Library Live

Legacy of ’67-A voice for Queer Stories
2023-01-26 08:00 - 2023-03-31 17:00 UTC | Wolfson Reading Room
In 1967 the law in England and Wales changed to partially decriminalise homosexual acts between men in private. This was followed by further legislation relating to the age of consent, the role of LGBTQ+ people in the armed forces, improved partnership, inheritance, and adoption rights, that have positively affected the lives of LGBTQ+ people. However, at the same time we’ve also seen the rise and fall of Section 28, which outlawed the ‘promotion of homosexuality’ by local authorities and we’re currently seeing the demonisation of trans people and a profound backlash against liberalisation.
For the last twelve months IAP:MCR has been capturing the stories of people who have grown up between the ‘60s and the ‘80s to find out how these changes have affected them. This testimony will soon be deposited with Archives+ at Central Library. The IAP:MCR team has also conducted original research of contemporaneous source material to explore the changing attitudes towards LGBTQ+ people in general society.
A display of this original archive material, ranging from Central Library’s own copy of the Wolfenden Report, Campaign for Homosexual Equality Manchester branch newsletters and editions of the Mancunian Gay magazine. IAP:MCR has commissioned visual artist Jez Dolan to respond to this project and he has produced a series of eight original works that will soon be on display in the Reading Room alongside the archives. This project has been made possible with support from the National Lottery Heritage Fund.
Jez Dolan is an artist living and working in Manchester (UK). His practice underlines the intersections between queerness, sexuality, identity, and memory. He works across multiple platforms including drawing, performance, printmaking and most recently painting. https://www.jezdolan.com. Jez’s work is held in a number of public and private collection internationally including: the British Museum, Bury Art Museum, the (UK) Government Art Collection, the Leslie Lohman Museum NYC, the Schwules* Museum Berlin, the Walker Art Gallery Liverpool and others.
This exhibition is free, but please consider making a donation to support our Library Live programme if you can, either online or at one of our cash or contactless donation boxes in Central Library

International Mother Language Day 2023 – Manchester City of Literature Exhibition
2023-02-01 08:00 - 2023-03-31 17:00 | Lwr Ground Floor – Manchester Histories Hub
Throughout February and March, we are delighted to be working with Manchester City of Literature who have an exhibition available to celebrate International Mother Language Day, showcasing our international connection to the other UNESCO Cities of Literature and celebrating Manchester’s work at home. Manchester Histories Hub
The exhibition is free and is the second exhibition to be situated in the Manchester Histories Hub on the Lower Ground Floor of Central Library. Drop in any time during February and March to see these amazing exhibits…
AL-USRA WAL-SUFRA: FAMILY AND FEASTS
There is an exciting exhibition from Ali Al-Jamri, Manchester Multilingual City Poet, who worked with artist Rosie Stanley to create a dollhouse to inspire writing for last summer’s Liverpool Arab Arts Festival. The dollhouse was to provide inspiration for young people from two Arabic Saturday schools to read poetry and write their own in Arabic and English. The poems you will see in the dollhouse at the exhibition are all written by children at the Liverpool Arabic Centre and Manchester Arabic School.
LA VILLE D’APRÈS: VISIONS ARTISTIQUES DE NOTRE FUTUR URBAIN
In 2020, the hardship caused by the COVID-19 pandemic across the world’s population stimulated discussion about how cities would function post-COVID-19. Angoulême in France, a sister UNESCO City of Literature with a rich history of celebrating comic books and graphic novels, launched a competition to find those visions, hopes and fears of a post-COVID world from other UNESCO cities.
For International Mother Language Day, ten entries have been collated from other UNESCO Cities of Literature, along with a brief insight from the artists about their work.
MULTILINGUAL FILM EXHIBITION
A playlist of films from Manchester and other sister UNESCO Cities of Literature will be shown, including the ‘Made in Manchester’ poem based on Zahid Hussain’s poem, comprising of 65 languages, and different translations of Manchester Multilingual Poets, Anjum Malik’s ‘This Here’ and Ali Al-Jamri’s ‘In Prisms of Knowledge’.
Outside of Manchester, we will be playing films from Nottingham, Tartu and Reykjavik, all UNESCO Cities of Literature.
WORDS FROM THE CHILDHOOD HOME: A CHAIN POEM FOR INTERNATIONAL MOTHER LANGUAGE DAY 2023*
‘Words From the Childhood Home’ is a brand new, exciting, multilingual chain poem written by nominated poets representing UNESCO Cities of Literature to celebrate International Mother Language Day 2023.
Manchester City of Literature invited our fellow UNESCO Cities of Literature to nominate a poet to respond to Anjum Malik, a Manchester Multilingual City Poet who writes in Urdu and English.
*From Monday 20th February
For full details of the exhibition, click here.
For the full line up of events for International Mother Language Day 2023, click here.
Free Exhibition – please drop in

