People and communities
The New Art Gallery Walsall celebrates 25 years
Published on
Next year The New Art Gallery Walsall marks 25 years with a series of events and exhibitions celebrating community and collaboration, as well as our connection to nature and the planet.
Highlights include:
A revival of the popular People’s Show will form part of exhibition The Joy Project. First taking place at Walsall Art Gallery in the 1990s, the exhibition showcased local people with their collections, from commemorative neck ties to plastic bags, and beer mats to snow globes. A series of newly commissioned photographs will showcase contemporary collections and young collectors in 2025.
Community celebrations of Lunar New Year, Eid, Holi, Vaisakhi and Diwali and more. This will include a celebration on 20 February marking the official anniversary of the Gallery opening with a preview of The Joy Project including a performance by Walsall-based The Blue Lights Choir, as well as a big summer celebration event.
Outside In, the award-winning charity providing a platform for artists encountering significant barriers to the art world, hosts its seventh National Open exhibition, exploring the theme of ‘shelter’.
“ Over 25 years The New Art Gallery Walsall has shown world-class art, with its heart in the local community. There is an exciting programme in store. We hope you can join us during the year. “
“ We’re excited to celebrate this significant milestone. Throughout our 25th year our beautiful building will be full with a really exciting programme of events and exhibitions. Do come along and help us celebrate this important year. “
Make Gallery bunting as part of Sunday Art Club
DANS Chinese Folk Fan Dancers for the Gallery's Lunar New Year celebrations
Peacocks and Peahens. Photo: Stuart Wilde
General Public with Grace Emily Manning and Mud Club, The Sanctum of the One-Eyed Toad (& other Spirit Animals of Walsall), 2024. Photo: David Rowan.
The New Art Gallery Walsall selected 2025 event highlights (January – March)
Lunar New Year Community Day
Saturday 1 February, 12-4pm. Free, drop-in
Join us to celebrate Lunar New Year with Chinese folk fan dancing and lion dancing with DANS Chinese Dance and Performing Arts. Have a go at calligraphy, print lucky red envelopes (Hongbao) with artist Mengxia Liu, and complete the Red Gallery Trail. We encourage visitors to wear red or pink!
JOY: Celebrating 25 years of The New Art Gallery Walsall
Thursday 20 February, 6-8pm. Free, drop-in
The New Art Gallery Walsall opened on 20 February 2000. Join us to celebrate the official 25th birthday of the Gallery at the opening of our new exhibition The Joy Project, a collaborative exhibition developed with the Gallery’s Youth Panel and local youth groups exploring the concept of ‘joy’. This has included the joy of nature, music and finding positivity in the world around us. The evening will include a performance by The Blue Lights Choir which was set up to empower young women in Walsall.
Sunday Art Club: Celebrate the Gallery’s 25th Birthday
Sunday 23 February, 12-3pm. Free, drop-in. Ages 4+
Join us for a special birthday edition of Sunday Art Club! Make Gallery bunting and enjoy tea, squash and birthday cake. Sunday Art Club is our weekly art club for children and young people. Meet artists and creatives, learn to paint, sculpt, craft and more!
World Book Day: Peacocks & Peahens
Saturday 8 March, 12-4pm. Free, drop-in
Join us for a celebration of books, stories, art and poetry inspired by peacocks. Enjoy special performances of Princess and the Peacock by Sonia Sabri Company, and join Pep the Poet for funny, interactive performances of his poem ‘The Funky Peacock’. There will also be the opportunity make bookmarks with illustrator Bec Tonks, grab your free book from National Literacy Trust and pick up your own signed copy of ‘The Funky Peacock’.
Holi 25: Festival of Colours – Community Day
Saturday 15 March, 12-4pm. Free, drop-in
Join us to celebrate the Festival of Colours with Bharatanatyam (Classical dance originating from the temples of Tamil Nadu in southern India) dance performances from Jnan Deep Kundu and Kathak dance performances from Roshni Pink . There will also be the chance to spray paint mandalas onto fabric with artist Haseebah Ali, make banana leaf parrots with artist Ahalya SP, get Mendhi from Mrs Bed and enjoy authentic food from Hargun Sweet Centre.
The New Art Gallery Walsall exhibition highlights
Earthbound
15 November 2024 – 8 June 2025
Set within the context of global anxiety about the climate crisis and planetary health research, this major group exhibition presents existing and newly commissioned artworks by nine artists and community makers that highlight our connection with the earth and our potential to return to a more healthy and harmonious existence with the natural world. It emerges from the argument that, over time, natural and human histories have become so disconnected that we have lost sight of the innate interconnectivity between human and natural life.
Artists: Jodie Carey, General Public with Grace Emily Manning and Mud Club, Tania Kovats, Otobong Nkanga, Sally Payen, Yinka Shonibare CBE, Charmaine Watkiss, Laura White.
