Guides
What's on
Where to go
See all

Guides
What's on
Where to go
See all

Holly Graham: The Warp / The Weft / The Wake at Manchester Art Gallery

Maja Lorkowska, Exhibitions Editor

Visit now

Holly Graham: The Warp / The Weft / The Wake

Manchester Art Gallery, City Centre
14 February 2025-15 February 2026

Always double check opening hours with the venue before making a special visit.

Free
This image features a close-up of fabric with intricate, marbled patterns in various colors. The patterns resemble the swirling designs found in traditional marbling art. The fabrics display a range of tones, including dark greys, blues, teals, yellows, and red accents, creating a vibrant and textured appearance. The folds in the fabric highlight the material's flow and emphasize the rich detail of the designs.
Holly Graham
Book now

Manchester Art Gallery presents: Holly Graham: The Warp / The Weft / The Wake, an exhibition resulting from the artist’s long-term residency and related research focused on exploring the ways in which memory and narrative shape collective histories. Graham accessed the city archives and looked into the gallery’s history to highlight legacies of expansionism, colonialism and exploitative labour inherent to the history of cotton.

The new work on display is realised in the form of a Victorian style cotton printed costume, modelled on the silhouette of a dress worn by African American abolitionist Sarah Parker Remond, and co-created with her mother Jennifer Graham, who used to work as a costumier. The display will remain in dialogue with the gallery site and its archives, taking a closer look at the textile collections the legacy of the cotton industry.

 

Accessibility

  • Captioned
  • Dementia-friendly
  • Parent and Baby
  • Relaxed

What's on at Manchester Art Gallery

Peterloo Tour Jonathan Schofield
TourManchester
The Peterloo Massacre Tour

Visit key locations associated with a moment that helped shape the future of the nation, tracing the footsteps of those who stood for change.

From £20.00

Where to go near Holly Graham: The Warp / The Weft / The Wake at Manchester Art Gallery

Manchester
Restaurant
Ban Di Bul

Ban Di Bul is a longstanding Korean restaurant in the very centre of Manchester.

Salut Wines
Chinatown
Bar or Pub
Salut Wines

Salut wines pride themselves in offering “wider horizons beyond the safe choices.” With 42 wines by the glass and a regularly changing selection of bottles in their Enomatic wine preservation machines (or  “wine jukebox,” as they’re colloquially known), this is one of be best bars in Manchester for exploring new vintages.

Manchester Central Library
Manchester
Library
Manchester Central Library

The stunning Manchester Central Library is now back open for all visitors who wish to browse the enormous collection or simply relax in this magnificent building.

St Peters Square Manchester
City Centre
St Peter’s Square

St Peter’s Square is a public space in Manchester – home to the city’s iconic library, town hall, Pankhurst statue, art gallery and famous Midland Hotel.

Chinatown
Restaurant
Manchester Art Gallery Cafe

Summery bakes, seasonal salads and fresh light meals at Manchester Art Gallery’s in-house café, courtesy of highly-regarded Head Chef Matthew Taylor.

Chinatown
Hotel
The Alan

This high-end city-centre restaurant has an excellent afternoon tea option that more than matches up to the superb main menu.

Contemporary Six, art gallery in Manchester
City Centre
Gallery
Contemporary Six

Contemporary Six is an independent commercial art gallery in Manchester city centre, set up by Alex Reuben in 2010.

Manchester
Shop
Siam Smiles

Now based at the Great Northern, Siam Smiles is a food stop that’s hot on everyone’s lips.

City Centre
Restaurant
Blinker

Elegant cocktail bar in the centre of Manchester, with a relaxed atmosphere and wonderfully friendly staff.

See all places

What's on: Exhibitions

Culture Guides

A busy image created using generative AI. The image depicts a man at the centre with grey hair and rosy cheeks, surrounding him are fairies that appear to be created in his own image with multiple limbs and unique bodily proportions. Around them are hundreds of vials, microscopes and dated scientific equipment.
Exhibitions

Spring has sprung a wealth of great exhibitions in the North West, from intimate photographic shows to huge installations.

Theatre

Closer, riskier, more immediate. Our small-scale theatre picks stretch from unsettling fables about nationhood to the inner workings of a mind trying to hold itself together.

A Girl Walks Home Alone At Night
Cinema in the North

There's no shortage of great films out at the moment, whether you're looking for the latest blockbuster, that hot arthouse flick fresh from Cannes or a cosy classic.

Fatoumata Diawara by Alun Be.
Music

This month’s live music picks move between ambitious new work, grassroots celebrations and a few memorable settings.

Food and Drink in the North

Spring has arrived, bringing with it al fresco dining and a rush of high-profile food and drink-related events in Manchester.

Emily Lloyd-Saini as Grace in Space and Harrie Hayes as Lieutenant Strong in Horrible Science
Family things to do in the North

Whether you’re after storybook theatre, museum wanderings or illusion-bending play spaces, there’s plenty to keep curiosity ticking through winter and beyond.

See all guides