In the City Exhibition – Talk by Richard Davis
2023-02-01 18:15 - 19:30 | Performance Space
In The City is a collection of Manchester images taken by photographer Richard Davis over the last 35 Years. Join Richard for this talk about the exhibtion that centres around Richard’s love of art, music, culture and football. From the heady days of Madchester, right through to the dynamism of the present day, the excitement and diversity of city life helping to inspire and motivate his work. Hulme plays a major role throughout the exhibition; it’s where Richard set up a studio and darkroom in his Charles Barry Crescent flat during the late 1980’s. The area became a rich source of creativity and a backdrop for many of his photographs. The exhibition also highlights the many books, records and films that influenced his approach to photography.
About Richard Davis…
Richard Davis (born 1965) is a British, social documentary and portrait photographer, based in North West England. His work has been promoted and exhibited by the British Culture Archive and renowned photography publishers, Café Royal Books. A series of Davis’ photographs of Hulme Crescents, from the 1980’s are currently held at the John Rylands Research Institute and Library which is part of the University of Manchester.
This talk is free (‘book now’ below), but please consider making a donation to support our Library Live programme if you can, either online, or at one of our cash or contactless donation boxes in Central Library

British Ugandan Asians at 50 Exhibition
2023-04-15 08:00 - 2023-05-13 17:00 | Archives+ Ground Floor
Exhibition to mark the 50th Anniversary of the Ugandan Expulsion, highlighting the experience of British Ugandan Asians and the many volunteers who helped them.
In August 1972, Ugandan President Idi Amin ordered the country’s Indian and Pakistani communities to leave within 90 days. Many of the displaced were British citizens and, as a result, around 28,000 people emigrated to the UK, where the community has gone to make a disproportionate impact on the economic and social life of Britain.
To mark the 50th anniversary, British Ugandan Asians at 50 (BUA@50) has recorded oral histories to capture the recollections of those who were residents of resettlement camps, or who volunteered to help with the reception of the expellees during the crucial early months after their arrival. The volunteers formed part of an extraordinary response involving 63 voluntary organisations that, at its peak, staffed sixteen reception and resettlement camps across the UK.
This touring exhibition retells the story through period photographs, oral history footage, press clippings and memorabilia relating to the Expulsion and resettlement. It will include excerpts from the interviews.
British Ugandan Asians at 50 (BUA50.ORG) – is a programme of the India Overseas Trust with the support of The National Lottery Heritage Fund. It honours not only a largely unknown part of the history of British volunteering heritage, but an extraordinary historical episode that helped shape modern Britain’s diversity.
Free – drop in- please make a donation to support our Library Live cultural programme at one of our cash or contactless donation boxes in the venue, or online

50 Years of Rock Photography
2023-04-15 08:00 - 2023-06-30 17:00 | First Floor Exhibition Hall
Jill Furmanovsky : Photographing the Invisible
For the last 50 years, Jill Furmanovsky has been photographing music’s greatest icons. Now for the first time, Jill has created a fascinating retrospective featuring some of her most famous works as well as hidden gems from her extensive archive.
Guest curated by Noel Gallagher and photo-historian Gail Buckland, the exhibition which is presented by Rockarchive.com features over 100 images including subjects such as Pink Floyd, Led Zeppelin, Miles Davis, The Police, Bob Marley, Chic, The Rolling Stones, The Clash, The Cure, Amy Winehouse, Stevie Wonder, The Pretenders and Beyonce, to name just a few.
Highlights include ‘meditations from the pit’ that capture the sheer joy and exuberance of live photography, intimate on-the-road shoots carried out for the music press of the 70’s, 80’s and 90’s and fashion-inspired portraiture from The Face era. Through the exhibition, visitors will be witness to Jill’s unique relationship with her subjects including more reclusive subjects such as Jeff Buckley, Eric Clapton and Bob Dylan, as well as open-armed collaborations with Chrissie Hynde, Madness, and her greatest muse, Oasis, for whom Jill has included a section of previously unseen images. Contemporary content includes photographs taken in her year as Abbey Road’s artist-in-residence in 2017 and shots from the Glastonbury Festival featuring Stormzy and Billie Eilish.
Bringing the stories behind some of the imagery closer, an audio tour narrated by Jill and some special guests will be available for visitors to access through their own headphones.
Free – please consider making a donation to support our Library Live programme if you can, either online, or at one of our cash or contactless donation boxes in Central Library

