The exhibition You Belong Here is a collaboration between the University of Salford Art Collection and Salford Museum & Art Gallery. The wider Rediscovering Salford programme is delivered by a range of partners across the city, led by the Salford Culture and Place Partnership:
University of Salford Art Collection
The University of Salford Art Collection is an ambitious and growing collection of modern and contemporary art, founded c.1968. The Collection aims to support excellence in teaching, research, community engagement and artist development; and actively acquires new work through a ‘commission to collect’ approach.
The Art Collection is leading on the You Belong Here exhibition with Salford Museum & Art Gallery, and will acquire elements of all new commissions into the collection as a permanent legacy of the project.
Salford Museum & Art Gallery
Salford Museum & Art Gallery (part of Salford Community Leisure) exists to collect and preserve Salford’s heritage and art collections, making them available for all through exhibitions, events, education and outreach.
You Belong Here builds on a growing collaboration between Salford Museum & Art Gallery and the University of Salford Art Collection, including exhibitions Print UnLtd (2018), Acquired: a Century of Collecting (2018) and Everything I Have Is Yours (2019).
Salford Museum & Art Gallery is leading on the Rediscovering Salford commissions in partnership with the University of Salford Art Collection, and will host the exhibition and events programme from late Spring/early Summer.
Salford Culture and Place Partnership
& Suprema Lex
The Salford Culture and Place Partnership is a cross-city leadership collective leading Suprema Lex, Salford’s strategy for culture, creativity and place. The Culture and Place Partnership is led by Arts Council England, Salford City Council, The Lowry and the University of Salford. Bringing key cultural organisations, creative businesses, developers and stakeholders together, the partnership is the vehicle for Salford’s ‘new and radical approach to culture, the arts, heritage and placemaking’ in our city.
School of Arts, Media and Creative Technology
Salford School of Arts, Media and Creative Technology is one of the leading centres for practice based education in the creative disciplines in the North West. Staff and students have been closely involved in a number of elements of the Rediscovering Salford project, particularly in relation to performing and recording the music for The Storm Cone, and building and developing the app.
RHS Garden Bridgewater
The catalyst for the wider Rediscovering Salford project is the development of the RHS Gardens Bridgewater in Salford. One of the largest gardening projects in Europe has, and will continue to transform the historic gardens of Worsley New Hall into a beautiful green space for local communities and visitors to enjoy. As the gardens become more established expect to see further collaborations between horticulture, arts and people.
The Lowry
The Lowry is committed to using visual and performing arts to enrich people’s lives. They present a diverse programme of theatre, opera, musicals, dance, music, comedy and visual arts as well as events and activities to expand the horizons of audiences and artists alike.
The charity is named after L.S. Lowry (1887 – 1976) an artist who spent much of his life in Salford and whose work is strongly associated with the city.
The Gallery hosts a permanent exhibition of Lowry’s work, and will also loan a selection of works to Salford Museum & Art Gallery for You Belong Here.
We are also grateful to our studio partners, Paradise Works and Islington Mill, for each nominating a shortlist of artists/members for our new commissions:
Paradise Works
Established in 2017, Paradise Works is an artist-led studio community of 35 contemporary visual artists, a project space and gallery in Salford. They host a critically engaged programme of exhibitions and film screenings, showcasing works from new and established artists working nationally & internationally.
Islington Mill
Created in 2000, Islington Mill remains a work in progress; an ever-evolving creative space, arts hub and community. Scratch the surface and you’ll find a vibrant and resourceful cross disciplinary creative network; a space where conversations leads to connections, collaboration and co-creation. Public arts programmes, residencies and galleries sit alongside rehearsal space; music and visual arts mix with events and exhibitions; and more than 50 businesses and 100 artists call the Mill home.