Straight Laced: Corsetry through the ages Wed 20 Jan
10am to 12.30pm
£15

Join author Jill Salen to learn about corsets, which have been used to create fashionable silhouettes for centuries. This fascinating workshop will delve into whalebone, cording, lacing and flossing as well as exploring the history of the production of these garments. Staid, upright and straight laced are all terms whose roots lie in corsetry; while the 21st century sees them as acceptable bridal and evening wear, Jill will look at the many varied styles and types of corsets, as well as some unexpected explanations as to why they were worn.

Jill Salen is a retired lecturer in costume. As a freelance costume maker she has made costumes for many clients, including Shakespeare's Globe, Cosprop, and the Welsh National Opera. She is also the author of a number of successful publications on corsetry, costume history and construction, and is currently researching for a further book on corsetry.

This event will take place online as a Zoom session. Jill will be showing example pieces during the session.

Details will be emailed to you in advance of the date.

Girtin in Devon
Thurs 18 Feb
1.30 to 2.30pm
Zoom Event
£8 / £6 FEMAG

Tom Girtin was JMW Turner's friend and in his short life rivalled him as an innovator. He visited Devon in the late 1790s and again around 1800-1801, but the watercolours derived from these tours are not as well-known as they should be. This talk places them in the context of artistic tourism in Devon at the turn of the century and reflects on Girtin's contribution to the practice of watercolour. Sam Smiles is Honorary Professor, University of Exeter and Emeritus Professor, University of Plymouth.

24 Oct to 21 Feb 2021
Gallery 20

One hundred powerful images by renowned photographer Anita Corbin celebrate the achievements of British women over the past century. They feature a cross section of the pioneering women who have changed British society for ever.

Visually stunning, the exhibition features a fascinating mix of celebrities, famous personalities, dignitaries and unsung heroines from across the decades. In sport, in the arts, in politics and the professions, these women have all broken through the glass ceiling.

The South West boasts of fifteen of the 100 First Women ranging from Dame Hilary Mantel, the first woman to win the Man Booker Prize twice to Exeter’s own Bellatrix, the first UK woman Beatbox Battle World Champion.

Further information about Anita Corbin and the First Women can be found at http://1stwomenuk.co.uk. To hear recordings of interviews and audio descriptions of the works in the exhibition follow http://firstwomen.brightonmuseums.org/ (Produced by The Royal Pavilion & Museums Trust, Brighton, in collaboration with First Women UK).

Due to Covid-19 restrictions, entry to RAMM is via free timed ticket.
Book your ticket: rammuseum.org.uk/entrytickets

RAMM would like to thank Hawksmoor Investment Management for their continued generosity and support.

Hawksmoor Investment Management specialises in providing high-quality discretionary management services for private clients. This includes trusts, pension schemes and charities. Its award-winning Fund Management team manages multi-asset funds-of-funds and a series of risk-based ‘Model Portfolios’ for Financial Advisers.

15 Dec to 28 Feb
Café at RAMM

Challenge your knowledge of art history with a visit to this exhibition, as the artist uses photography to recreate famous works of art.

Anna’s first pastiche photograph, ‘An Allegory of Modern Marriage’ (after Van Eyck’s Arnolfini Portrait) won an award from the South West Academy and went on to be hung at the 2014 Royal Academy Summer Exhibition. This success was repeated in 2018 when ‘The Moaning Geezer’ and ‘Klimt in the Care Home’ were hung by Grayson Perry in his Yellow Gallery at the RA.

In her work, Anna Grayson invites the viewer to have fun and to engage both with her photographs, and with the original masterpieces that inspired her.

The work on show in the exhibition is available for purchase via the shop at RAMM.

24 Jan 2020 to 17 Jan 2021
Gallery 22

A celebration of the abstract work of the distinguished West Country artist Brian Rice. This exhibition includes his paintings and prints created over the last 60 years. Work includes his vibrant multi-canvas painting ‘Green Cross’, from his formative 1960's London period.

In the 1960’s Brian Rice was at the heart of the creative and groundbreaking London Art Scene and a part of the crowd of artists associated with the Royal College of art such as David Hockney and Peter Blake. Brian Rice’s abstract paintings from this period were influenced by the De Stiji group and European Constructivists of the 1920’s and 30’s. These formative London years from 1962-1978, strengthened Rice’s conviction in abstract work and saw his reputation grow.

Other important works include ‘Dowth’, with its European rock art influence and later work ‘Horton Rock’, 2008 with its lyrical and mischievous twirling lines. Also exhibited will be objects, textiles and books from the artist’s personal collection that have been important to the development of his work.

Most of the works displayed in the exhibition are available for sale through the shop at RAMM.

Image: Green Cross, 1964, Brian Rice.

