Friends of Rochdale Art Gallery regroup

The Friends of Rochdale Art Gallery

The Friends of Rochdale Art Gallery group has held its first meeting since before the pandemic at Touchstones.

As Touchstones is now closed on a Tuesday – the group’s previous meeting day – in favour of Sunday opening, the friends met on Thursday (11 November).

Mark Doyle, Joint Head of Culture introduced the current exhibitions, which run until 13 February 2022.

For some time, artists have been invited to explore and react to the profusion of the borough’s permanent collections. Far from navel gazing, this approach has produced fascinating insights and generated exciting new work over the past few years.

In ‘Aligned Raised Lowered Offset Paired’, George Meyrick has created new work responding to the space and changing light of Gallery One with its domed skylight.

In his words: “Folding out of the walls, geometric forms articulate space across two and three dimensions, an experience of apparent clarity and balance in an erratic world.”

Two other exhibitions set out to redress a perceived lack of representation of migrant communities. Jasleen Kaur’s Gallery 3 show, ‘Gut Feelings Meri Jaan’, consists of artefacts and film installations, where re-mixed customs and rituals preserved by group members and their families are performed in and around Rochdale.

The second, also featuring a film installation in Gallery Four, is by Helen Cammock, a Turner Prize winner 2019. Entitled ‘Concrete Feathers and Porcelain Tacks’, it attempts to give fresh contexts and resonances to Rochdale local histories. With the generous support of the Contemporary Art Society and the Mbili Foundation, the film will enter the borough’s permanent art collection and is supported by Arts Council England.

Friends of Rochdale Art Gallery members enjoy such insightful opportunities plus enlightening speakers and visits to other galleries and places of artistic interest. There is also a Christmas party on 9 December 2021 for members and friends.

The Friends of Rochdale Art Gallery meet on Thursdays (monthly) at 1pm for refreshments and check-in, with a speaker from 1.30pm-2.30pm.

13 January 2022: John Turkington on Georgia O’Keefe – one of the most influential artists of the twentieth century, best known for her paintings of beyond-life-size flowers, New York skyscrapers, and New Mexico landscapes, vivid bold colours and distinguished compositions.

Annual membership £10. Monthly meeting fee £4, £3 for members.

For more information see http://link4life.org/arts-heritage/frag or ring chair Jenny Buckley 01706 358 686.