The Year of Polish-British Cooperation on Breaking the Enigma Code
2023-05-02 08:00 - 2023-05-30 20:00 | Lower Ground Floor Link
This exhibition celebrates the Polish-British cooperation in breaking the Enigma code, marking the 80th anniversary of Polish codebreakers coming to the UK. The Enigma code was a nightmare for secret services all over the world. It was an unbreakable code granting Germany a tremendous military advantage. ‘Enigma’ means puzzle or secret in Greek. This is how German engineer Arthur Scherbius named the portable electromechanical encrypting machine he constructed. But one Polish mathematician broke the unbreakable code and a new era in the history of cryptology had begun.

If you would like to attend the launch of this exhibition, with Special Guest Sir Dermot Turing, on Thursday 18 May, 5.30 – 7.45pm, please email wilnomanchester@gmail.com
Free – please drop in

"You can see me, but I don't exist"
2023-06-03 08:00 - 2023-06-30 17:00 | Wolfson Reading Room
While photographing refugees in France, Belgium, Austria, and Sweden in 2018, Alan Gignoux noticed that a recurring theme among them was the gradual erosion of self, resulting from prolonged periods of living at the fringes of society. Similarly, he heard many of them talk of being invisible both to the immigration bureaucracies and to the wider societies in the countries in which they were seeking asylum.
He was particularly struck by the words of a young Afghan man in his final year at school who was seeking asylum in Sweden: “You can see me, but I don’t exist.” The young man was awaiting a response to his third and final appeal for permission to remain in the country and was expressing frustration at the way in which the asylum process had suspended him for years in a no man’s land of enforced separation from Swedish society. Borrowing its title from the young man’s words, this UK-based project aims to explore the dehumanisation experienced by people seeking refuge. Working with a camera obscura, Gignoux used a long exposure to blur the identity of the refugees whom he photographed while leaving the background in focus. This intentional blurring has a practical purpose as many people seeking refuge live in fear of the authorities and prefer to remain unidentifiable. However, it is simultaneously intended to be a visual metaphor for the corrosive impact of the asylum-seeking process on people.
Gignoux wanted to include the refugees’ voices in the project and so he invited the people whom he photographed, as well as other refugees who wanted to participate, to write a creative response to the blurred portraits.
Their creative writing was developed in workshops led by experienced poets. Working together as a group, or individually, the people addressed the themes that the portraits explore.
Alan Gignoux worked with Everything Human Rights, a community group offering a variety of services with the aim of promoting the wellbeing and integration of migrant ethnic minorities living in Wigan borough. The writing workshop leader was poet Ambrose Musiyiwa.
The free to enter exhibition is a collaboration between Alan Gignoux and Manchester Central Library. Image Copyright: Alan Gignoux.
To mark the launch of this free exhibition, you are invited to attend the opening event in Central Library’s Reading Room on Friday 2 June at 6:30pm. Reserve a place for this here on eventbrite
Free exhibition – just drop in – please consider making a donation to support our Library Live cultural programme either online or at one of our cash or contactless donation boxes in Central Library. Thank you.
“You can see me, but I don’t exist” was made possible by a National Lottery Grant awarded by Arts Council England

Discovering Manchester: Wildlife & Nature
2023-07-07 08:00 - 2023-10-06 17:00 | First Floor Display Cases
Wildlife is always just a walk away wherever you are in Manchester and the beautiful countryside that surrounds it. This exhibition showcases the creative talents and passions of our Central Library staff members. We hope to inspire you to explore and enjoy the many areas of Manchester’s natural beauty, and to discover and appreciate hidden gems in and around Manchester, whilst considering the impact of conservation and rewilding efforts in the local area.
Free – drop in
Please make a donation to support our Library Live cultural programme at one of our cash or contactless donation boxes or online

