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Taking the Stage Returns to MK Gallery
Supporting and celebrating women playwrights, this third edition of the festival will showcase an exciting lineup of new plays, discussions and talks. With an exciting and inspiring lineup, Taking the Stage will include a keynote speech from leading British playwright Winsome Pinnock, a headlining play from Suzette Coon and a talk from Lesley Gannon from The Writers’ Guild of Great Britain on how to protect your intellectual property. The programme of the four-day festival is as follows:
Day 1: Wednesday 16 October
7pm: Festival opens with a keynote speech by Winsome Pinnock award-winning playwright 7.30pm: In a Key of Her Own by Suzette Coon 8.30pm: Fifty Cups of Tea by Rosemary Hill 9pm: Q&A – ‘Where do we go from Here?’Day 2: Thursday 17 October
6pm: Four Weigh-ins and a Funeral by Emma Burnell 6.45pm: The Memory of Snow by Sian Rowland 7.30pm: Tales From the Confined by Tam Gilbert 8.15pm: Echo by Subika Anwar Khan 8.45pm: Q&A, ‘Where are we with diversity and inclusion now?’Day 3: Friday 18 October
7pm: Change of Engagement by Carly Halse 7.30pm: The V-Word by Lisa Stenhouse 8.30pm: Persuasion by Chloe Wade Q&A ‘Do we tell enough LGBTQ stories in theatre?’Day 4, Part 1: Saturday 19 October
1pm: Protecting Intellectual Property, Lesley Gannon, Writer’s Guild (Event Space) 2.30pm: MK Theatre Young Company presents MY WORLD 3pm: Q&A, ‘Where are our future theatre makers?’ 4pm: The Role of the Intimacy Co-ordinator, Ita O’Brien (Event Space)Day 4, Part 2: Saturday 19 October
7pm: Festival closing speech by Suzette Coon 7.30pm: In a Key of her Own by Suzette Coon 8.30pm: Fifty Cups of Tea by Rosemary Hill 9.00pm: Q&A “Where do we go from here?”£0.00
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Summer Replay is back!
Get ready for a summer of cinematic magic with Summer Replay! Perfect for the whole family, our programme features a spectacular lineup of the latest and greatest children's films, guaranteed to delight audiences of all ages. Film Lineup:
- Butterfly Tale: Experience the beautiful transformation and adventures of a butterfly in this visually stunning story.
- The Garfield Movie: Get ready to laugh with everyone's favourite lasagna-loving cat in a hilarious new adventure.
- Inside Out 2: Dive back into the mind with Riley and her emotions in this heartwarming sequel.
- Kung Fu Panda 4: Follow Po and the Furious Five as they take on new challenges in this action-packed, hilarious journey.
- Migration: Embark on an epic journey with a flock of birds in this breathtaking animated adventure.
- Scarygirl: Join Arkie on her adventure to save her city in this enchanting and thrilling tale.
- Wish: Follow a young girl as she embarks on a magical quest to make her dreams come true.
- Wonka: Discover the whimsical origins of the beloved chocolatier, Willy Wonka, in this imaginative prequel.
- Price: £6 per ticket
- Includes: A popcorn or hot drink to enjoy during the movie
- A diverse selection of the newest family-friendly films
- Affordable entertainment for a perfect summer outing
- Enjoy tasty treats with every ticket
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MK Calling and Vanessa Bell: Our next two exhibitions
MK Calling 2024
22 June - 29 September 2024
This year’s MK Calling features artworks spanning sculpture, painting, photography, installation and film. Over 120 established and emerging artists explore themes including identity, inclusivity, possible futures, heritage, and significant moments across five thematic gallery spaces. Book nowVanessa Bell: A World of Form and Colour
19 October 2024 - 23 February 2025
Vanessa Bell (née Stephen; 1879–1961) was a key figure in 20th-century British art and played a central role in the Bloomsbury Group. The exhibition at MK Gallery – the first solo show of Bell’s work in over seven years and the largest to date – will be an overview spanning the artist’s illustrious career, including over 120 items. Book now£0.00
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MK Gallery receives funding from the Community Foundation
MK Gallery receives funding from the Community Foundation to extend work with blind and visually impaired audiences
MK Gallery is thrilled to have been awarded funding from the Milton Keynes Community Foundation to support a new programme of activities including exhibition tours, and equipment that will enhance the experience of visitors with sight loss. Commencing in Spring 2024 MK Gallery will work with visually impaired students from St Paul’s Catholic School - who have a leading Visual Impairment (VI) department and specialist teachers - along with MK Gallery Associate Artist Julia Collar to develop and deliver new sensory exhibition tours. Julia currently leads the Gallery’s award-winning programme of Sensory Tours and will work with the children and young people from St Paul’s to bring their experiences and voices to the forefront. Lucie Gray, Head of St Paul’s VI department commented about the news: “We are thrilled to be working with MK Gallery’s Inclusive Practice in the Arts team and with Julia Collar. The students in the VI Department are so excited to have this amazing opportunity to be involved in a sensory art project in their community. They are hoping that the exhibition will encourage those with vision impairment to get more involved.” The funding will also extend and enhance MK Gallery’s existing accessible tour programme - increasing the number of artist-led audio-described tours per exhibition and introducing new portable gallery seating and tactile image printing. Opening in June 2024 the MK Calling exhibition will also trial new audio labels, accessible via the Bloomberg Connects app. Mike Pearson, MK Gallery volunteer and campaigner for improving accessibility in the arts for people with sight loss, said about the award: “This funding by Milton Keynes Community Foundation will open a pathway for visually impaired people of all ages to actively participate and engage with the Gallery, extending their programme of Inclusivity in the Arts. I hope that, going forward, many more galleries will include artworks that actively invite touch and offer audio description to enrich the visitor experience.” MK Gallery is one of the most accessible venues in Milton Keynes and is committed to making its spaces and diverse programme of exhibitions and events relevant and engaging for all members of the local community. This new area of work will bring new visitors to the Gallery and inspire a younger generation to connect with the arts in meaningful and multi-sensory ways. Find upcoming dates for MK Gallery’s Audio Described and Sensory exhibition tours here.
