National Art Gallery reopens at Manx Museum after revamp

The Isle of Man’s National Art Gallery has reopened at the Manx Museum after the collection has been rehung.

Curator Katie King said several of the works now included had not been on display for more than 20 years, while others had never been shown publicly.

The gallery has been split into zones, to “take you on a journey”, including portraiture, which celebrates people, and place to show how the island has inspired artists.

The gallery had previously been overhauled to make way for the year-long Museum 100 exhibition, marking its centenary.

The art on show in that had been “condensed” to about 40 pieces

The national art collection itself contains about 6,000 artworks, but not all are in the right condition to be displayed.

Ms King said all of the works held within the national art collection had a connection to the island.

She said: “Everything we’ve got in our collection is by a Manx artist, or a Manx person, or an artist who has been inspired by the Isle of Man, so everything here tells that story.

“The art gallery, as it’s been rehung, is an introduction to what we have and what we hold for the people of the Isle of Man.”

Ms King, who is curator of art and social history for Manx National Heritage, said the gallery itself had been split into zones to “take you on a journey”.

Portraiture “celebrates the people” and paintings relating to place show “how the island itself has inspired artists for hundreds of years”, she said.

Choosing the artworks to put on display had been a “fantastic opportunity and also quite a big responsibility as well,” Ms King added.

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