Manchester College Students: Responses
2023-07-10 08:00 - 2023-09-09 17:00 | Wolfson Reading Room
Foundation Art and Design Students from The Manchester College have brought the Art School’s ethos of research to the heart of our iconic Wolfson Reading Room. Each student has developed a personal body of work which has initially been inspired by one of the books from Central Library. The boards exhibited are an insight into personal research and subject matter, produced in traditional messy art school rooms where students become inspired and have tested the possibilities of ideas, research and practical production. These fresh, innovative Art School Creatives will continue their practices in: painting, drawing, film, photography, textile design, animation and site-specific work; progressing on to degree courses in the city and beyond. This exhibition will coincide with MIF (Manchester International Festival) and continues till 2 September.
To see more exciting innovative work and research, follow the Instagram link: #foundationartanddesigntmc
If you would like information about the Foundation Diploma course, please contact: Fiona Donald fdonald@tmc.ac.uk
Free – just drop in
Please make a donation to support our Library Live cultural programme at one of our cash or contactless donation boxes or online

Curry Mile – A Changing Neighbourhood
2023-07-10 08:00 - 2023-09-30 17:00 | First Floor Exhibition Hall
A documentary photography project spanning 7 years (2016-2023). Photographers Michael Baker & Phil Portus explore ‘present day’ Wilmslow Road, Rusholme, and challenge perceptions of what ‘Curry Mile’ now represents, as opposed to nostalgia & past recollections. The ethnic make-up of Rusholme has changed significantly over recent years. Barber shops, shisha bars & dessert parlours have sprung up, the traditional restaurants are less dominant, Manchester City FC have relocated, and the pubs have all closed. The result poses the question as to whether the term ‘Curry Mile’ is now a misnomer.
To accompany this exhibition, we are hosting a talk with the photographers on Thursday 20 July at 6pm, which can be booked on eventbrite
Free exhibition – just drop in
Please make a donation to support our Library Live cultural programme at one of our cash or contactless donation boxes or online

Paper Piano Exhibition
2023-07-13 09:00 - 2023-10-13 09:00 | Henry Watson Music Library
Paper Piano – A Retrospective
For the last 10 years, Paper Piano have been creating music related artwork and packaging. More recently they have focused on hand-made books; this combination of music and books makes them the ideal label to exhibit at The Henry Watson Music Library.
Paper Piano have worked with many illustrious musicians and bands. Included in the exhibition will be releases that have featured local talent including Mark Hoyle, SPIRIT:level, and Gideon Conn. Near neighbours The Declining Winter also make an appearance as do Motohiro Nakashima and Birds Humming the Beat, both from Japan.
The exhibition will be split into two halves. The first half will focus on Paper Piano music and books, but will also reference one-off works such as “The Ragged Trousered Philanthropists” collage, currently displayed at the Working Class Movement Library, Salford. Highlights include SPIRIT:level’s concrete plinth and The Oreoh!s Pompom EP, two CD’s wrapped up in wool that can’t be played until a pompom is made. The second half is dedicated to the multidisciplinary artist, DJ Goalpost. His work is even more varied and playful and almost impossible to categorize. Things to look out for here include a CD hand sewn into the shorts from a Stockport County football kit and “Don’t Give Up On Us” by David Soulpost, DJ Goalpost’s alter-ego.
Throughout the time the exhibition is taking place there will be a series of events featuring Paper Piano artists and also the opportunity to buy some limited edition artworks.
Free – drop in
Please make a donation to support our Library Live cultural programme at one of our cash or contactless donation boxes or online

Marketing the Manchester Ship Canal 1919-1939
2023-07-29 08:00 - 2024-01-15 17:00 | Archives+ Ground Floor
This new exhibition showcases a range of original publicity material and print adverts created as marketing for the Port of Manchester. This saw a revolution in publicity with modern ideas on typefaces, much more dynamic imagery and bolder use of colour. Manchester Ship Canal Company started using imaginative visual design to sell itself more effectively internationally and encourage industrial growth around the docks.
The exhibition highlights the work of a fascinating array of commercial artists engaged by the Ship Canal Company. Some of the most innovative in their design work were born locally and trained at the Manchester School of Art. Highlights include the ‘ship prow’ painting created by Paxton Chadwick, the futurist designs and humorous sketches of Bert Wilson and the quirky illustrations of John Dronsfield. It also considers the influence of the company’s publicity chief Kenneth Brady who brought new ideas in design and messaging following his appointment to MSCC in 1926. Much of material exhibited was discovered 2021 in the extensive archives Ship Canal Company held in Manchester Central Library. It includes original artwork for some of the widely used designs that have never been displayed publicly before.
Exhibition curated by Martin Dodge (Senior Lecturer in the Geography Department, University of Manchester). Much of his research is currently focused on the historical geography of Manchester’s transport and town planning. He is fascinated by the history of the Manchester Ship Canal and understanding how it transformed the city and the wider region.
Supported by Archives+ at Central Library, The University of Manchester and the Manchester Geographical Society.
Free – just drop in
Please make a donation to support our Library Live cultural programme at one of our cash or contactless donation boxes or online

