'Intimidating' contemporary art made 'accessible'

A new exhibition will make contemporary art "more accessible" to the public, its curator has said.

Art Adventures for Beginners, which opened this week, will run until 17 May at the House of Manannan in Peel.

The exhibition showcases 40 pieces - mostly prints - picked from the Isle of Man Art Council's collection of 400.

Suzanne Walker, the arts project officer at the Isle of Man Arts Council said the display "hopefully transports you out of your everyday life into magical worlds and different ways of thinking."

Contemporary art can be "intimidating", she said so "the whole idea behind the exhibition was to remove those barriers and make it more accessible."

The work of about 30 artists is showcased in the exhibition, including those from England, Scotland, Ireland as well as further afield like Papa New Guinea and aboriginal Australia.

"The collection is really rooted in bringing the work of other artists to the island," she said.

It includes well-known pieces like Josef Albers's Homage to the Square, which investigates colour perception, as well as a set of pieces exploring nursery rhymes by Paula Rego.

"The space makes everything pop, we've got gorgeous designs of little characters all over the place and it just feels a really nice space to be in," Walker added.

The display, which is free and open seven-days a week, was "something lovely to go and see, just to get out and see creativity and be inspired by it".

"After having all of the art in store for the past couple of years, to see it lit well in a beautiful gallery in Peel, it's really a highlight," she said.

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