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Open now – Saul Leiter: An Unfinished World
MK Gallery presents largest UK exhibition of works by Saul Leiter, pioneer of colour photography
'Photographs are often treated as important moments but really they are fragments and souvenirs of an unfinished world.' - Saul Leiter A major survey of works by American photographer Saul Leiter (1923 – 2013), one of the most important practitioners of the post-war period and a pioneer of colour photography, opens today at MK Gallery in Milton Keynes. Saul Leiter: An Unfinished World is the largest exhibition of Leiter's work to take place in the UK, featuring 171 photographs alongside a selection of over 40 of Leiter's lesser-known paintings, presenting a complete overview of his life's work for the first time. 39 of these works have never been exhibited before. Click here to book tickets for the exhibition. The exhibition at MK Gallery is curated by Anne Morin, co-produced by the Rencontres d’Arles and DiChroma Photography, Madrid with the collaboration of the Saul Leiter Foundation, New York.£0.00
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Get your free Meerkat Movies tickets with MK Gallery
We're pleased to announce that our Sky Room Cinema is now a Meerkat Movies partner!
Compare the Market customers can now enjoy the amazing 2-for-1 cinema ticket offer at MK Gallery every Tuesday and Wednesday. Offer is redeemable when visiting our Box Office or over the phone: 01908 676900. Click here to see what's on. Click here to learn more about Meerkat Movies.£0.00
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Announcing Saul Leiter: An Unfinished World
American photographer Saul Leiter (1923 – 2013), one of the most important practitioners of the post-war period and a pioneer of colour photography, celebrated for his evocative images of New York City in the 1950s and 1960s, will be the subject of an exhibition opening 17 February 2024. Leiter photographed every day for sixty years, keenly observing daily life and discovering beauty on the streets of the East Village neighbourhood where he lived his entire adult life and which became his enduring subject. Upon his death in 2013, Leiter left behind a remarkable collection of around 15,000 black and white prints, at least 40,000 colour slides, a similar number of black and white negatives and over 4000 paintings, only a handful of which had seen the light of day. Once lost to obscurity, his work has since been rediscovered and revaluated for its ground-breaking role in the emergence of colour photography. Saul Leiter: An Unfinished World at MK Gallery will be the largest exhibition of Leiter’s work to take place in the UK, featuring 171 photographs alongside a selection of over 40 of Leiter’s lesser-known paintings. The exhibition at MK Gallery is curated by Anne Morin, co-produced by the Rencontres d'Arles and DiChroma Photography, Madrid with the collaboration of the Saul Leiter Foundation, New York. Click here to learn more about the exhibition and book tickets.
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Unlock unlimited access to Beyond the Page
We are pleased to announce that based on feedback from our valued visitors, we have introduced a new ticket option that offers unlimited return visits to Beyond the Page. We hope this will provide the opportunity to fully explore and enjoy all that the exhibition has to offer. The ticket is priced at £20 and remains valid until the exhibition closes on 28 January 2024. Click here to book tickets.
