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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 16^th 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 20^th century, have taken it beyond the pages of illuminated manuscripts to experimental forms that include installations, sculpture and film.

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.

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Art Club is back

After a short break, we are excited to announce that our Tuesday sessions designed to nurture children’s love of art will be back this June. This term we will focus on painting, taking inspiration from our summer show Boyd & Evans: High Time, led by artist Lee Farmer. From colour theory to painting techniques, each week will progress and develop skills so that each little artist will come away with a finished painting on canvas. We are now offering a 10% discount when you book in advance for the whole half term.

Art Club: Ages 5-8 Book now

Art Club: Ages 8-11 Book now

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Announcing our Summer Special

Throughout the summer, Milton Keynes residents are invited to visit our next exhibition, Boyd & Evans: High Time, for just £1 during all opening hours. For visitors to MK, we continue to offer Pay What You Can entry on Sundays, whilst remaining free for under 26 year-olds. This Summer Special provides an opportunity for new and returning visitors to enjoy the exhibition, while also encouraging those who can to pay more or make a donation. Our updated exhibition admission prices are as follows: Adult £11.50 (£12.65 with Gift Aid) Concessions (Jobseeker, full time student & reg. disabled) £8.50 (£9.35 with Gift Aid) Art Fund Pass £5.75 (£6.33 with Gift Aid) Members / Under 26s / Accompanying Carers Free Milton Keynes Residents £1 (£1.10 with Gift Aid) Pay What You Can £3 / £5 / £9 / £12 / £15 every Sunday We have also permanently removed booking fees for exhibitions, saving visitors £1 per ticket. MK Gallery relies upon the generosity of audiences and supporters to bring exceptional artists and award-winning exhibitions and programmes to Milton Keynes. Those who wish to support the ambitious work of the Gallery are encouraged to become Members to benefit from a year of free entry to exhibitions, discounts, exclusive events and much more. Tickets on sale now: Boyd & Evans: High Time Become a MK Gallery Member: Support Us

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Trickster Figures catalogue – Available now

The Trickster Figures catalogue is available now! A soft-cover book with 60 pages, this publication accompanies the exhibition Trickster Figures presenting the next chapter in the story of British sculpture, bringing together a selection of work by eleven contemporary artists. The exhibition explores the body’s newly configured relation to the world which involves increasingly fluid movement between binary systems, technology, human forms, animals, identities, and the environment.

Featuring: Saelia Aparicio, Alice Channer, Jesse Darling, Nicolas Deshayes, Kira Freije, Siobhán Hapaska, Nnena Kalu, Joe Namy, Harold Offeh, Ro Robertson and Vanessa da Silva.

Buy in-store or click here to buy online

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Sky Room Cinema brings Eurovision to the big screen

Didn't manage to get tickets to the live final in Liverpool? Don't fret, MK Gallery is bringing the Grand Final of the Eurovision Song Contest 2023 LIVE to its Sky Room Cinema.   Fans of Eurovision can now book tickets to the live streaming and join the party as Liverpool, the ‘World Capital of Pop’, hosts the 67th final of the ever-popular international singing contest - on behalf of Ukraine - on the 13 May. All the dazzling performances and nail-biting scoring rounds will be up on the big screen, and with hot dogs, nachos and drinks available throughout the evening from the cinema kiosk it will no doubt be a night to remember. Tickets include a goody bag, and fancy dress is positively encouraged. To book your place at the party click here.

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Local artist paints new mural at MK Gallery

Local artist Tom Guilmard has painted a new mural at MK Gallery. Full of colour and humour, it can be found on the staircase up towards the Sky Room. The mural will be a temporary fixture at MK Gallery until Autumn this year.