Futures for All
2023-09-04 08:00 - 2023-09-29 17:00 | City Library
GMCA: Futures for All is an employability skills programme for young people across Greater Manchester with SEN, that empowers employers to recognise and celebrate the value of a diverse workforce inclusive of young people from the SEND schools and settings.
The exhibition showcases a series of short films co-produced with alumni from SEND schools across Greater Manchester. These films explore a day in the life of each young person working in different jobs across Greater Manchester; from retail, to healthcare, hospitality, to digital.
Young people in SEND settings were shown these inspiring films and took part in creative workshops to visualise their own career aspirations through clay and fabric. This exhibition showcases their work alongside the films that inspired them.
Free – please drop in

When the Dust Settles - Exhibition
2023-10-09 08:00 - 2023-12-30 17:00 | Archives+ Ground Floor
There are currently thousands of refugees in the UK waiting for decisions on their family reunion applications. Forced migration and the traumatic consequences of separation, as well as of the obstacles to the reunification process, are well documented, as are the most immediate needs of families, once reunited. The longer-term lived experience of reunited refugee families, in contrast, is poorly understood, despite recognition that family reunion is not the end of a journey, but the beginning of another long road for families to be able to settle and build their lives in the UK, free from persecution.
When the Dust Settles is a participatory, mixed media research project that addresses this research gap, by examining the ongoing challenges reunited refugee families face after their first year together in their new home. Created by Dr Maria Abranches (School of International Development, UEA) and Amy Lythgoe (Together Now), and supported by a British Academy Innovation Fellowship.
Free – just drop in
Please make a donation to support our Library Live cultural programme at one of our cash or contactless donation boxes or online

Robert John Watson: The Sky Above Her
2023-10-14 08:00 - 2023-12-30 17:00 | First Floor Exhibition Hall
Exhibiting work spanning 20 years, Robert Watson (one of the country’s leading documentary and contemporary photographic artists) returns to Central Library. This free exhibition features images of Manchester Pride and his internationally exhibited Blackpool seascapes. It premiers the series ‘The Sky Above Her’; these vibrant and soulful pictures illustrate the kaleidoscope of colours, seen in the evening skies above his Mother’s headstone.
Free artist’s talk and Q&A followed by exhibition tour at 2pm on 25 November. Book your free place here via eventbrite
Free exhibition – just drop in. Please support our cultural programme by donating online or at our cash or contactless donation boxes

Medicine Unboxed - Lifting the Lid on Medical Innovation
2023-12-07 10:00 - 17:00 | Performance Space
Medicine Unboxed – Lifting the lid on medical innovation
Doctors, artists, scammers – discover the people who have shaped the medical field and how this has impacted people’s lives. Forget about unboxing an advent calendar, join us for this one day pop up exhibition that unpacks objects and history from the beginnings of ‘modern’ medicine to the present day. Over seven different themes, ‘Medicine unboxed’ unpacks the people, technology and forgotten histories of medical innovation and development; spotlighting stories of innovators and those who paid the price.
Free – please drop in

Untold Stories of the Village
2024-01-13 12:00 - 2024-03-30 16:00 | Ground Floor
In partnership with The Ahmed Iqbal Ullah RACE Centre and Education Trust, Holding Her Space presents ‘Untold Stories of the Village’ exhibition.
Working with photographer Tanya Weekes and artist Tina Ramos Ekongo, the exhibition follows 12 mothers as they share their stories within pregnancy, birth, postpartum as well as highlighting personal and cultural experiences.
The exhibition is part of a wider project created by Holding Her Space and supported by The National Lottery Heritage fund. The project has been curated to focus in on the heart wrenching journeys of Black and Brown parents as they navigate the unforgiving realities of maternity in the modern UK; whilst aiming to preserve the cultural and traditional practices from these communities.
Free – please drop in

10 Years – David Gleave Photography
2024-01-15 08:00 - 2024-03-28 17:00 | First Floor Exhibition Hall
David Gleave is a Manchester-based image-maker who took up photography through his passion for social history. He chronicles his life and the people and events he has encountered. David sees the present as the past, rescuing moments in time for ever. This exhibition covers the first ten years of his record.
Free – just drop in. Please support our cultural programme by donating at our cash or contactless donation boxes, or online.

