Manchester Open 2024

Following on from the fun we had at the Kusama show I happily stepped out on Saturday night with friends to see the latest Manchester Open exhibition showing at HOME. The show features pieces from 473 Mancunian artists one of which has been selected to receive the HOME award for a solo exhibition in the Granada Foundation Galleries. The artworks featured are by established professionals, new and emerging talent, graduates, students, enthusiatic amateurs and first time artists - the youngest aged 5. Most of the pieces are excitingly available to buy. 

We hugely enjoyed the show, our only quibble was that we wanted more, just one extra room of art would have made it more impactful. The artwork itself sparked many conversations and it was fantastic to soak up that Manchester culture. Look forward to seeing what the next Open brings, favourites below.

MANCHESTER OPEN 2024 | EMILY HAUCK KARIKA NOVA

clockwise from the top left: days go by created by wiggle room, three chairs in the studio by jane mckeating £400, deposition by danny cameron £4500, ostara quilt by nell smith £325, larger view of the ostara quilt, edgeland arcadia by michelle leigh £5000, compilation of artwork - largest central is anna at home by isobel shore - largest on the left is life to life by sara sara £400 - above that is insomnia by mike thorpe £450

#manchesteropen2024 #HOME #McrOpen2024 #thingstodoinmanchester #freeexhibition #openexhibition #artwork #manchester

London 2024

I'm regularly in London for work but there often isn't much time to enjoy the city itself so I thought this year we'd make a plan to go. The theatre adaption of My Neighbour Totoro returned to the Barbican and it was too good an opportunity to miss. As big fans of the film we absolutely loved it. 

Noticebly the weather in London in February mostly matched the Totoro umbrella scene with plenty of brollies on show at the changing of the guard! Happily we saw the King drive past on his way to the Palace. The open top bus and Thames river boat were big hits with our family giving us some fantastic views of the city. The fossils section of the Natural History Museum was such a big hit that only a bribe of pizza would tempt a departure! Hoping we can do it all again soon.

LONDON 2024 | EMILY HAUCK KARIKA NOVA

clockwise from the top left: a view of the barbican before heading into the theatre - spotted one of the apartments available on the modern house for a small lottery win! a pic of totoro in the original ghibli film with an umbrella (shared here), a windswept pic of me on the thames river boat with a view of the shard, the houses of parliament, a close up of a bird on the walls of the natural history museum, the big ben, a sea of umbrellas outside buckingham palace, view from our fab apartment in mayfair.

#london #holidays #totoro #barbican #naturalhistorymuseum