As part of the Bradford City of Culture 2025 celebrations, in the early Autumn, five venues in the Bradford District will be exhibiting artworks held in the Methodist Modern Art Collection (MMAC).
The overall exhibition held across the five venues will open across the first week of September next year and run until Sunday 12th October. Whilst they all will have their own theme, they will all be linked via an Art Trail and the overall theme for the exhibition, “Everything is Connected.”
The venues are:
Ben Rhydding Methodist Church – Peril in relation to the environment, climate change and the impact of conflict around the world.
Bradford Cathedral – South Asian arts and heritage.
South Square Centre, Thornton – Women artists and the legacy of the Brontes.
St James Church, Thornton – Women in the Bible.
Woodhouse Grove School – Hope and what that means to the school community on an international level.
There will also be a series of reproductions of some works in the collection at several bars and cafes in the North Parade area of Bradford.
There will be an Art Trail linking all five venues in the exhibition – an Art Trail leaflet will provide more information for visitors on each venue and the associated programme of events (keep an eye on this page for details of that leaflet when they become available).
We are starting to work with local communities, organisations, schools and individuals who would like to creatively respond to any of the artworks on display, and hear from those who would like to volunteer their time to steward at venues during the exhibition period.
You can join an upcoming Webinar which will incorporate a short presentation on the MMAC exhibition and planned activity, and more information on the ways that you can get involved. The session will be a chance to hear from you about what you think of the works and our ideas for the exhibition. Let us know you’d like to come on Tuesday 14 January or Thursday 13 February through Eventbrite.
We are also seeking an Artist in Residence!
We’re looking for an artist who can connect our visitors with the artworks, most of which are paintings, in new ways, and potentially link the sites where we are displaying them. This can cover the telling of new stories, exploring hidden or overlooked histories, diverse and marginalised heritage, engaging new and existing audiences in responding to the Collection through creative visual methods, as well as linking to some of the themes the venues are exploring. Responses to the Collection can be in any media including the spoken word, dance, film, textile, as well as fine art.
This self-employed opportunity is open to artists working across the UK however, knowledge and/or experience of working within Bradford and/or the wider Yorkshire region would be an advantage.
Read and download the full Artist Brief here, and applications should be sent to Verity Smith.
Verity Smith is our Faith & Arts Development Lead, and is leading our activities for Bradford 2025. If you’d like more information or to get involved, please do drop her an email.