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Announcing Boyd & Evans: High Time

MK Gallery is delighted to announce our Summer exhibition for 2023 – Boyd & Evans: High Time. This first major survey of artist duo Boyd & Evans in over a decade marks 55 years of their collaboration. The exhibition will focus on paintings, spanning their careers from the 1960s to today. It will display many of their experiments: from collage and stencil to spray-gun and brushes; surreal dramas that unfold in domestic, urban and suburban settings; and visual games between the real and artificial. It will include satirical political work, much loved scenes of Milton Keynes and epic depictions of the natural world in the USA, Malaysia and Brunei. In 1980 Boyd (Fionnuala Boyd) & Evans (Les Evans) were commissioned to make work by the Milton Keynes Development Corporation. They were then invited back as artists in residence and have remained ever since. One of their best-known pieces, Fiction, Non-fiction and Reference (1984) situated in the Central Library, is treasured by Milton Keynes residents.

Learn more

Download Press Release

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Calling all budding sculptors!

Trickster Figures: Sculpture and the Body is an exciting and inspiring collection of modern British sculpture that we hope will inspire young local artists. Young Sculptor is an opportunity for all young people living or studying in Milton Keynes to develop their sculpting skills, take part in an exhibition this June in, and have their work judged by a panel of curators and artists. Submissions are welcomed from children and young people aged 4-19 (SEND up to 25 years old).

Learn more

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Inclusive Practice in the Arts wins national award

The Inclusive Practice in the Arts (IPA) team at MK Gallery is delighted to be awarded the Fantastic for Families 2021-2022 award – for the second year running.  Last year the team won the award for Best Family Arts Activity for its Sensory Boxes programme, which was developed in response to lockdowns as a remote creative offer for families. This year it won the award in the same category for its Toddle and Child Sensory Tour programme.  The Sensory Tours are designed for both toddlers, and children with additional and complex support needs, who may otherwise have difficulty accessing the content of the exhibitions. During the tours, children and families go on a journey through the exhibition spaces and are transported to another world through storytelling, music, curious object handling, intriguing smells and costume. The galleries are transformed into animated spaces, and artworks are explored and activated in a playful language that is accessible to all.    Running throughout the year, the Tours have bespoke content designed in response to the Gallery’s changing exhibitions programme. They are designed and led by Associate Artist Julia Collar (of Collar and Cuffs), who, independently, won the award for Audience Impact and Innovation for her Toddington Village Sensory trails. Sophie Bennett, Producer, Public Programmes (Inclusion) MK Gallery, said: ‘We are thrilled to receive national recognition for our Inclusive Practice in the Arts programme once again. Sensory Tours offer families a unique experience - they break down barriers by inviting people into spaces that they may not ordinarily feel are for them. ‘Our Sensory Tours would not be possible without Julia Collar, and we are so proud that she won independently in her category as well. Special thanks also goes to our Learning Scouts, Sarah Hunt and Constance McCaffrey, who support families throughout the tours and enhance their experiences.  ‘Recently we’ve been able to extend our tour programme to working with national charity VICTA, who support children who are blind or partially sighted, which has been particularly special.’  If you’ve not experienced a Sensory Tour with your children, then make sure you book onto our upcoming tours on Saturday 26 November for our current exhibition, Larry Achiampong: Wayfinder. Our Toddle Tour starts at 10.30am and our Child tour (SEND) starts at 11.30am.  Now in its ninth year, the Fantastic for Families Awards is an annual programme open to UK based cultural organisations or cultural activity organisers, providing creative opportunities, activities, or initiatives for families, young mothers, isolated elders, and those struggling with mental health conditions, particularly the most vulnerable and marginalised.   Anna Dever, Head of Family Arts Campaign said: 'The Fantastic for Families Awards are a brilliant opportunity to celebrate the extraordinary creativity and innovation of the arts sector and the amazing work delivered for families during the past year. The organisations and artists nominated, and all those who applied, are wonderful examples of how creative and cultural engagement can bring joy and opportunities to families across the UK.’ The awards ceremony took place online on the 16 November 2022.  

