Wherefore art thou, Romeo?

Romeo and Juliet press night tonight - very excited. Sneak peeks on the Octagon's blog, and a scale model of the stage I saw a few weeks ago suggests a super stark, contemporary staging. Expect further details posted through a wine-induced haze later.

Preview: Tracey Eastham

Secret Britain, by Tracey Eastham

Works by Bolton-based artist Tracey Eastham will be showcased at Manchester's Cornerhouse cinema in a new exhibition set to open on August 17th.
Tracey uses found imagery on paper to make intricate, beguiling collages, such as Secret Britain (pictured) that explore stereotypical representations of nature and landscape.
Her depictions of romantic and fantasy rural life are mediated through mass culture and art history, bringing together images appropriated from both classical and contemporary sources, and high and low culture.
Her work uses references from 18th century English and Dutch romantic painting, portrayals of “wild” Western America, sci-fi and romantic book covers, and images of stylised jewellery and natural objects.

For more information,visit the Cornerhouse website here.

Exhibition runs August 17th to September 26th. Free admission.

Preview: At The Edge: British Art 1950-present

The Ornithologist by Leslie Young, 1978

There isn't a lot of information around on the Bolton Museum & Art Gallery website about the latest exhibition to open here, At The Edge. Happily, however, it is a touring exhibition, and the previous venues have been a little more forthcoming.
The exhibition includes paintings, sculpture and ceramics by major artists such as Henry Moore, John Bratby, Lucian Freud, Patrick Heron, Leon Kossof, Frank Auerbach, David Mach, Dhruva Mistry and Helen Chadwick. Many of these works were controversial at the time they were made, and it will be interesting to compare them to the works by Emin and Hirst that shock today. It also looks at the difficulties that local galleries had to overcome to add work by leading British artists to their collections

Runs until October 30th. Free admission.