ART: Exhibitions to catch in Hull right now…
Hull’s exhibition scene feels busy right now, and not just in the obvious places. Across major galleries, artist-led spaces and neighbourhood venues, there is a mix of work that looks at conservation, collections, imagined worlds, natural forms and the lived history of the city itself.
If you are after a good excuse to build a gallery stop into your week, these four exhibitions are worth making time for.
Ferens Art Gallery — Fixing for the Future
Fixing for the Future turns the spotlight onto conservation, using the restoration of a Johann Zoffany painting to show the skill, patience and close looking involved in caring for artworks. Alongside it, Into the Stores brings works out from behind the scenes and into public view, opening up the gallery’s collection storage and the stories that usually stay out of sight.
https://www.hullmuseums.co.uk/museum-events/fixing-for-the-future
Humber Street Gallery — Sightseers by Luke Routledge
At Humber Street Gallery, Luke Routledge’s Sightseers is one of the city’s most visually striking current shows. Built around an ambitious body of newly commissioned work, the exhibition drops visitors into a strange, playful and slightly unruly imagined universe filled with larger-than-life sculptural figures.
It is the sort of show that rewards seeing in person. The scale, texture and colour do a lot of the work, and the exhibition has enough weird energy to feel genuinely transporting rather than simply decorative. It runs until 3 May.
Artlink / 87 Gallery — Deep Unknowns by Maria Donnai
image Credit @hullisthis
Deep Unknowns, by Hull-based artist Maria Donnai, is a quieter but no less compelling pick. Shown at Artlink’s 87 Gallery on Princes Avenue, the exhibition uses ceramic and glass to draw on seaweed, shells and sponge-like forms, building a body of work that feels both delicate and physically grounded.
There is a strong local angle here, too. Donnai’s practice is rooted in Hull, and the exhibition gives space to work that feels considered, tactile and attentive to fragility, care and the natural world. It is on until 11 April.
Hello, World!
HUFree Gallery / Western Library — Concrete Storeys
Concrete Storeys is the newest addition to this list and one of the most place-specific. Bringing together work by Chris Tansey, Tarik Skalli, Karim Skalli and Bill Tansey, the exhibition centres on Tansey’s upbringing in the high-rise flats off Anlaby Road and the lasting impact of that landscape on his practice.
Film, photography and sound help extend the exhibition beyond one artist’s memory into a wider story about place, housing and change in Hull. Set in HUFree Gallery at Western Library, it is the kind of show that feels closely tied to the area it is shown in. It runs from 28 March to 23 May.
What makes this mix of exhibitions work is the range.
There is a big institutional show about conservation and collections, a bold contemporary installation on Humber Street, a thoughtful local exhibition on Princes Avenue, and a neighbourhood-rooted project in HU3.
Together, they make a strong case for spending more time with Hull’s gallery scene right now.
Seen a show we should include next time? Drop Browse a email