About the Exhibition
“Small wonders” The Guardian “Many of the most exquisite contributions to this ambitious show can only be brought out of store once every ten years.” The Spectator “This rare exhibition juxtaposes exquisite traditional miniatures from sacred and secular texts with modern and contemporary works they inspired, from sculpture to film and installation.” The Financial Times Beyond the Page explores how the traditions of South Asian miniature painting have been reclaimed and reinvented by modern and contemporary artists, taken forward beyond the pages of illuminated manuscripts to experimental forms that include installations, sculpture, and film.£0.00
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Open Call: MK Calling 2024
We invite artists working across all art forms to submit your work to MK Calling, MK Gallery’s open call group exhibition showcasing the most dynamic work being made today. Applications are welcomed from artists and artist collectives working in any medium, at any career stage. If you are an artist, maker, craftsperson, fashion or graphic designer, architect, composer, performer, illustrator, writer or facilitator we want to hear from you. To celebrate MK Gallery’s 25th anniversary, five local community groups will co-curate this year’s MK Calling. Co-curation is a core element of this exhibition as we want to ensure that different voices are included in the selection process and challenge who decides what is showcased in the art world. MK Gallery works year-round with partners locally, nationally and internationally to bring the best in arts programming to the region. We have longstanding and ongoing relationships with the communities co-curating this exhibition. Together they will shape the themes and select the artworks featured in MK Calling 2024. Submissions for MK Calling 2024 have now closed.
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IPA embarks on exciting new two-year partnership with The Pace Centre
MK Gallery’s Inclusive Practice in the Arts (IPA) team have branched into a new area of programme development through a partnership with Aylesbury based specialist school, The Pace Centre, who support children with Neurodisability’s to achieve their potential. Taking place across both venues, the partnership is offering innovative artist-led workshops, creative child-led learning experiences, and exciting exhibition visits. Through this work our IPA team will build upon their existing skillsets for working with children with complex needs, including cerebral palsy, and Pace staff will gain new creative toolkits to bring to their teaching on a long-term basis. Sophie, Producer of Inclusion said “Having this opportunity to work with such a unique school is incredible. The Pace staff team are so supportive and generous, and we hope that this partnership can offer their children a greater experience of the arts and access to cultural spaces, which will inspire them into their futures.” Working with IPA Associate Artists Matt Shaw and Sarah Hunt, four encounters initially took place during the summer term of 2023, including a class visit to Boyd and Evans: High Time. Matt and Sarah also transformed the children’s classroom into a glittering party palace and turned MK Gallery’s Event Space into a dynamic painting studio, which prompted one child to comment “it’s mind-blowing!” Artist Sarah said about the project so far “having the children in the Gallery and getting really messy were particularly fun” and teacher Catherine commented “For us it’s seeing a difference in the children. It’s been an amazing experience and the children are still talking about it!” Diving into the new term the IPA team are excited to be doing some more workshops at Pace in the lead up to Christmas. “Each of our encounters with Pace so far have been so joy filled and we are really excited to see what happens next!” (Rosie, Inclusion Coordinator) This work is generously supported by the Paul Hamlyn Foundation. Read more about MK Gallery’s IPA programme here Learn more about the Pace Centre here
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Summer Replay
The team at MK Gallery are putting on a not-to-be-missed offer for kids this summer. Take part as we press the replay button on the Sky Room Cinema projector, showing the best kids’ films from the past six months throughout the entire school summer holidays. The Summer Replay offer will feature firm family favourites:
- Lyle Lyle Crocodile
- Roald Dahl's Matilda the Musical
- Puss in Boots: The Last Wish
- The Super Mario Bros. Movie
- Mummies
- The Little Mermaid
- Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse
- Elemental
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Announcing Beyond the Page
Beyond the Page: South Asian Miniature Painting and Britain, 1600 to Now
7 October 2023 – 28 January 2024
Including exquisite historic works drawn from major collections including the Royal Collection, Tate, The Ashmolean Museum and National Museums Scotland, many of which can rarely be displayed due to their fragility, Beyond the Page will explore how the traditions of South Asian miniature paintings have been reclaimed and reinvented by modern and contemporary artists.
Gory battle scenes, intimate love affairs, spiritual parables or exquisite depictions of the natural world, this exhibition presents an overview of South Asian miniature painting since the 16th century. The exhibition features over 170 historic, modern and contemporary works by artists from India, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Australia, Netherlands, UK and USA.
South Asian miniature painting often assimilated global cultural influences from Persia and Europe but continues to be defined by qualities such as intricate craftsmanship, intimate scale and intense narrative. Beyond the Page focuses on Britain’s role in the development of this tradition and explores how it has been reclaimed and reinvented as artists, since the 20th century, have taken it beyond the pages of illuminated manuscripts to experimental forms that include installations, sculpture and film.
The exhibition is curated by Hammad Nasar and Anthony Spira with advice from Emily Hannam, and will be accompanied by a new catalogue.The exhibition is organised by MK Gallery in partnership with The Box, Plymouth.
We are grateful for generous support from The Bagri Foundation, The Australia Council, and the Circle of Friends, chaired by Tarana Sawhney.
The exhibition has been made possible as a result of the Government Indemnity Scheme. MK Gallery would like to thank HM Government for providing Government Indemnity and the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport and Arts Council England for arranging the indemnity.
Read more via The Art Newspaper Book tickets