Resonating bodies exhibition artwork
[Left image]  [mis]Feeds # 3 (2022) Laura Rosser. Photograph by Dom Moore.  [Right image] Flesh[wound] (2022) Karen Abadie. Photograph by Beccy Strong.
 

A celebration of creativity

Programming designed to inspire, challenge and entertain
The Levinsky Gallery exhibition series opens with Resonating Bodies, exploring the complexities of relationships between humans and machines. The exhibition responds to the fragility and uncertainty that we face in our increasingly digital and automated world. At a time when our sense of being is in a state of flux, the artists, Karen Abadie and Laura Rosser, lean into this unknown through the materiality of the machine. 
This interactive exhibition has inspired related programming across film, with Ghost in the Shell, Friends in High Places and Brian and Charles. In addition to its own series of Bitesize gallery talks, many featuring University of Plymouth academics across a range of disciplines and research areas, there’s opportunity to flex your own creativity, taking part in workshops with the artists.
Later in the spring and into the summer the Gallery will host The World Illustration Awards 2023 Touring Exhibition showcasing all Award-Winning and Highly Commended projects across ten industry-relevant categories and including material that tells the story of the ideas, processes and artists behind the work. Next we welcome Trinity Buoy Wharf Drawing Prize, now in its 30th year, and widely regarded as the most prestigious open exhibition dedicated to drawing in the United Kingdom.
The Musica Viva concert series continues with the January visit of The London Gershwin Players, with Mark Forkgen, conductor and Robert Taub, piano, an unmissable upbeat celebration of Gershwin and the 100th anniversary of Rhapsody in Blue, followed by the Kleio Quartet in March, fresh from their First Prize and Commission Prize awards at the 2023 Carl Nielsen International Chamber Music Competition performing two stunning works for string quartet, Mozart’s Quartet in G major K.378 and Bartok fourth String Quartet, followed by Brahms’ mighty Piano Quintet, a collaboration with pianist Robert Taub. We’re also delighted to host the University Orchestra and Choral Society for their concerts this spring.
Our talks, readings and screenings once again have an interesting and topical series from The Historical Association including The Christopher Durston Memorial Lecture: Remembering the Reformation by Historical Association President Professor Alexandra Walsham, Emmanuel College, Cambridge. Artists Karen Abadie and Laura Rosser will be in conversation with writer-artist and Associate Professor in Fine Art, Nottingham Trent University, Emma Cocker for Uncertain Encounters: Embracing the Unknown, exploring themes of the current exhibition Resonating Bodies.
Our film programme includes the popular Celluloid Psychology series, devised by Dr Alastair Smith, School of Psychology. Celluloid Psychology is an antidote to the usual depictions of psychology on our screens. Each of the carefully selected films are curated and introduced by a specialist in human behaviour whose expertise sheds unexpected light on the psychological questions being explored.
In performance, The House hosts a diverse range of acclaimed companies with a celebration of creativity across dance and performance. Rendez-Vous Dance transport us to 1930s Paris for The Monocle, an immersive contemporary dance experience featuring the voluptuous jazz chanteuse Imogen Banks, telling the untold story of a notorious lesbian cabaret and with the performance coinciding with LGBT+ history month. Award-winning Vamos Theatre, the UK’s leading full mask theatre company, present Boy on the Roof, the story of an unlikely friendship, where acceptance, understanding and love find their way to centre stage, created through Community Conversations across the UK, gathering people’s experiences of ADHD, loneliness, aging, hearing loss, connection and community. Internationally renowned company, Richard Chappell Dance present Hot House, a passionate response to the cost-of-living crisis sharing the frustration currently felt by many, turning that intense energy into a powerful celebration of collective generosity. This new show features a soundscape influenced by Chinese, Indian and European classical music, rearranged and performed by violinist Enyuan Khong and electronic music duo Larch. Beyond The House we continue our support for SOAK’s Live Art series, taking place at Leadworks and curated by Dr Sarah Blissett and Kerry Priest.
The Arts Institute is the curated public arts programme of the University of Plymouth which plays a pivotal role in building culture and art in the city and South West region, supporting established, new and emerging artists from around the world. 
It comprises The Levinsky Gallery, a space for engaging, contemporary artworks; the Jill Craigie Cinema which screens a diverse range of classic films and contemporary cinematic masterpieces; a cutting-edge theatre and dance programme in The House; musical performances and concerts, and a year-long series of fascinating talks that open up a world of art, literature and history.
Open to everybody.

The Arts Institute's public programme promotes audience engagement, access to the arts, and directly supports emerging and established artists' careers. Please consider a donation to support development and delivery of our programme.

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World Illustration Awards 2023 Exhibition

The WIA2023 Touring Exhibition is a fascinating, inspiring survey of the breadth and diversity of current illustration practice. The exhibition showcases all Award-Winning and Highly Commended projects across ten industry-relevant categories and includes material that tells the story of the ideas, processes and artists behind the work.  
 
World Illustration Awards 2023 Touring Exhibition Banner

Historical Association talks

13 February – 14 May 2024
The Historical Association is a national charity supporting the study and enjoyment of history. The Plymouth branch has linked up with the history department of the University to deliver a joint programme of talks within The Arts Institute public programme.
Thomas Braithwaite making his will from Art UK.
Animal Condensed by Jennet Thomas
Animal Condensed by Jennet Thomas, Revolutionary Inventions season, 2018

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