Out in the World - Exhibition & Closing Event Invite
2024-02-01 08:00 - 2024-02-29 17:00 | First Floor
The Consulate General of Ireland, Manchester, is delighted to present Out In The World, an exhibition highlighting 12 stories from the vast yet largely untold history of Ireland’s LGBTQ+ diaspora.
Across the generations, Irish LGBTQ+ people have emigrated and found opportunities to live and love abroad. EPIC The Irish Emigration Museum, in partnership with the Irish Department of Foreign Affairs, are proud to play a role in illuminating this hidden history of Irish emigration.
Out In The World tells the story of the Irish LGBTQ+ diaspora across six themes – exclusion, community, love, defiance, solidarity, and return.
Free – please drop in

Special Closing Event Invite
The Consulate General of Ireland is delighted to invite you to the closing event for the Out In the World Exhibition celebrating the story of the Irish LGBTQ+ Diaspora
On Wednesday, 28 February, 17:30 – 19:30 in the Henry Watson Music Library, First Floor, Manchester Central Library
There will be a drinks reception on arrival, with a final chance to view the Out in the World exhibition.
This will be followed by a panel discussion with members of the LGBTQ+ Irish diaspora.
We will conclude with a musical performance by HUSK.

Town Hall Artisans, Trades and Treasures Display
2024-02-26 08:00 - 2024-06-29 17:00 | First Floor Display Cases
Find out more about what’s happening to The Town Hall behind all that scaffolding and building wrap.

This display celebrates progress on our Town Hall’s restoration, showing some of the objects and discoveries uncovered so far, with a focus on some of the trades that are bringing twenty-first century conservation skills to the Victorian objects on display.

So, you can see a freshly restored oil painting of Manchester’s radical Mayor Abel Heywood, and some of the conservation materials used to repair the canvas and removed built-up dust and particulates.

Mosaic tesserae originally laid by Venetian craftsmen in the 1870s are on display with some of the tools of the trade being used by today’s artisans to renew them.

Beautiful stained and clear glass from the Town Hall’s ornate windows is also on show, as are bells and ropes and other gear from the building’s clock tower.

You’ll find these interesting displays on the first floor, to the left of the entrance to the Wolfson Reading Room until Saturday 29 June.
Free – please drop in

Coming in from the Cold: Taking Centre Stage Exhibition
2024-03-06 08:00 - 2024-04-30 17:00 | Lower Ground Floor Link
An exhibition of Global Majority led community projects exploring stories of identity, loss, creativity, joy, our heritage, togetherness, resilience and journeys. Supported by The Ahmed Iqbal Ullah Education Trust.
Free – drop in – please make a donation to support our Library Live cultural programme at one of our cash or contactless donation boxes in the venue, or online

Greater Mancunians Exhibition
2024-04-19 08:00 - 2024-06-29 17:00 | First Floor Exhibition Hall
The Manchester College presents Greater Mancunians – a student led, landmark photography project, seven years in the making. The exhibition celebrates people born and bred in Greater Manchester, or those who have made it their home and have in some way shaped the city and its surrounding boroughs, for the greater good. They include musicians, sportsmen and women, entertainers, entrepreneurs, politicians, actors, academics, comedians, artists and community champions – all photographed at a poignant or significant location of their choosing, and very much a celebration of the Mancunian spirit.
Why not take a look at BBC NW Tonight’s excellent review piece of the exhibition on Instagram before of after your visit or the exhibition taster on YouTube
Free – drop in – please make a donation to support our Library Live cultural programme at one of our cash or contactless donation boxes in the venue, or online

See My World: Connected Fragments
2024-07-15 08:00 - 2024-09-28 17:00 | First Floor Exhibition Hall
An international exchange exhibition bringing together the worlds of Nigerian diaspora artists Chigozie obi, Daniel Oyegade and Dou, as they crack and connect the mirrors of their heritage, history and culture. Through photography, paintings and film installations, the exhibition is an ode to what is alive within the mundane.
Free – just drop in
Please make a donation to support our Library Live cultural programme at one of our cash or contactless donation boxes or online

