RUSKIN
in SHEFFIELD
2019
Ruskin in Sheffield 2019 was a year of events and activities celebrating John Ruskin, creativity and communities in Sheffield, to mark the bicentenary of Ruskin's birth.
Companions of the Guild of St George, local communities and cultural organisations across Sheffield worked together to bring Ruskin's ideas on utopia, art, nature, environment and beauty to life with over 8,000 adults and children:
A Future Fantastic festival, Theatre Deli, 4 - 20 July
Installations, workshops and discussions inspired by Ruskin's political writings. A collaboration with The Bare Project, Centre for Understanding Sustainable Prosperity, and Theatre Deli.
Ruskin in Sheffield 2019 launch, Millennium Gallery, 8 Feb
Celebration with communities and partners from across Sheffield including the launch of Park Centre Community Garden's display in the Ruskin Collection, in collaboration with Manor & Castle Development Trust.
The People's Palace of Possibility, Millennium Gallery, 31 May
A night of Ruskin-fuelled performance, protest and utopia-building. A collaboration with The Bare Project and Opus Independents.
Encounters with Ruskin, Central Library, April to June
A season of free talks, activities and displays including Ruskin lectures, Ruskin's book for children, The King of the Golden River, Ruskin comic books, and Ruskin's influence on Sheffield's urban and rural spaces. A collaboration with Central Library.
Seeing Beauty, Inspiring Minds: Walkley, 4 May - 7 July
Outdoor sculptures, street murals and comic-books created by 13 - 17 year olds, inspired by Ruskin and the Collection. A collaboration with Walkley Carnegie Library, supported by Arts Council England.
Making Masterpieces in Sheffield & Venice, 18 October
Simultaneous Big Draw Festival at Exchange Place Studios, Castlegate, and at the Scuola Grande di San Rocco, Venice. Street mural created by artists with local communities, and outdoor projections. A collaboration with Yorkshire Artspace, supported by University of Sheffield, Church Burgesses Educational Foundaton, Sheffield Grammar School Exhibition Foundation and Mount Pleasant Educational Foundation.
Heritage & Legacy of the Ruskin Collection, Millennium Gallery
14 September - 11 May 2020
Exhibition highlighting the history of St George's Museum in Walkley and the Ruskin Museum at Meersbrook Hall, and how local communities are keeping Ruskin's legacy alive today. A collaboration with Heeley Trust and Walkley Carnegie Library. Displays supported by National Lottery Heritage Fund and Arts Council England.
Workshops in the Ruskin Collection, June & October
Copper relief workshops for adults on 12 & 19 June, and illuminated lettering and wire sculpture workshops for adults and children on 29 & 30 October.
Ruskin 200: Author Talks, Millennium Gallery, 26 October
Helen Parker on Genevieve Pilley: 50 years' devotion to Ruskin at the Meersbrook Museum. Janet Barnes on Ruskin in Sheffield. Andrew Hill on Ruskinland. Robert Hewison on Ruskin and His New Contemporaries. A collaboration with Off The Shelf Festival of Words.
Benjamin Creswick, Talk by Simon Ogden, 23 September
Simon Ogden's talk on the background, life and work of Benjamin Creswick, a Walkley knife grinder-turned sculptor (1853 - 1946). Creswick was a protege of Ruskin's and a regular visitor to St George's Museum in Walkley.