REFLECTOR
26 October 2024 – 9 March 2025
The culmination of a ten-month intensive professional development programme for emerging photographers, artists and curators from diverse backgrounds from across England. Each works with photography but with different approaches and perspectives. This exhibition celebrates their achievements to date and provides an important step towards their future creative and professional development. Produced by GRAIN Projects in partnership with The New Art Gallery Walsall, supported by Art Fund’s Reimagine Programme.
Walsall Society of Artists
13 December 2024 – 2 February 2025
The 74th annual exhibition by members of Walsall Society of Artists. Works included are in a wide range of media with many for sale. Throughout the exhibition society members will showcase their skills with the community. They will also collaborate with local poets for a series of spoken and written word events and demonstrations.
Suzanne Holtom: And Hills Bore Scars
29 March - 29 June 2025
“During the pandemic I lost my Dad, and as a result my trips back home to the West Midlands became far more frequent. It was this continuing return to my original home, contemplating and experiencing this embodied landscape that initiated a new direction in my work. Specifically, the areas around Streetly and Barr Beacon formed the topography of significant memories and stories of my earlier and later life. A deep mapping of place has become the primary motivation in my work, which encompasses geological time, social histories, personal experiences and memory.” Suzanne Holtom
Equal + Able = Not a Label
8 June 2024 – 18 May 2025
Exploring Ableism, Disability, Neurodiversity and Mental Health through The New Art Gallery Walsall’s Collections. This project is co-produced by the Gallery’s Collections Community Panel.
The Outside In National Open: Shelter
27 June – 20 October 2025
Outside In, the award-winning charity that provides a platform for artists encountering significant barriers to the art world, hosts its seventh National Open exhibition at The New Art Gallery Walsall. The exhibition, exploring ‘Shelter’ will be accompanied by an exhibition of works from both organisations’ collections about the same theme.
The Joy Project
21 February – 6 July 2025
Over the last year, members of the Gallery’s youth panel have developed a collaborative exhibition exploring the concept of ‘joy’. The project provides an opportunity for under 25s to develop in confidence, build social skills, learn about positive mental health and gain useful work experience, working as part of our Collections Youth Panel. As part of the exhibition, the panel will revive the Gallery’s popular ‘The People’s Show’ from the 1990s. As well as young people as part of the panel, the Gallery have been working with groups including local The Blue Lights Choir, Funky Kids, Thomas Telford College and Braidwood School to explore the concept of joy from their perspectives.
Hannah Maybank
7 June 2025 – May 2026
Walsall-born artist Hannah Maybank is creating a special new work as a gift to mark the Gallery’s 25th birthday. Hannah will also exhibit a series of other new works exploring the still life genre, using flowers and glassware. These works all have elements of materials which will change over time, creating ‘living still lifes’ including silver (a material associated with 25th celebrations). Hannah will also select works for the re-hang of the adjacent Flowers and Still Life room to complement her exhibition, having grown up being inspired by the Gallery’s Garman Ryan Collection.
ENDS.
Notes to Editors:
Please note: Dates and details are subject to change.
About The New Art Gallery Walsall
The New Art Gallery Walsall presents, collects and interprets historic, modern and contemporary art in innovative and challenging ways, welcoming visitors from all over the globe as well as our immediate locality. They aim to increase the understanding and enjoyment of arts and culture through a dynamic exhibition, education and events programme.
The New Art Gallery Walsall is funded by revenue support from Walsall Council and Arts Council England. The New Art Gallery Walsall is an Arts Council England National Portfolio Organisation.
Open: Tuesday – Saturday 10am-5pm; Sundays 12-4pm. Closed Mondays and Bank Holidays.
Free admission
www.thenewartgallerywalsall.org.uk
The New Art Gallery Walsall facts and figures
- The Gallery opened to the public on 20 February 2000 but was officially opened by H.M Queen Elizabeth II on 5 May 2000
Over the last year the Gallery enabled over 11,000 children and young people to discover the transformative power of arts through their learning programme. This includes visits from 96 schools and 17 higher education and further education institutions
- The New Art Gallery Walsall was designed by Caruso St John and shortlisted for the prestigious RIBA Stirling Architecture Prize in 2000
The Gallery was shortlisted to host the Turner Prize in 2015, the prestigious annual award celebrating innovative and thought-provoking art by British or Britain-based artists
The Permanent Collection has tripled in size since the opening of the Gallery, and now numbers approximately 4000 works
The Gallery was part of the Art Fund International, 2007 – 2012, working in partnership with Birmingham Museum & Art Gallery and Ikon Gallery to establish a new and ambitious international collection of contemporary art for Birmingham and the West Midlands region.
