Gallery Tours at Manchester Art Gallery
Carmel Smickersgill, Tours & Activities Editor
Manchester Art Gallery is a central and essential part of the city. With its protected architecture and the priceless contents of its galleries there is a lot to appreciate. Let an enthusiastic and knowledgable guide help you do so fully in one of their regular gallery tours. It is a perfect opportunity to understand the works beyond their initial aesthetic and get a more personal view of the gallery through your guide’s eyes.
A team of knowledgeable volunteers take it in turns to conduct the tours. Each tour is unique to the individual running it as the featured artworks are personal choices of the tour guides, reflecting their personality and interests. No matter who the tour is being led by, every guide is as passionate about the work as they are informed about the artists and their lives. However, most guides will have a specialism so will focus on a particular area, style or era.
Whether you are a knowledgeable art critic or a novice art appreciator, there will be something of interest. Accessible on many levels, the tours manage to neither patronise nor skimp on the technical aspects of the pieces. Expect to learn about where artists find inspiration, the feelings and responses they evoke within their work or how each artwork fits into the social context of the time in which it was created. It’s an ideal way to understand the links between the eras and style found across Manchester Art gallery’s fixed and temporary exhibitions.
Often the guides include a section about the history of the gallery and its architecture. You will see where a modern connecting courtyard joins three Victorian buildings, forming the collection of gallery spaces, with earlier stages of the restoration deliberately left on show. Like many buildings in the city it’s an example of modern design paying homage to historic architecture.
Tours are at 2pm on select dates and are approximately an hour in duration. Head to the gallery’s website via the button below for more information on timings.