Responses
2024-07-18 08:00 - 2024-08-12 17:00
Foundation Art and Design Students from The Manchester College have brought the Art School’s ethos of research to the heart of Manchester Central Library’s iconic Wolfson Reading Room. Each student has developed a personal body of work which has initially been inspired by one of the books from the venue. The work on the boards exhibited are an insight into personal research and subject matter. Each student has tested the possibilities of ideas, research, and practical production. These fresh, innovative Art School Creatives will continue their practices in: painting, drawing, film, photography, textile design, animation, and site-specific work; progressing to different universities next year.
To see more exciting innovative work and research please follow the Instagram link below.
@foundationartanddesigntmc
If you would like information about the Foundation Diploma course, please email Fiona Donald: fdonald@tmc.ac.uk
Free – drop in. Please make a donation to support our Library Live cultural programme at one of our cash or contactless donation boxes or online

A Northern Life - it's not all about Margaret
2024-07-26 09:00 - 2024-09-18 17:00 | First Floor Display Cases
Lorraine Rudyard creates three-dimensional sculptures using recycled materials and vintage finds, encapsulated in story boxes. Her work is very Northern and what you will see are closely observed people and lots of lovely details and references to Lorraine’s childhood, i.e. a budgie in a cage named Monty, a bathroom scene with fish wall-paper that are memories from her grandmother’s house. Other story boxes include Lorraine’s favourite poem ‘The Jumblies’ by Edward Lear and other references to childhood literature.
Lorraine’s work was accepted for both the 2020 and the 2022 Manchester Open Exhibitions: Everyone’s an Artist. Her 2020 piece, ‘Have you Been Anywhere Nice?’, sold to a private collector. Another one of her artworks was selected for The Royal Cambrian Academy of Art in 2022, and another artwork in 2022 was selected for The Harley Gallery Open Call. More recently ‘Please Come to My Party, Pleeese ?’ was selected for the Bury Art Museum Open Call.
You can’t miss Our Margaret – Lorraine’s muse, spot Margaret by her huge smile, sunglasses, shopping trolly and umbrella, whatever the weather or occasion. Viewers especially like Margaret’s stories, which are often hinted at by the title of the picture connecting their own stories to the pictures. Lorraine says, ‘I love Margaret- she is a joy to create. I like the idea that I can make something from nothing and the treasures I find can live on, connecting my pictures to the past. My hope is that you as a viewer will appreciate the playfulness of my work – that it will put a smile on your face as well as appeal to your senses for a lost way of life.’
To date, Lorraine has completed several commissions including a piece of legacy art, ‘A Grand Day Out’, that was commissioned by Heritage Schools for Central Library. Lorraine also has many collectors of her artwork up and down the country.
A full catalogue of her work can be found @lorrainerudyard_mixedmediaart
Please direct all inquiries to lorrainerudyard-art @outlook.com
Free – drop in. Please make a donation to support our Library Live cultural programme at one of our cash or contactless donation boxes or online

Migration Stories North West Exhibition & Preview
2024-10-03 08:00 - 2024-11-08 17:00 | Lwr Ground Floor – Manchester Histories Hub
A history of migration in and out of North West England told through 100 stories from Roman times to the present day.
Explore the region’s long history of migration and ways in which it has shaped and continues to shape our social landscape. Browse the stories of individual women, men and children arriving in and leaving the North West from and to other parts of the British Isles and other parts of the world. Find out how their journeys were driven by conflict, colonialism and trade, as well as in search of work, educational opportunities or a better life.
This ‘pop-up’ exhibition includes an interactive screen through which to browse the stories, and is touring across the North West of England. At this showing in Manchester Central Library there will also be a display by pupils and staff from The Derby High School in Bury about the stories which they researched and produced for the Greater Manchester section of the project.
The Migration Stories Exhibition’s showing in Manchester is presented by Crossing Footprints in partnership with Manchester Histories. Special thanks for support from Manchester Central Library, from our Manchester team of volunteer researchers, and from Fair Futures CIC who delivered the school workshops in Bury. More about the project here or browse the project’s own dedicated website
Free – please drop in

