So much to look forward to. I hadn’t realised until now that Josh Kirby died in 2001, its obviously been a while since I read a Terry Pratchett book. Also didn’t know that he was from Waterloo and studied at Liverpool City school of Art.
In 2007 Liverpool will be 800 years old. Where better to celebrate this Year of Heritage than in Liverpool, a city that has more museums and galleries than any other regional city in Europe?
National Museums Liverpool has an exciting programme for 2007 which explores many aspects of Liverpool’s incredible history. Among the most significant of the events is the opening of the International Slavery Museum in August, which will tell the story of the transatlantic slave trade, the reopening of the Sudley House featuring the only surviving Victorian merchant art collection in Britain still hanging in its original location and a major new exhibition, Magical History Tour, that charts the history of this unique city.
At the Walker Art Gallery Doves and Dreams tells the tragic story of arbiters of the Glasgow Style Frances Macdonald and J Herbert McNair,who lived and worked in Liverpool at the turn of the 20th century. In addition the gallery will host exhibitions by Liverpool-born science fiction artist Josh Kirby and internationally renowned maker Peter Chang.
International Slavery Museum opening – 23 August 2007
The first part of this £10 million museum, opening in 2007, will feature new dynamic and thought-provoking displays about the story of the transatlantic slave trade, in which Liverpool played such a prominent part. It will include new displays on the legacy of transatlantic slavery and will address issues such as freedom, identity, human rights, reparations, racial discrimination and cultural change.
A new research institute and resource centre will follow in 2010, including an events programme of performance, public lectures and debate. The research institute is being developed in partnership with the University of Liverpool.
The displays in the new museum will be complete by 23 August 2007 to mark the bicentenary of the abolition of the slave trade in Britain.
Merseyside Maritime Museum, Albert Dock, Liverpool
Open daily 10am–5pm Admission is free 0151 478 4499 www.merseysidemaritimemuseum.org.uk
Sudley House reopens – Summer 2007
Sudley House, the former family home of the Liverpool merchant George Holt, is undergoing a major refurbishment and will reopen in the year Liverpool celebrates its 800th anniversary. Holt’s extensive Victorian art collection is the only one of its kind still in its original domestic setting.
The house will be transformed with new displays which tell the story of the building and the family who owned it, including the Childhood Room featuring a remarkable range of toys and dolls and the Costume Room displaying a range of period clothes.
Sudley House, Mossley Hill Road, Liverpool
Open daily 10am-5pm Admission is free 0151 724 3245 www.sudleyhouse.org.uk
Slavery Remembrance Day – 23 August 2007
National Museums Liverpool has hosted a Slavery Remembrance Day event since 1999 in recognition of the city’s role in the Transatlantic Slave Trade. Strong local support, most notably from Liverpool’s black community, has made this an ongoing project that aims to raise awareness of an issue that can never be forgotten. Events include a memorial lecture, performances and a libation ceremony.
Doves and Dreams: The Art of Frances Macdonald and J Herbert McNair
Walker Art Gallery 27 January to 22 April 2007
The first major exhibition devoted to the avant-garde art of Frances Macdonald and J Herbert McNair, exploring their life and work in both Glasgow and Liverpool. Featuring more than 80 pieces including watercolours, graphics, furniture, metalwork, textiles and decorative art. The exhibition will spotlight the achievements of these two remarkable artists: McNair, the innovator and inspirational teacher and his wife, Francis Macdonald, sister-in-law to Charles Rennie Mackintosh, who produced some of the most remarkable symbolist watercolours of the early 20th century. Exhibition organised by the Hunterian Art Gallery, University of Glasgow, in partnership with the Walker Art Gallery.
Walker Art Gallery, William Brown Street, Liverpool
Open daily 10am–5pm Admission is free 0151 478 4199 www.thewalker.org.uk
The Cathedral That Never Was: Lutyens’ design for Liverpool
Walker Art Gallery 27 January to 22 April 2007
Following a programme of major conservation work at Liverpool’s National Conservation Centre, the stunning architect’s model of Lutyens’ cathedral brings to life the story of the ambitious building proposed for Liverpool. The exhibition will help interpret the model and its construction as well as providing the context and background to Lutyens’ architectural commission, of which only the crypt was ever built.
Conservation work was funded by the Heritage Lottery Fund.
Walker Art Gallery, William Brown Street, Liverpool
Open daily 10am–5pm Admission is free 0151 478 4199 www.thewalker.org.uk
Animated Adventures – World Museum Liverpool 10 February to 26 August 2007
Animated Adventures captures the full animation process from storyboards to set design. Find out how the world’s top animators create their on screen characters and discover the art of cel painting, stop frame and CGI technology. All the industry’s secrets are revealed through a fun and engaging mix of hands-on exhibits and multi-media pods that guarantee to get everyone animated!
