Welcome to the 24 Hour Museum news in brief page for the week ending August 31 2008.
29.08.2008 - Yoko Ono wants your step ladders for Liverpool Biennial
Yoko Ono (pictured) is inviting the public to donate their step ladders for inclusion in a new work for Liverpool Biennial’s MADE UP exhibition.
Over the ten weeks of the Biennial, with the public's help, a forest of ladders will grow inside the city's St. Luke’s Church. Liverpool Skyladders invites us all to find space for dreams and the imagination under the open skies.
(Sky)ladders, big and small, metal and wooden, new and old, can be delivered to:
St. Luke’s Church, Leece Street/Berry Street, Liverpool
Monday 15th September to Wednesday 17th September, between 11am and 5pm
Thursday 18th September to Sunday 21st September, between 10am and 6pm
For further information or to promise a (sky)ladder contact: skyladders@biennial.com Following the Biennial, the artwork will be donated to charity.
29.08.2008 - Castle Acre Priory hosts Herbs and Harvest weekend
The last event of the summer holidays for Castle Acre Priory, near Swaffham in Norfolk is a Herbs and Harvest weekend.
On Saturday 30 and Sunday August 31 there will be walks and talks about herbs in the re-created medieval herb garden between 1pm and 3pm.
There will also be demonstrations of traditional herb preparations and a chance to make some harvest crafts. Normal admission charges apply.
29.08.2008 - Ghanaian Princess visits Shipley Art Gallery
Visitors to the Shipley Art Gallery this weekend will be offered a unique opportunity to meet a Ghanaian Princess and take a look inside her wardrobe.
Abenaa Saamaa (pictured), from the Ashanti region of Ghana, is visiting the Shipley this week for two events linked to the current exhibition, Fabric of a Nation: Textiles and identity in Modern Ghana, from the British Museum.
“I have a wide selection of dresses in my wardrobe all of which were made for me in Ghana," said Abenaa. "I’m looking forward to talking to people about my clothes and I think it’s great that the Shipley is showing such an interesting and diverse exhibition.”
On Friday August 29 from 6pm – 10pm, Abenaa is part of the line up for this month’s Shipley Lates event which will focus on the theme of Africa. Abenaa will be available to talk about her life in Ghana and will be offering visitors the opportunity to explore her wardrobe of exquisite Ghanaian traditional costumes.
On Saturday August 30 from 1pm – 3pm, Abenaa will lead a traditional Ghanaian dress workshop where visitors will be invited to explore her fabulous wardrobe of traditional Ghanaian dress. Abenaa will model traditional clothing and talk about the names and stories behind the symbols printed on her dresses.
29.08.2008 - Museum of London opens late for evening of magic and mystery
The Museum of London is launching a late night magic and mystery tour of its collections on September 4. Visitors are invited to spend an evening gasping at the magical wonders of London street magician Pete Hathway and his award-wining trickery.
There will also be a mystical tour of the galleries and the chance to discover astonishing unseen objects - from sinister Roman curses to enchanting 18th century witch balls.
Throughout the night they will be playing a magical soundtrack and members of the public are asked to suggest a song to be played at http://londonist.com - a selected entrant will win a night of complimentary drinks for one plus a friend.
28.08.2008 - National Maritime Museum Cornwall launches online journal
A case of supposed wrecking on the Isles of Scilly is the first article to be published in the new on-line journal from the National Maritime Museum Cornwall.
The new quarterly, called TROZE, is free to all and will cover two themes: general maritime matters and Cornwall's maritime history.
TROZE is available now from the Research section of the Museum’s website at http://www.nmmc.co.uk.
27.08.2008 - Traditional Music Day at Museum of East Anglian Life
This year’s programme features plenty of local talent including the legendary Old Hat Concert Party from Suffolk, Rig-a-Jig-Jig from Norfolk and Simon Ritchie from Essex.
Other guests from the top drawer of traditional folk music are folk legends Mike Waterson and Lou Killen, the Orchard Family, a Gypsy family who include music, stepdancing and singing in their colourful performances, and storyteller Taffy Thomas MBE who spent some formative years in Suffolk with the legendary group Magic Lantern.
There will also be step dancing, a Ceilidh, a big music session featuring fiddles, concertinas, melodeons and dulcimers and in keeping with the local theme, locally produced food and real ales will be available on site throughout the day.
Special day tickets are available in advance from the East Anglian Traditional Music Trust, which give access to all events, space permitting. Closing date for advance tickets is Thursday August 28, call the East Anglian Traditional Music Trust on 01449 771090.
On the day, ordinary museum tickets can be bought, together with a programme, which allows entry to all outdoor events, but not the concert programme.
Photo shows Taffy Thomas: courtesy of East Anglian Traditional Music Trust.
27.08.2008 - Art and food celebrated in Italian festival at MOSI
A Venetian mask workshop and a special Italian-themed menu will be part of a series of Italian events at MOSI (Museum of Science & Industry) this weekend, to celebrate the extension of their popular exhibition Ancoats: Manchester’s Little Italy.
From Friday until Sunday the Museum will turn into an Italian fiesta, with a variety of fun activities for the family and a chance to sample favourite Italian dishes such as risotto and pizza.
Families are invited to get creative with pasta pictures, or use glitter and mosaics to make their own masterpiece inspired by great Italian landmarks, in the Italian Master Class workshop.
Manchester’s Little Italy shows how Ancoats, in East Manchester, became a centre for Italian migration from the mid-nineteenth century and includes many historic photos and several original objects. It runs until January 25 2009.
27.08.2008 - Archives for London to host an evening of wonder
The magic and mystery of archives is to be revealed by Archives for London when they host an indulgent evening, sharing some of the favourite discoveries and pleasures of archive users and practitioners.