Preview / Launch for the Migration Stories Exhibition, 4pm to 7pm, Wednesday 2 October
Join us for an informal opportunity to hear about the Migration Stories North West project and to chat with people who were involved in the research. People from Crossing Footprints, Global Link and Fair Futures, who were involved in developing, organising and delivering the project, will also be on hand to discuss any aspects of the work and the contexts in which it was produced. There will be a brief introduction to the project at 4.45pm and again at 6pm. Light refreshments will be provided.
About the project The Migration Stories North West project is a partnership of five organisations across the North West who have worked over a period of three years with local adults and young people, including those with experience of migration or seeking refuge. Forming into five teams of volunteers and five school groups, they have researched and documented over 100 individual histories of migration using archival, online and oral history sources. They are now available to explore on an interactive online map, along with background information, educational resources and introductory films about the project. More information here. The organisations are Global Link based in Lancaster, Crossing Footprints covering the Greater Manchester region, Liverpool World Centre, Cumbria Development Education Centre and Cheshire Global Learning. The project is supported by historians at Lancaster University and local heritage organisations, and is funded by the National Lottery Heritage Fund.
Free – please drop in

Our Town Hall – Portraits of a Workforce
2024-10-18 08:00 - 2025-06-28 17:00 | First Floor Exhibition Hall
Our latest first-floor exhibition comes courtesy of the team currently working on the Our Town Hall Project to repair, renovate and refurbish Manchester’s iconic Town Hall.
Extraordinarily little is known about the artisans who built the Town Hall between 1868 and 1877, and certainly no photographs exist.
But fast-forward 150 years and today’s skilled workers are no strangers to the lens of Manchester City Council photographer Barrie Leach. As well as physical progress, Barrie’s been capturing portraits of those working on the Town Hall since the beginning of the project to repair, restore and refurbish this much-loved building.
As well as modern construction workers and behind-the-scenes staff, there are some incredible heritage trades involved. Stonemasonry, mosaic making, stained glass repair and manufacture, horology: these are all crafts that would have been widespread in the 1870s but are now very much specialist – and rare – trades. They are, however, critical to our restoration project.
Alongside the words of the workers themselves, 30 large portraits and 60 contextual images show the pride this modern team has discovered in being able to lovingly restore, and give new life to, the work of the forgotten workforce who went before them.
Free – just drop in. Please make a donation to support our Library Live cultural programme at one of our cash or contactless donation boxes or online

Manchester Theatres Exhibition
2024-10-28 08:00 - 2025-01-31 17:00 | Lower Ground Floor Exhibition Space
Visit this latest exhibition showcasing items from our unique archive, including playbills, programmes, posters and other memorabilia, dating from the 18th century to the present day and documenting the vibrant history of theatre in Manchester.
Free – just drop in. Please make a donation to support our Library Live cultural programme at one of our cash or contactless donation boxes or online

Chapters in Change
2025-01-13 08:00 - 2025-03-29 17:00 | Ground Floor (Oculus Area)
The images in this display, in the oculus area on the Ground Floor, are from TiPP projects working in partnership with regional Youth Justice Services. They capture movements of creativity by some of society’s most underserved communities.
This project fosters collaboration between professional artists and young people, promoting connections between young people and the environment. They capture moments of reflection, vibrancy, creativity and growth and offer moments of reflection and calm.
TiPP delivers inclusive, creative arts sessions for some of society’s most underserved communities, supporting personal development and growth through participation. Their work seeks to foster human connection and demonstrate that everyone has something valuable to say.
Free – just drop in. Please make a donation to support our Library Live cultural programme at one of our cash or contactless donation boxes or online

Central Library: Ten Years of Success
2025-01-20 08:00 - 2025-03-01 17:00 | Wolfson Reading Room
In 2024, Manchester Central Library celebrated ten years since its major transformation, and 90 years since its grand opening by King George V on 17 July 1934. This display in the Wolfson Reading Room celebrates it’s many achievements and successes over those ten years.
As the ‘jewel in the crown’ of Manchester’s libraries, and one of the most loved and iconic venues in the city, Central Library boasts services and facilities that are appreciated by over 2million people annually. Central Library is an inclusive and dynamic space that appeals to families, children and young people, as well as aspiring entrepreneurs, culture vultures, archivists, students, musicians and traditional library visitors. Since its relaunch in 2014, we have continued to innovate and develop new ways of providing a high-quality, modern and vibrant library offer for residents and visitors to the city.
Free – drop in – please make a donation to support our Library Live cultural programme at one of our cash or contactless donation boxes in the venue, or online
