Collection Display: Place and Identity

See how ideas around place and identity have been explored by artists including Fay Godwin, David Hockney, Mandy Payne, John Hoyland, Eric Ravilious and Katerina Šedá.   

The places we inhabit are not just physical locations they are woven with time and memory, shaping our experiences, identities and sense of belonging.

Throughout history, artists have investigated the complex relationship between people and their environments. Some offer intimate portrayals of home, celebrating the beauty in everyday moments. Others capture the transformation of our landscapes and cityscapes, documenting the shifts in both natural and built spaces. Many artists also explore the political, social and cultural histories embedded within our environments, moving beyond representation to question our shared understanding of place and to challenge what it means to belong.

The works in this display demonstrate the many ways in which artists have engaged with themes of place, inviting us to reflect on how our surroundings influence who we are and how we view the world.  

See work including Paul Cezanne’s Bassin du Jas de Bouffan, France, about 1874, John Ndevasia Muafangejo’s Map of South West Africa, 1976 and Katerina Šedá’s Líšen Profile, 2011, alongside photography by Chloe Dewe Mathews, Roger Mayne and Paul Nash.  The displays also feature loans by Sheffield-based artists Conroy / Sanderson and Sean Williams, alongside a specially commissioned work by James Clarkson, exploring the different scales of technology and coded language of data management.

This display is part of a five-year programme of change and redisplay at the Graves Gallery generously supported by the Ampersand Foundation. 

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