More things to do for you
The Stockport frogs are back!
We were thrilled to be asked by SMBC and One Stockport to collaborate on the Gigantic Leap Forward project, designing and painting 17 Stockport Frogs to go in local neighbourhoods around the Borough alongside the town centre Stockport Frogs. They are outdoors, open 24/7 and encourage a nice walk! Get the leaflet and more info here.
21 New Things to Look Forward to in Greater Manchester
As restrictions ease, there is something for everyone on Visit Manchester's list of the 21 best things to get excited about across the rest of 2021 and beyond. Salford's new RHS garden, a new fashion gallery at Manchester Art Gallery, a 'carbon farm' in Oldham and the new Manchester Poetry library to name just a few, plus Elizabeth Gaskell's 'new' old bedroom! Click here for more information »
Arc Family Task - Favourites Paper Boat
Catch up on the Edinburgh International Book Festival
There are tonnes of free videos to re-cap on featuring so many authors!
One of which is a Q & A with British author Olivia Laing.
With Fiona Bradley, Director of the Fruitmarket Gallery in Edinburgh, Laing unpacks our political, emotional and creative selves, drawing us in to her career-spanning conversations with art, with artists, and with herself. Watch Olivia Laing: Art is Political here.
George Clarke's National Trust Unlocked
Escape with George Clarke as he explores some of the UK's most impressive historic homes, as he delves into their hidden recesses and takes in their stunning surroundings - Catch up on 4OD here.
Before lockdown hit, the interactive exhibition A Museum of Journeys was on display at Arc. Now artist Sharon Campbell and Rachel Ramchurn have created this video so the work can still be viewed despite not being able to be there in person.
A Museum of Jouneys project brings together two diverse and often stigmatised communities through interactive artworks and story-telling, hoping to share stories of what unites as humans during a time of political, social, cultural, and now physical, divide.
Whether you missed out first time round or want to relive it,
check out the exhibition in the video above.
Series 1 focus on 'Walks of Art' and 'Exhibitions Specials', but in series 2 each episode focuses on something specific and explores that theme in relation to art. From memory to protest, there's a broad range of topics that are discussed between artists, curators and professionals in the relevant field.
You can listen on your Podcast app or via acaste here.
It's also worth checking out the Tate's resources and online collection that looks at Wellbeing and Art.
Meditation and Mindfulness at Manchester Art Gallery
On Manchester Art Gallery's Soundcloud you can find a range of different guided meditations to listen to, with each one centred around a different art work. As well as the meditations there's also mindfulness and wellbeing episodes to check out.
You don't need to sign up to anything and it's all free.
So if you've got a spare 10 - 15 minutes why not try giving one of these a listen and see if it has a positive impact on the rest of your day.
And if that's not your cup of tea, they have plenty of other stuff to listen to. Poetry, playlists dedicated to sculpture and two authors respond to the work of famous photographer Martin Parr.
At Home With Penguin
At Home with Penguin is a weekly peak into the homes of some of our favourite authors. The next episode presents Richard Osman, but you can catch up on previous weeks featuring authors such as Ruby Wax, Bernardine Evaristo and Tim Peake.
Gallery Oldham:
Syd Shelton: Rock Against Racism
As lockdown started Gallery Oldham should have been opening their new exhibition, Syd Shelton: Rock Against Racism. The exhibition can now be viewed online. These photographscapture one of the most exciting and turbulent political periods in British post-war history. Prevalent between 1976 to 1981 Rock Against Racism (RAR) was a ground-breaking movement formed by a collective of musicians and political activists to confront racist ideology in the streets, parks and town halls of Britain through music.
Hay Festival - Online literature festival.
Hay Festival Digital brings together performances, discussions and Q&As with over 100 of the world's greatest writers and actors. They'll be appearances from poet laureate Simon Armitage, authors Margaret Atwood and Gloria Steinman, actor and author Stephen Fry and poet Inva Ellams, to name just a few...
The festival is free and streams online from 22nd - 31st May.
This month features acclaimed graphic designer, Paula Scher and Macclesfield born illustrator, David Shrigley.
The event runs on a tiered payment system where you pay what you can. Buy tickets here.
Looking for something to listen to on your walk? Or how about setting 10 minutes aside to take some time out and focus on something different?
TED Talks Art is a podcast series with over 50 short episodes, featuring artists, designers, photographers and architects showcasing their work and vision.