Christmas with RAMM
Tue 1 to Thu 24 Dec
Online
Free

Join us throughout December to discover the Christmas treats hidden behind the doors of our Advent Calendar. Performances, Christmas craft activities, mystery objects, jokes and more will be revealed each day.

There will also be a chance to enter a free draw to win a fantastic prize.

Be sure to be following us on social media to discover Christmas magic with RAMM.

Café screen at RAMM
Until 7 Feb

This film, presented as a slide dissolve, is a poignant reminder of what is lost and what is yet to be lost. The artist’s feelings of nostalgia and grief are intertwined with a sense of peace as John Paul remembers the people closest to him. Although this work was initially intended as a memorial to a dear friend, it has become, in the artist’s words, ‘a performance of melancholy and loss, memorialising the passing of those nearest and dearest’.

Gallery 21
6 Feb to 2 May 2021

Commissioned to complement the touring exhibition Seedscapes: Future Proofing Nature , Devon-based artist Léonie Hampton’s new body of work engages directly with the ecological emergency through a series of photographs that celebrate her vegetable garden, her family and friends, and the seeds in the collections at RAMM.

Hampton's lens captures both the beauty of the natural world and draws our attention to the urgent climate crisis through images of the relationship between the human hand, body and mouth and the food she grows. Photographs of her bountiful, organic Devon garden are displayed alongside collections of seeds from Devon and across the world, donated to the museum over the past 150 years.

Hampton says of the commission: ‘Lockdown halted many of our social and economic man-made rhythms, giving time and space to the cycles of nature and our place within the sensuous natural world. Living in Devon the garden became a microcosm and together with my family, we reaped what we sowed in sustenance and metaphors. The seeds and vegetables cannot grow without us tending them, reminding us that gardening is reciprocity in action, a dynamic relationship that can be expanded universally and is central to our existence’.

Supported by Arts Council England. Sponsored by Digida Printing and Daniel Winter Framing.

In partnership with Exeter Living
12 Dec to 17 Jan
Gallery 21

The Local Art Show gives art groups and societies from Exeter and the surrounding area the chance to display members’ work in this annual exhibition. Work is submitted according to the theme for the year, groups are then shortlisted and the winners chosen by public vote. The theme for the 2020 competition was ‘RAMM and its collections’ and the shortlisted entrants were Double Elephant Print Workshop, Topsham Art Group and Magic Carpet. The public vote, hosted by Exeter Living, closed in April and Double Elephant Print Workshop were announced as the winners.

Double Elephant is a fine art printmaking workshop that, for 22 years, has been providing resources, tuition and support to complete beginners and experienced artists alike. The ethos of DEPW is one of continuous creative learning and development, with a commitment to helping everyone reach the very highest standards. They usually operate from their Exeter base in the Phoenix Arts Centre, although during lockdown all the artists have been producing work at home. Double Elephant's artists work across the spectrum of printmaking methods, from relief printing to lithography and everything in between. The work they produce is often bold and dramatic, while also incorporating thoughtful detail. From butterflies to totem poles, RAMM`s collections have been a source of inspiration for this vibrant and varied show.

All work on display can be purchased via the shop at RAMM.

Meet the Artist - Anita Corbin, 100 First Women Portraits
Sun 20 Dec 12pm to 2pm
Tue 29 Dec 12pm to 2pm

Renowned photographer Anita Corbin will be in the gallery to talk to you about her work on this stunning exhibition and the women who feature.

100 First Women Portraits sees powerful images celebrating the achievements of British women over the past century; featuring a cross section of the pioneering women who have changed British society for ever.

Photo Credit: Beth Walsh

Galleries 21 and 22
6 Feb to 2 May 2021

In a world shaped by Covid-19, it seems more important than ever to consider nature, biodiversity, and the environment.

Seedscapes brings together five contemporary artists exploring global efforts to safeguard vital plant species from extinction. Plant diversity is rapidly declining, and faces threats from global warming, pollution and war. Yet without seeds and their potential for food and medicine, we cannot sustain ourselves. Featuring photography, moving image and sculpture, Seedscapes reveals how international artists, biologists and ecologists are responding to these challenges.

Dornith Doherty documents seed banks around the world, using scientific imaging to reveal seeds in ‘suspended animation’. Sant Khalsa responds to the plight of forest fires and deforestation in California. Chrystel Lebas follows in the footsteps of botanist E.J. Salisbury, photographing natural habitats almost a hundred years later. Liz Orton goes behind the scenes at the Herbarium at Kew, while Heidi Morstang journeys to the Svalbard Global Seed Vault in the Arctic Norwegian Archipelago.

