Whitworth Art Gallery Reopening, University of Manchester Building, England Architecture

Whitworth Art Gallery Reopening

English University Building Development design by MUMA (McInnes Usher McKnight Architects)

14 Oct 2015

University of Manchester Whitworth Gallery

Design: MUMA, Architects

Whitworth Gallery 2015 RIBA Stirling Prize Shortlisted

The shortlist for the prestigious 2015 RIBA Stirling Prize for the UK’s best new building, now in its 20th year, has been announced. The six exceptional shortlisted buildings will now go head-to-head for architecture’s highest accolade, to be awarded by the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) on Thursday 15 October 2015.

Extension to the 19th century Whitworth Gallery – carefully crafted spaces emerge seamlessly from the existing as an integral yet individualistic part of the whole assembly.

Photos of this building:

photographs : Alan Williams

7 Mar 2014

University of Manchester Whitworth Gallery Building

Design: MUMA (McInnes Usher McKnight Architects)

Location: Manchester, England

Whitworth Art Gallery to Reopen On 25 October 2014 with a Major Cornelia Parker Exhibition Following £15 Million Transformation of the Gallery by Muma Architects

Whitworth Art Gallery, part of The University of Manchester, will reopen its doors on Saturday 25 October 2014 following a £15 million redevelopment project by MUMA (McInnes Usher McKnight Architects), that will transform the 125 year old Whitworth into a 21st century gallery in the park. The redevelopment, which has been supported by a major Heritage Lottery Fund grant, The University of Manchester and other funders, will double public space and create state-of-the-art new facilities including expanded gallery spaces, a learning studio, study centre and a collections access zone.

Leading with a major solo exhibition from one of Britain’s most acclaimed contemporary artists, Cornelia Parker, the opening programme will celebrate the Whitworth’s eclectic and extensive collection of historical and contemporary fine art, textiles and wallpapers.

THE REDEVELOPMENT
At the heart of MUMA’s major redevelopment project is the creation of an elegant glass, stainless steel and brick extension, which will see two wings extend into Whitworth Park from the back of the existing 19th century building. For the extension, MUMA have developed a unique Whitworth blend of British brick and a brickwork pattern with a traditional textile slash work effect, inspired by the gallery’s extensive textile collection.

Drawing on the Whitworth’s heritage as the first English gallery in a park, the new wings create an art garden between them and will be connected by a glass promenade gallery overlooking the surrounding landscape. The landscape gallery wing will provide exhibition space for the display of landscape works and large scale sculptures. Across the promenade, a beautiful linear café extends into the trees in Whitworth Park. A large window in the centre of the existing building will reveal a sight line into the main exhibition space, connecting the gallery to the surrounding park beyond.

THE ART GARDEN
A new Art Garden and an Orchard Garden have been designed by Chelsea gold medallist Sarah Price, who co-designed the 2012 Olympic Park gardens in London. Grasses and perennial plants in the Art Garden will keep sight lines open whilst creating a sense of depth. Loosely clipped, evergreen hedging will be arranged to form rolling, distorted clouds varying in height and shape. The hedging will be designed to look interesting from every angle and suggest partially enclosed interior spaces, creating backdrops suitable for displaying outdoor art works.

Whitworth Art Gallery

THE OPENING PROGRAMME
The Whitworth programme will open with a major solo exhibition from one of Britain’s most acclaimed contemporary artists, Cornelia Parker whose work invites viewers to witness the transformation of ordinary objects into something compelling and extraordinary. This extensive presentation will feature a wide range of work made during Parker’s career, including her signature piece Cold Dark Matter; An Exploded View, (1991) alongside an important new commission and recent additions to her ongoing series of ‘Avoided Objects’.

Alongside ‘Cornelia Parker’, the opening programme will celebrate the Whitworth’s eclectic and extensive collection and bring together the best historical and contemporary fine art, textiles and wallpapers, including:

• Unmanned Nature, a spectacular 45-metre long gunpowder installation by leading Chinese-born artist, Cai Guo-Qiang that will launch the Whitworth’s stunning new landscape gallery.

• Two exhibitions of works recently donated to the Whitworth from the Karpidas Foundation, including pieces by Laure Prouvost, Dorothy Cross, Nathan Coley, Hayley Tompkins, Gillian Wearing, Keith Coventry, Gary Hume, Richard Patterson, Paul Noble and Michael Craig-Martin, Dexter Dalwood, Matt Connors and Richard Aldrich.

• An exhibition celebrating ‘Whitworth People’ whose lives and relationships brought the gallery and the collection into being and continue to make the collection live, including Francis Bacon, Lucian Freud and Sir Stanley Spencer, as well as some key figures from the Musgrave Kinley Outsider Collection, held at the Whitworth.

• A selection of images from leading photographer Johnnie Shand Kydd’s extensive portfolio, which capture YBAs (Young British Artists) during the 1990s amongst other familiar art world figures on yearly trips to the Greek island of Hydra at the invitation of the art collector Pauline Karpidas.

• An exhibition of works presented to the Whitworth by the owner of the Manchester Guardian (now The Guardian), John Edward Taylor, including works by three of the best exponents of watercolour: 22 works by J. M. W. Turner, seven by William Blake and four by John Robert Cozens.

• Paintings, prints and sculptures from the 1960s, the last great moment of expansion of the Whitworth, reflecting a uniquely British artistic perspective, including pieces by Peter Blake, Allen Jones, Bridget Riley, Peter Phillips, Richard Hamilton, Colin Self and Elizabeth Frink.

• An exploration of green and all of its associations through works by artists and designers such as William Morris, C. F. A. Voysey, Lucienne Day, Keith Vaughan, Michele Walker and Susie MacMurray brought together for the re-opening of the Whitworth’s textile gallery.

• A gallery papered with Sarah Lucas’ wallpaper (2000), in which multiple pairs of cigarette-encrusted orbs float against a pitch black background. The wallpaper will form the backdrop to a selection of sculptures by the internationally renowned British artist.

• An installation of Low Tide Wandering, by leading German artist Thomas Schütte, whose daily etchings will be suspended just above head height from taut wires encompassing the whole gallery.

Whitworth Art Gallery Reopening information / images received from MUMA

MUMA – architect information

Location: Oxford Road, Manchester, M15 6ER, Northwest England, UK