition, 'Turner: In Light and Shade' is on display between Feb 7 - Nov 2 and is free to enter.  Image via Author Conclusions first, this time: The exhibition constantly plays the line between showcasing an impressive and engrossing body of work - through a comprehensive display of all 71 published mezzotint prints - and building a shrine to brilliance, which at times comes across as sycophantic. Perhaps sycophantic is too strong, yet, when approached critically, Turner is reified in his skill both as an artist and as a taskmaster. Nevertheless, the insight provided by both the breadth of the art displayed, and the manner in which it has been structured, sec...