Eighties, nineties and noughties

A new exhibition of contemporary work collected over the past three decades is on display at the Art Gallery at Touchstones.

The contemporary focus brings together an eclectic mix of work from a photo-realist painting by David Gledhill to a sound piece by Paul Rooney; a hanging woven mass of colour by Tadek Beutlich to the calm of a Manijeh Yadegar painting; a large-scale drawing by Laura Ford to a piece by Chris Taylor based on the format of the book.

Some of the pieces have a Rochdale connection – David Gledhill’s painting was inspired by a photograph found in the Local Studies collection, Paul Rooney’s sound piece is voiced by a Rochdale resident who responded to Rooney’s call in the Rochdale Observer and Chris Taylor’s piece was made as part of a project working with clients of the Richard Street Day Centre.

The Gallery continues to collect new work building on the tradition started by its benefactors in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its two most recent acquisitions are also included: a landscape painting by Alan Rankle (who was educated at Cardinal Langley School and Rochdale College of Art) presented by the Tramman Trust through The Art Fund and Moby Dick by Alan Birch, a laser-cut steel wall piece which reflects the fears of society in the late 2000s.

Along with recent support from The Art Fund, the Gallery has benefited from being a member of the Contemporary Art Society (CAS) for many years; several of the works on display have been presented by the CAS which celebrates its centenary this year.

The exhibition runs from 1 May to 4 July 2010 and admission is free.