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An Interview with Larry Achiampong

We sat down with Larry Achiampong ahead of his solo show at MK Gallery to discuss his background, work, and what the future holds. Could you introduce yourself, and the exhibition? My name is Larry Achiampong. I'm an artist, and I work across a range of media which includes film, sculpture, sound, performance... I'm referred to as a multi-disciplinary artist, which really means that I get bored doing the same thing, so I try to challenge myself a lot. At the heart of my practise is an interest in conversations that surround identity and relationships with the digital age. It involves approaches to time travel, the archive, and what that means on a personal level. The show that we have here is titled Wayfinder; it's a touring show, which will be moving across sites. It's opening here at MK Gallery soon, and previously it was showing at Turner Contemporary, and it will finally show at BALTIC in Gateshead next year. Why do you think the exhibition is a good match for Milton Keynes? It's a good fit for a place like Milton Keynes in terms of its diversity of people within the area, and people from non-European backgrounds especially. That's not to say that people from European backgrounds can't take interest within the work, I think there's an aspect of locality in various kind of levels or strata that I think people will be able to connect with. But really, at the heart of this show is a conversation about journeys; journeys in the sense of what migration means on a personal level, but also on a social, and in certain cases, a political level. Some of your works were created a few years ago – do you think they will still hold social relevance in the future? I would hope that the works that I've made a couple of years ago, and some more years prior to the show, will have a certain relevance. More and more within my practises I make works where I'm very much thinking about legacy; I'm very much thinking about what time might mean to the words that are being expressed figuratively or literally. So I do think about how the work might be taken in. I don't have control over that, and that's not something I would want to have control over. But what I do have control over is imagining that the work will still exist. If we take my film works for example, I've shot them all in 4K spec. I've done that on purpose because I want them to exist in cinemas. As far as I'm aware, the standard for showcasing cinematic work is not likely to change. I can see the work existing 40, 50, 60 years down the line. Not only that, but I do feel that the conversations and subject matter at the heart of these works will be important to topics that continue to marinade into the future. Do you believe that the mediums you use are the best ways to portray your messages and feelings? For me, the mediums I use are the best ways that I've been able to approach or converse some of the messages I've put into the work. It's the reason why I work across different forms; because as much as I feel the power of video or film, a physical object, for example my chalkboard series [Detention, 2016- Present], could also convey additional ideas in a different way. No medium, for me, is a ruler over the other. They all have their place, and my place as a practitioner is making the decision of what best fits the approach to output, where physicality is concerned. Is there any advice you would give to young artists who would like to get their work out there? Thinking back to my own perspective when I was younger, I was using social media in the earlier days, with the likes of Myspace. But now it's all about Instagram, TikTok, Snapchat, that kind of thing. I think social media is a great way to be able to simply get the message out there, in terms of the work, but also to connect with other people. It's a good space, but it's not the only space. It's an effective one, but it's not the only one. It's certainly important in being able to connect with people who may be thousands of miles away. From my own background, I never had disposable income, nor do I have the kind of money now to travel from one place to the other across the planet, unless I'm being paid to do it. I think it's important to remember that there's only so much that you can achieve on your own. It's important to find bridges to connect with other practitioners. You may not agree on everything, and to be honest, that could be good thing, because everyone might bringing something different to the table. That's actually something to celebrate, as long as nobody's being hurt. So that aspect of collaboration is important, even if you're an artist who loves to be in a room on your own. There's only so far you can get on your own, but at the same time you have to find your way of doing things. Just because people like doing crits doesn't mean you have to. You might want to listen to music or talk about memories. You can do that as well. Don't let anyone tell you that there is a right or wrong way to do things. I think that some of the greatest ideas, and some of the people who I think are the most important practitioners in their field, have done things their way. Again, as long as you're not hurting anyone, do things your way. If it doesn't exist, you build it. Larry Achiampong: Wayfinder is open at MK Gallery from Sat 15 October 2022 – Sun 15 January 2023. Click here to learn more.

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