Listen here or your mobile, just search TED Talks Art on an podcast app.
Art Institute Essentials Tour
The Art Institute of Chicago are uploading mini videos, 2-3 minutes long, with each video focusing on one specific piece of art.
The Essentials video series offers the chance to get up close with some of the most well-known and beloved works in their collection.
Find the videos on their Instagram or Youtube.
What to watch
BFI Player
Access some of the greatest global cinema via the BFI Player. There's tonnes of interesting movie collections all to watch for free. Ranging from short animations to documentaries and everything in between. There's also a rental section, with new releases available to rent from £2.50.
Abstract: The Art of Design.
This documentary series features some of the biggest names in all areas of design. From costume to typeface, each episode gives you an insight into all aspects of the design world. There's two series available on Netflix, but if you don't have a Netflix subscription you can still watch all of the first series on their Youtube channel.
Explore The Tate's collection, Constellations
An interactive online exhibition where you explore 'rooms' at a time, featuring art by different artists all linked together.
Rooms include artworks by Barbara Kruger, L.S Lowry, Sarah Lucas,
Henri Matisse and more. Constellations makes for a refreshing way to view well known modern art works and discover connections between them.
The Tate's website is packed full of Artists A-Z and other resources for you to get your cultural fix.
Manchester International Festival have launched MIF Live. The programme features podcasts to listen to and new videos uploaded every week. Catch up on previous festival highlights on their Youtube channel, including Lemn Sissay in conversation with Ngugi wa Thiong'o, a Q&A with David Lynch and lots of behind the scenes footage.
Grayson's Art Club on Channel 4
Starting on Monday at 8pm, artist Grayson Perry will be on air hosting masterclasses and making new artwork in Art Club's first episode. There's rumours he'll be joined by other famous artists throughout the series.
Mindfulness
Manchester Art Gallery has uploaded a section about Mindfulness on their website, with audio clips to help you practice Mindfulness at home.
Worth a listen to help you take a moment, pause and reset.
You can also explore Manchester Art Gallery's online collection too.
Featuring hundreds of sculptures and other collections.
Fancy a night at the Theatre? How about a trip to the Opera or the Ballet? Or a movie night with a difference ...
From the comfort of your own sofa try something a bit different and enjoy a night out 'in'. Make sure to have some ice cream or a packet of Maltesers (other confectionary is available) for the interval.
- National Theatre has gone online, so you can bring the theatre into your own home. They are currently showing Jane Eyre till 16th April, with Treasure Island and Twelfth Night coming soon.
- The Royal Opera House and The Royal Ballet are premiering a number of their shows via their Youtube channel. Currently showing Handel's Acis and Galatea and Peter and The Wolf, plus loads of rehearsals and behind the scenes footage to watch as well. They'll be more premiers going online throughout the
- Step back in time with Netflix and meet the actors and directors who made some of the biggest blockbusters, the series The Movies that Made Us is available to stream now.
Take a trip and explore an exhibition ...
Might seem like an odd thing to be saying, given the current circumstances, but there are lots of museums and art galleries all over the world that have virtual tours and collections that you can view from the comfort of your own sofa! Use this opportunity to 'visit' a museum you've never been to or an exhibition you didn't get chance to see.
Here's a few suggestions to get you started and we'll be sharing more in the coming weeks too!
- Guggenheim - featuring work from their collections in New York, Venice and Bilbao.
- Take a tour round The Dali Museum in Florida.
- Go behind the scenes and hear from some of the artists featured in the Manchester Open Exhibition 2020 at HOME.
Sculpting Lives is a podcast series exploring the lives and careers of 5 women sculptors, including Barbara Hepworth and Kim Lim. Each episode focuses on one artist, with 4 episodes already online for you to listen to at any time and an episode on Rana Begum due next.
Art Mysteries ...
Check out the new BBC documentary series The Art Mysteries with Waldemar Januszcza which sets out to uncover secret meanings hidden in four famous paintings. Catch up on now BBC IPlayer the 2 episodes that has already aired and watch the next one Tuesday at 8:30pm on BBC 4.
Share your creations with us
If you're on social media and we will share it. Why not do a blog, review or video?!
Tag #KeepingUsTogether so we can see it!
Facebook 
Twitter
Instagram
Pinterest
YouTube
SoundcloudYou can find more support at this difficult time here »