Manchester Art Gallery

I thought it was awful. I had high hopes but from the website to the gallery this place is awful. Stuffy and pretentious. I know nothing about art but I was open to learning however the descriptions next to the pieces were awful. They contained absolutely no useful information to help describe the pieces of work that you are looking at. I think the gallery assumes that everyone knows how to look at and appreciate art but novices like myself generally need to be guided to get the full experience. I managed to google a few pieces myself whilst walking about and this helped me feel much less irritated. I particularly liked the Kate Davies Green Fields piece, Adolphe yvon’s ‘Retreat from Moscow’ and ‘George Stubbs’ Cheetah and Stag with 2 Indians although that was entirely from me googling and not from the gallery at all. I did ask the staff on the information desk what pieces would they recommend but they just literally pointed me to the gallery floor plan. The children were totally bored and the matchstick box to help interest them was totally pointless. Most museums have little trails for children to help them locate the most interesting prices with little write ups about them. The cafe was ok. Very busy. And the large slice of lemon drizzle cake that we ordered from seeing it in the counter cabinet arrived an eighth of the size, so no longer suitable for sharing. We won’t come again and just to add the gallery website is absolutely awful and horrendous to navigate so that should have been a warning!

Went to view the Grayson Perry exhibition. It’s the first thing in ages that has generated much interest that the gallery has staged.
Compared the Walker art gallery in Liverpool or any gallery in a city of comparable size in Europe or the US, Manchester art gallery is small, unloved and limited in its collection. Pre-Raphaelite art is not everyones cup of tea.
The cafe is also over priced with or mini or inedible offerings.
If visiting from elsewhere this gallery would not be on my must see list.

We enjoy visiting this gallery when we come to Manchester. The static display is good and this time around they had sculptures "out of the box" which was quite interesting to see. A lot of the gallery was undergoing a make over for new presumably spring onwards installations so will need to pop back.

This is not the review I had thought we would be writing. I had known for some time that there were several world class paintings and exhibits at this gallery so was keen to visit in a two day stopover in Manchester. We visited in the lacuna period between Christmas and New Year. It was very wet out but not too cold.

On arrival I enquired about a locker to store our coats, hats and umbrellas - the sort of paraphernalia that lockers are for. However we were greeted with a sign in the main entrance saying that the lockers (clearly visible on the basement floor) were out of use. On enquiry I was told that this had been ordered by the local authority - presumably to save money on the upkeep of the lockers. So instead of a leisurely and purposeful visit around the Gallery we were grasping our coats umbrellas etc as we moved between the galleries.

When we booked into our excellent hotel for the Manchester stay we were charged an additional £1.00 plus VAT for a local "tourist tax". No harm in that as the stated aim is to improve the visitor experience of local facilities. One such improvement would clearly be to have functioning lockers fully maintained. I wonder if anyone at the City Council will get that message.

Otherwise the arrangement of the galleries was a little bit higgledy piggledy. Pleasingly there is an emphasis on female painters and other female creators. Pictures like the depiction of an Indian Harbour and the Cheetah and Stag remain in the memory.

We went as we had some time to kill and I am so glad we did.
It has a mix of the usual old masterpieces and some more modern works.
The thing that will stay with me was the feminist perspective plaques around the exhibits.
It made me really relook at the art and gave a whole new perspective to pieces that you may be familiar with.

Excellent.

Living in the city it’s sometimes easy to overlook the Manchester Art Gallery by simply walking by. Every so often though I step in and am instantly carried away from the streets to be wrapped in the world of art. Manchester Art Gallery represents such a fantastic asset to the city for both locals and visitors. There are two 2 exhibitions currently running that I particularly liked. The quirkily titled; Trading Station ‘how hot drinks shaped our lives’ the other being  Out of the Crate ‘Investigating the sculpture collection’ I liked this one as it offered an opportunity to view up close many pieces of sculpture that form part of the gallery’s collection but may not always be on display. I also love the way it is curated with some of the pieces still half packed into storage crates. Also on show an exhibition of paintings by Louise Giovanelli and an exhibition titled Jerwood Makers Open. In this I loved the pieces by Forest + Found artists Max Bainbridge & Abigail Booth.  Running alongside special exhibitions is of the course the permanent collection, a very good gift shop and first rate café. What’s even more astonishing is the fact that all of this is free to visit. Wonderful, wonderful, Manchester.

Another must attraction right by chinatown which is a cultural treat. The art galleries diverse range of engaging themes with well presented exhibitions grabs the attention. Must see

Lovingly curated, this museum showcases some excellent local art and really tries to promote inclusivity and variety. Some of the exhibitions felt a bit contrived, and the odd pink picture in the middle of the Dutch exhibition, was very incongruous. On the whole though, a very good experience, especially as it was free entry and the staff were exceptionally friendly and helpful.

This gallery has an excellent collection of Pre Raphaelites and it displays them in large well appointed rooms. There is also a real and meaningful attempt to contextualise the art in the gallery with modern interpretation. This makes the experience doubly enjoyable and interesting. There is a lift making the upper floors accessible. Love the Lowrys. Usual shop with expensive but quality gifts , fridge magnets and postcards. Very friendly volunteers. Optional £3 donations. Spacious cafe with clean toilets. It’s a restful but stimulating afternoon !

This is a great venue. Perfect location, close to city centre shops. So glad we visited today Wonderful galleries of modern and historical art, including works from Lowry, Vallete, Turner and two of my favourites: Dante Gabriel Rossetti and John William Waterhouse. Spent a very lovely couple of hours there. Very relaxing, educational and engaging