Theme: Art and Design
Ranging from the art of the Bible and the politics of pots, to designers of the future, these events celebrate art and design in its many forms.
What's on
York Design Awards: Winners presentation
Join us as the winners are announced of the 11th annual York Design Awards. Entries to the awards are in categories covering residential, community and commercial schemes, large or small, and open spaces.
Branding: In five and a half steps
Join Michael as he unveils hidden elements involved in creating a successful brand - from the strapline that gives the brand a narrative and a purpose to clever uses of typography that unite design and language.
The Origins of Art
Thirty thousand years ago our ancestors produced the magnificently decorated cave at Chauvet. A million years ago they fashioned elaborate stone tools of remarkable symmetry. Does it make sense to see these activities as part of a single story taking in Egyptian art and the Renaissance? Or is ‘art’ a category of recent invention that distorts our understanding of the distant past? Join University of York researchers to learn more.
York Design Awards Walking Trail
Join us for a unique opportunity to visit York Design Award-winning buildings from the first ten years of the scheme. The Walking Trail of Award Winners and other standout schemes will take place in and around the City centre, led by Peter Brown former Director of the York Civic Trust, with architects from the York Architectural Association. Together they will highlight the features of each scheme which led to an Award being presented. The Trail will visit some schemes which are publicly accessible, and will also provide a unique opportunity to see hidden gems.
A History of Pictures: From the cave to the computer screen
Join art critic Martin Gayford to discuss how and why pictures have been made. What makes marks on a flat surface interesting? How do you show movement in a still picture, and how do films and television connect with old masters? What do pictures show – truth or lies? Do photographs present the world as we experience it?
York Design Awards Walking Trail
Join us for a unique opportunity to visit York Design Award-winning buildings from the first ten years of the scheme. The Walking Trail of Award Winners and other standout schemes will take place in and around the City centre, led by Peter Brown former Director of the York Civic Trust, with architects from the York Architectural Association. Together they will highlight the features of each scheme which led to an Award being presented. The Trail will visit some schemes which are publicly accessible, and will also provide a unique opportunity to see hidden gems.
The Story of the Ardabil Carpet
Much scholarship has addressed the V&A 'Ardabil Carpet's' status as a designed object, studied and admired in isolation and widely imitated by modern weavers. Join V&A curator Moya Carey as she looks at that isolating tendency, but also at the Ardabil Carpet in its original cultural context. How did the carpet's design respond to the sacred interior space at Ardabil, and to Safavid visual culture? Can the Shi`a context explain the unusual addition of two hanging lamps woven into the pattern?
Art Detective: The ‘art’ of sleuthing
The nation loves a great detective story. Throw in the UK’s public art collection, some fiendishly difficult mysteries and the public’s expert knowledge and you have an invaluable resource supporting collections nationwide.
The Art of the Bible: Illuminated manuscripts
Join Scot McKendrick and Kathleen Doyle, authors of 'The Art of the Bible: Illuminated Manuscripts from the Medieval World', as they discuss their book with a panel of experts from the University of York’s Centre for Medieval Studies and explore a selection of manuscripts from the treasures of the British Library.
A Market of Nice Things
Looking for inspiration and that special gift? Come along and browse at our arts and crafts fair, with its collection of stalls selling a range of homemade crafts, original artworks and prints.
The Final Threads
Join the Northern Youth as they present a fashion show exploring the creative process and celebrating the dynamism of the unfinished garment.
Curating Balenciaga: Shaping fashion
Learn about the curating of the Victoria and Albert (V&A) Museum’s summer fashion exhibition, Balenciaga: Shaping Fashion. This is the first ever UK exhibition to look at the vision and legacy of Cristóbal Balenciaga, one of the most revered and influential fashion designers of the 20th century.
The Story of Hats
From bowlers to Bergères, join Clair Hughes, author of 'Hats', for the ultimate guide to hats through history. From the lavish fashion hats of Marie Antoinette’s court to the experimental millinery of Stephen Jones and Philip Treacy, Clair takes you on a beautifully illustrated journey through class conflict, gendered etiquette and national allegiances to reveal the complex cultures from which each style emerged.
Recreating 18th-century Interiors at the V&A
Join Joanna Norman of the Victoria and Albert Museum (V & A) as she explores the stories of period rooms and their challenges through the V & A’s 18th-century interiors, shown in the British Galleries and in the Europe 1600-1815 galleries, which opened in 2015.
X-ray Art
We live in a world obsessed with image and superficial appearances; what we and our clothes, houses and cars look like. To counter this, visual artist Nick Veasey uses x-rays to strip back the layers and show what everyday objects are like under the surface. Instead of creating or transforming objects, Nick exposes something that always existed, transforming the banal to the beguiling.
Designers of the Future
Join Warren Fearn of York St John University as he explains how augmented reality tools can be used to enhance the creative work of the designer.
William Morris and the Politics of Pots
William Morris, the 19th-century designer and socialist, is widely appreciated today for his creativity and for fostering the values of craft ‘making’. Join Gill Chitty and David Stocker of the Universities of York and Leeds as they explain how research into the Rhenish stoneware pottery collected at his country home, Kelmscott Manor, sheds new light on Morris’ ideas and vision for everyday art and creativity.