Serendipity in the Archives takes place on Thursday September 4 2008 and will see a panel of archive researchers, managers and cataloguers introduce the free evening seminar with stories guaranteed to spark your imagination, amuse and perhaps shock.
"I’ll be drawing on as many examples as I can remember," promises Teresa Doherty from The Women’s Library, "some of them fanciful stories, but all of them illustrating the breadth of research that can be supported by the wonderful archive collections I have had the privilege of working with."
26.08.2008 - Less than £1 million to go for Tank Museum redevelopment project
The Tank Museum is celebrating an award of another £200k towards its £16m redevelopment.
The money, which has put the museum within touching distance of securing its final million for the project, was awarded in the latest round of Department of Media Culture & Sport/Wolfson Foundation grants for 2008.
“This award is important to us as it has taken us through the tricky £1m barrier," said Fundraising Manager Michael Bolton. "The last million is always the hardest to raise, but we are now well on our way to securing all the required funds with just £900k still to find.”
Building work on The Tank Museum's Heritage Lottery Fund sponsored redevelopment project is now complete, and visitors this summer have been able to enjoy improved views of Tank Action displays from the banked spectator area of the new Museum arena (pictured).
Work is now underway to fit out the 5000 m2 New Display Hall, which will contain a cutting edge exhibition on the tank story, a new restaurant, shop and reception area complete with excellent visitor facilities. All work should be complete and the new facility opened in early 2009.
26.08.2008 - National Trust launches pioneering green insulation project
The National Trust is piloting the use of environmentally friendly sheep wool insulation in order to demonstrate the value of using natural materials to help reduce energy consumption and carbon emissions.
This August, most of the Trust’s properties on the Ysbyty Ifan Estate near Betws y Coed in North Wales, which include 46 farms and 33 cottages and estate offices, are being insulated with natural sheep’s wool insulation.
The project is part of the National Trust’s aim to lower fuel usage in all its properties and reduce carbon emissions using sustainable materials.
26.08.2008 - People's Choice winners announced at Harrogate Open competition
This year, for the first time, the Mercer Art Gallery has introduced the Harrogate Open People’s Prize as part of the Harrogate Open Exhibtion.
The result was a tie between two artists, James Bowland, for his unorthodox work Memento Mori, made from human hair, teeth, animal skin and carved bone and Heather Dormer, for her delicate pastel study Reflections on the Nidd.
The popular showcase for the district’s talented artists has drawn the crowds in high numbers this summer. Artists in all media entered altogether 640 works of art from which a panel selected 140 works by 96 artists for exhibition.
Visitors to the exhibition had the chance to vote for the work they like the best in the show, and help it to win a prize of £100 donated by the Friends of the Mercer Art Gallery.
Each of the artists will receive a prize of £50 from the Friends of the Mercer Art Gallery.
26.08.2008 - Homefront War heroine to be celebrated at National Gallery
The National Gallery is to host a special day of events honouring Dame Myra Hess who initiated, directed and performed in a series of legendary concerts at the National Gallery during the Second World War.
Dame Myra's concerts provided a cultural oasis for thousands of Londoners during the war years and on November 25 2008 a series of lunchtime and evening concerts will take place in the Barry Rooms (Room 36), the location where the original wartime concerts were held. There will also be a free afternoon talk discussing the heritage of the concerts.
The concerts acknowledge two important anniversaries: the 90th anniversary year of Remembrance Day and the centenary of the birth of the composer/pianist Howard Ferguson, the ‘power behind the throne’ of the wartime Gallery concerts.
Wartime programmes were all devised under the guidance of Irish-born Howard Ferguson.
The National Gallery remained a vital part of London life despite being hit nine times by enemy bombs during the Blitz. Although the Old Master paintings were not on show – temporarily relocated to a secret location in Wales – Londoners were drawn to the Hess concerts and to a bustling canteen run by Lady Irene Gaiter.
To perform one of Ferguson’s finest works, the Partita for Two Pianos, Op. 5b, the gallery will be welcoming Richard and John Contiguglia from New York. The twin brothers were students of Dame Myra Hess.
For information on National Gallery exhibitions and events contact 020 7747 2885 or information@ng-london.org.uk
26.08.2008 - Jewish Museum acquires new contemporary Judaica object
The Jewish Museum London has acquired a new piece of contemporary Jewish ceremonial art designed by London-based Belgian artist Daniel Lehrer.
The ner tamid synagogue lamp, in silver and amethyst, will go on view in the new Museum’s Religion Gallery when it reopens in Camden Town in late Summer 2009.
Lehrer’s lamp design was created for the 2004 Spertus Judaica Prize Competition in Chicago where he was a finalist. It has been acquired for the Museum with the help of a £2,000 grant from The Art Fund and a £2,000 grant from the MLA / V&A Purchase Grant Fund.
“Lehrer’s unique ner tamid lamp will complement the Museum’s rich variety of artefacts and encourage interest in modern Judaica design. Through showcasing contemporary religious objects, the Museum’s new galleries will demonstrate the vibrancy of Jewish life today,” said Sarah Harel Hoshen, Curator (Judaica) at the Jewish Museum.
26.08.2008 - Beetle and VW owners needed for Tramway Village Beetle Drive
Crich Tramway Village in Derbyshire is inviting Volkswagen Beetles and Camper Vans to its annual Beetle Drive this year on Sunday September 7 2008.
The Beetle Drive will play host to vehicle displays, show & shine, clubs stands and trade stalls. There will also be a host of street entertainment for all the family.
For more details and to download booking forms visit www.tramway.co.uk or telephone 01773 854321.
