Express & Star

Art talk held in Wolverhampton

An art gallery in the Black Country has held the first of a series of art talks for 2019.

Published
Tess Radclliffe focuses on a piece of art each week.

Tess Radcliffe, from Wolverhampton Art Gallery, hosts the talks on a piece of art every week – every Wednesday, at 1.30pm for 10 minutes.

Ms Radcliffe, the curatorial and learning manager at the museum, did the first talk on Nalini Malani and her work in the Hand Drawn and Action Packed exhibition at the gallery.

She said: "For the first talk, I was talking about a piece of artwork which we can't photograph – it's part of the Hand Drawn and Action Packed exhibition.

"That was the focus of the talk. We had a great turnout – normally we get about 15, but we had about 25 today so hopefully the crowds will get bigger.

"They are free and last 10 minutes and you just turn up. It's as easy as that – no hassle at all.

"The idea was that most people get about 30 minutes lunch break and if they can have a bit of respite and sit down and have some entertaining – and learn something new about it then it's more of a break.

"We have a fantastic collection."

Ms Radcliffe said she tries to explain 'why' the art looks the way it does and what message it's trying to convey.

She added: "We just try to explain why the art looks the way it does and what it tries to communicate. I always ask participants for their views.

"I think the impression I get – it's been going for about three months – that if people want me to get a bit more in-depth there's questions at the end. But the initial approach is that it's aimed at anybody.

"They are broad enough to appeal to people who don't know about art.

"We're highlighting parts of sculpture and crafts that don't really come out on display."