Seedscapes: Future-Proofing Nature is curated by Liz Wells with creative producer Pippa Oldfield. An Impressions Gallery Touring Exhibition presented in association with touring partners The Dick Institute and Royal Albert Memorial Museum & Art Gallery

An exhibition of photographs by RAMM’s youth panel
Café at RAMM
2 Mar to 27 Jul

This exhibition aims to reveal the typically misunderstood experience of University students. Often living away from home for the first time, the transition from school student to undergraduate can be imagined as a journey from a childhood bedroom in boxes to a picture of nights out, library tables overflowing and teary calls to parents during exam season. However, this collection aims to reframe this experience as more than a balance between midweek pub crawls and 9 am lectures.

The project reflects the mundane but life-shaping experiences of student life that are often left out of shot. From acts of student activism, to intimate moments with new friends, this exhibition shows the experiences of belonging, friendship, loneliness and excitement as perhaps the most valuable aspects of education. Whilst the series only reflects the experiences of a small number of students, the insights it offers aim to provide a better understanding of what it means to be a University student in the UK today.

This project was developed as part of a programme of activities organised in collaboration with RAMM’s youth panel which was set up in November 2019 with Art Fund support. RAMM’s youth panel members worked together with local photographer Brendan Barry and RAMM’s curator of contemporary art to create an exhibition of photographs that reflect their experience of living and studying in Exeter. Through a series of hands on workshops with Brendan, the group explored aspects of identity, culture and community through the lens. Capturing complexities and challenging preconceptions the resulting images reflect the experiences of a particular group of students from a particular moment in time. All photographs were taken before the restrictions imposed by the Covid19 outbreak in March 2020 and the resulting images depict what now seems a much more carefree way of life.

23 Jan 2021 to 9 Jan 2022
Making History Gallery

Here's to Thee is a new art collaboration that explores the rich ecology and culture of cider making. This fascinating and thought-provoking artwork is led by internationally-acclaimed artist Simon Pope, in partnership with Arts and Culture at the University of Exeter and RAMM.

Pope is collaborating with a team of creative practitioners, RAMM's curators and University of Exeter academics to explore the more-than-human ecology and cultures around cider-making. A programme of public events and displays during 2021, hosted by the University, RAMM and project partners, provides opportunities to discover more about the rich and fascinating world of microbiomes and better understand how we are all connected with our environment.

On display in a case in the Making History Gallery is the Wassail Bowl created by Dartmoor-based potter Abigail North, specially made for the Halstow Wassail in January 2020 from clay in the fields around the farm. Shown alongside are documentary photographs by critically-acclaimed Exeter-based photographer Robert Darch.

Until 21 Mar 2021
World Cultures Gallery

The Silver Wave, by critically-acclaimed moving image and performance artist, Michelle Williams Gamaker, has been commissioned by RAMM to celebrate this year’s theme of ‘Untold Stories’. Inspired by objects from the Arctic region in RAMM’s collection, it tells the story of Ada Blackjack, an Iñupiat woman from Nome, Alaska, who became the sole survivor of a doomed expedition to Russia’s Wrangel Island, in the Arctic Ocean, between the Chukchi Sea and East Siberian Sea.

The explorers were hoping to claim the island for the British Empire, but as the four men Ada travelled with fell ill and eventually died or disappeared in an attempt to seek help, she was left alone on the island.

Ada’s diary of this ill-fated voyage, are filled with thoughts of her young son Bennet, who she had had to leave behind in a care home. Extracts from this diary provide the dialogue to the film read by Iñupiat poet and writer Carrie Ayagaduk Ojanen, from the Ugiuvamiut tribe.

Michelle Williams Gamaker says of her new work, ‘Ada’s story is one of survival at all costs. Accompanying the explorers to Wrangel Island went against her better judgement, but she needed money to care for her son Bennet. It is clear in later interviews that the events that took place on the island were very traumatic to remember. Working with a selection of artefacts from RAMM's collection I take them on a journey to tell Ada’s untold story. Using projected archival images over RAMM’s objects, a scene unfolds behind that is quite fantastical, reflecting Ada’s dreams and hopes while on the island’. For more information about the artist see http://www.michellewilliamsgamaker.com/

Until 27 Jul
Viewpoint window display (access via the main lift)

In November 2019 RAMM formed its first ever youth panel. Generously funded by the Art Fund the panel, made up of 12 students, aims to give young people a voice and offer them the chance to take an active role in shaping what happens at RAMM.

A primary aim of the youth panel is to allow them to get involved in planning and implementing an exciting programme of events, exhibitions and activities specifically designed to appeal to 18-25 year olds, with the aim of increasing their sense of ownership and connection to the Museum. Selecting a collection of objects for the Viewpoint windows was the first project the youth panel worked on together as a group.

Until 14 Feb
Finders Keepers? gallery

After 20 years together, a husband and wife arrived home separately one day with unexpected presents for each other. Unknowingly, each had chosen to buy the other a set of salt and pepper pots. These quirky gifts were the start of a collection that has now grown to include more sets than they have years together.