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What to see as our museums and art galleries reopen to the public

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What to see as our museums and art galleries reopen to the public -Alf Löhr: Good Poetry is Hard to Find. An exhibition of British/ German Artist, Alf Löhr at Wilcote Gallery and Studios.

It’s fair to say that it’s been a sobering time for our cultural institutions. Here’s what to see as our museums and art galleries reopen to the public.

Museums and art galleries in Oxford and across Oxfordshire were closed for several months during the spring of 2020 until a brief period in summer when they were able to reopen before being closed once again at the end of December.

In the government’s four-step roadmap to remove lockdown restrictions, museums and art galleries in Oxfordshire can reopen on Monday 17 May. So while shops and libraries can open from Monday 12 April, we’ll have to wait another month after that until we can return to our favourite collections and explore new exhibitions for the first time.

Commercial galleries, however, are permitted to reopen five weeks earlier, from 12 April onwards. Mask wearing, advanced booking, and social distancing measures are set to remain in place until at least 21 June.

It’s fair to say that it has been a sobering time for our cultural institutions. Revenues have plummeted, staff have been made redundant, and exhibition budgets have been cut. Despite financial assistance from the government’s Culture Recovery Fund, it may take several years for them to recover.

During the lockdown, our cultural curiosity has been met by online tours and virtual lectures. So when museums and art galleries in Oxford and across Oxfordshire can reopen, we should all support them as much as we can – booking tickets, meeting friends there, and perhaps, spending a little more time in the gift shop than usual.

on form exhibition of sculpture at Asthall Manor / Outdoor art & sculpture exhibitions in Oxfordshire

on form exhibition of sculpture

12 June to 10 July

on form exhibition of sculpture in stone is a biennial event that normally takes places in the even years (2018, 2020…) using the grounds and a few of the interiors at Asthall Manor as a backdrop. Due to the closure in 2020, they are planning to open the gardens for on form unlocked in May 2021.

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Change, Transience, Harmony is a solo exhibition by Oxford-based painter and calligrapher Nathalie Moisy. This solo exhibition at the Sarah Wiseman Gallery will launch the gallery’s exciting summer exhibition season.

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Following the sudden cancellation of Fresh Work in 2020, Elaine Kazimierczuk takes advantage of the light and space at the North Wall Gallery to present Re-Fresh – a major exhibition showcasing several large, dramatic works.

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Zuleika Gallery is presenting a new programme of art exhibitions for the Gardens Gallery Café at Blenheim Palace from 17 May to 12 September 2021, launching with ‘Expressions of Nature’. The exhibitions will showcase the work of regional emerging and mid-career contemporary artists for visitors to the palace to enjoy in its newly refurbished Gardens Gallery Café.

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The new The Churchill Exhibition at Blenheim Palace will feature a mix of historic artefacts and new technology, documenting key aspects of the adventurous life of Sir Winston Churchill, the famous wartime leader and writer. With photographs, letters, artefacts and excerpts from his most famous speeches, you’ll gain a real sense of our ‘Greatest Briton’.

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Blenheim Palace is hosting a range of iconic photographs by British fashion and portrait photographer Cecil Beaton. Beaton is best known for his elegant photographs of high society and was a familiar guest at the Palace, attending parties and weekend breaks alongside a host of aristocrats, artists and writers.

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From a sketch on the back of an envelope to grand, elaborate chalk drawings, this major exhibition at The Ashmolean will offer a rare glimpse into its internationally-renowned collection of Pre-Raphaelite works along with the artists associated with the movement.

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Brave New World is a solo exhibition of new works by Stuart Hartley. This exhibition will present Hartley’s 3-dimensional works from his Event & Incident and Pathways series, alongside a new series of watercolours on paper produced in 2021.

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Alf Löhr’s new series, Good Poetry is Hard to Find, was born during lockdown 2020 at a time of great reflection for many and is presented by Branch Arts at Wilcote Studios. Painted in Löhr’s recognised abstract style using acrylic ink on canvas, each work provokes an emotion that carries and reflects our individual experiences and perspectives.

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For his largest solo exhibition, Samson Kambalu’s powerful installation creates the atmosphere of an initiation ceremony for a utopia of international racial justice that equally values each person. This idea of a ‘New Liberia’ marks a mass change in attitudes, sparked by the pandemic and global Black Lives Matter protests in 2020.

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Seeun Kim: The Oxford Project at The North Wall Gallery

Seeun Kim: The Oxford Project

28 May to 12 June

Seeun came to the UK in 2016 and completed an MA at the Royal College of Art. The OXFORD PROJECT is the result of her time there. Using jewellery and metal objects, the OXFORD PROJECT seeks to examine some of the diverse social issues in today’s society.

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