Animated Adventures, has been developed by W5, Belfast and is one of three exhibitions produced by the ecsite-uk Travelling Exhibitions Consortium (eTEC).
World Museum Liverpool, William Brown Street, Liverpool
Open daily 10am–5pm Admission is free 0151 478 4393 www.worldmuseumliverpool.org.uk
Merchant Palaces – Lady Lever Art Gallery 16 February to 13 May 2007
To celebrate Liverpool’s Year of Heritage, the lost interiors of grand Victorian houses in Liverpool and Wirral are shown in this fascinating photographic exhibition. Around thirty ‘through the keyhole’ views by Harry Bedford Lemere (1864-1944) give a rich insight into the interior design of the homes of Liverpool and Wirral merchants.
The exhibition is organised in collaboration with English Heritage and the National Monuments Record.
Lady Lever Art Gallery, Port Sunlight Village, Wirral
Open daily 10am–5pm Admission is free 0151 478 4136 www.ladyleverartgallery.org.uk
Out of this World: The Art of Josh Kirby – Walker Art Gallery 16 June to 30 September 2007
The first retrospective exhibition of science fiction artist Josh Kirby. He began his career producing film posters, moving to book and cover art for magazines. Some of his more famous work includes the first cover of Ian Fleming’s Moonraker and the poster for Monty Python’s Life of Brian and he is best known for his cover illustrations of Terry Pratchett’s Discworld series.
Walker Art Gallery, William Brown Street, Liverpool
Open daily 10am–5pm Admission is free 0151 478 4199 www.thewalker.org.uk
Peter Chang – Walker Art Gallery 16 June to 30 September 2007
The first major UK exhibition showcasing the work of international artist Peter Chang, one of Britain’s leading contemporary jewellery artists whose work has received world-wide acclaim with shows in Europe, Canada, the USA, Australia and Korea. Now based in Glasgow, Peter Chang was born in 1944, grew up in Liverpool, trained in sculpture and graphic design at Liverpool College of Art and later taught in the City.
Walker Art Gallery, William Brown Street, Liverpool
Open daily 10am–5pm Admission is free 0151 478 4199 www.thewalker.org.uk
Masquerade: the work of James Ensor (1860-1949)
Lady Lever Art Gallery 30 June to 22 September 2007
A special showing of the paintings, drawings and etchings of James Ensor (1860-1949) on loan from the Museum of Fine Arts, Ghent. Described as the most original Belgian artist of the 19th century, James Ensor painted around 1880-85 in a style fashionable amongst the modernists of the day.
Lady Lever Art Gallery, Port Sunlight Village, Wirral
Open daily 10am–5pm Admission is free 0151 478 4136 www.ladyleverartgallery.org.uk
Magical History Tour – Merseyside Maritime Museum 20 July 2007 to Dec 2008
A major exhibition celebrating the city’s 800th birthday in style with a look back across Liverpool’s history. Told through the lives of its people, Magical History Tour will demonstrate some of the ways in which Liverpool has changed and evolved over the past eight centuries. The exhibition will chart Liverpool’s growth from a tiny fishing village to a Victorian metropolis of global significance and will take visitors on a fast paced, dynamic journey of discovery. In celebrating the amazing rollercoaster story of Liverpool, iconic objects on display will include the Liverpool charters and a reconstruction of the long-lost Liverpool Castle. The exhibition is being developed in collaboration with the Liverpool Culture Company.
Merseyside Maritime Museum, Albert Dock, Liverpool
Open daily 10am–5pm Admission is free 0151 478 4499 www.merseysidemaritimemuseum.org.uk
Joseph Wright of Derby – Walker Art Gallery 17 November 2007 to 24 February 2008
An exhibition of major works by Joseph Wright of Derby, one of the most significant British artists of the mid-eighteenth century and the first major artist to find success outside London.
The exhibition will focus on the period 1768-1771 when Wright worked in Liverpool, a dynamic time in the city’s development as it aspired to be a centre of artistic excellence.
Walker Art Gallery, William Brown Street, Liverpool
Open daily 10am–5pm Admission is free 0151 478 4199 www.thewalker.org.uk
The final addition to the artists directory for 2006 is 
FUTURESONIC 2007 – 10-12 May, Manchester UK
But selling out fast.
Funkadelic Chicken Donned at Oxford but Nearly Skinned and Plucked
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