mission
The John Hansard Gallery seeks to internationally
promote all aspects of contemporary
visual art and provide a context for
the way in which contemporary artists operate. It strives to
deliver this by developing a vigorous and engaging programme
which creates opportunities for meaningful and participatory
debate between scholars, art professionals and the
wider public. Contemporary debate is thus very much at the heart
of both the John Hansard Gallery’s programme of exhibitions
and its related international conferences, seminars, symposia,
talks, tours and workshops.
The John Hansard Gallery’s organisational vision is to:
- promote excellence and innovation
in all aspects of its work
- be a leader of new developments in art
promotion and participation
- be the region’s flagship for the
development of arts infrastructure
- lead the integration of radical audience development
work with the most rigorous scholarship and research
- explore the unique contribution
that the visual arts can make to our understanding
of contemporary life
- bring artists and public together to learn
in a demanding and creative environment in
which orthodoxy and hegemony in the arts may be challenged
history
the John Hansard name
The John Hansard Gallery is named after John
Henry Hansard (1895–1979), an honorary graduate,
good friend and benefactor of the University of Southampton,
in recognition of his encouragement and interest in the visual
arts.
establishing the John Hansard Gallery
The John Hansard Gallery was created in 1980
under the leadership of the subsequent Gallery Director, Leo
Stable, and established by the Arts Council of Great Britain
and the University of Southampton so that two existing galleries
at the University could be united under one roof.
As one of only two purely photographic galleries in Britain
outside of London, The Photographic Gallery,
housed in the University’s Administration Building, enjoyed
a strong national reputation. During the 1970s, the
Fine Art Gallery, attached to the Nuffield Theatre
(now the Gallery restaurant in the Nuffield), mounted a number
of outstanding exhibitions including Richard Long, Bruce McLean
and an infamous performance by Genesis P. Orridge and Cosy Fanny
Tutti.
The building identified to bring these galleries together,
and the site occupied by the John Hansard Gallery today, was
originally a laboratory built in 1956 to house a giant tidal
model of the Solent.
(Image:
The Southern Daily Echo, 3rd February 1958)
the gallery’s directorship history
Since its establishment in 1979, the Gallery has been developed
under the leadership of three Directors: founding Director,
Leo Stable (1979–1980); Barry
Barker (1980–1987); and Stephen
Foster (1987–date)
research activities
As an institution proud of its academic situation, the John
Hansard Gallery is characterised by a strong research
culture. Exhibitions and events are underpinned an
ethos of excellence in research and scholarship.
In the interests of developing the Gallery’s reputation
as a centre of excellence, the John Hansard Gallery has pioneered
a number of research partnerships and development projects:
Gallery GO
In 1997, it spearheaded the establishment of Gallery
GO, the Hampshire based audience development project
for contemporary visual art.
members
Today, membership of Gallery GO is shared by six contemporary
art galleries in the region: ArtSway
in the New Forest; Aspex in Portsmouth; the
John Hansard Gallery; the City Art
Gallery, and the Millais Gallery of
Southampton; and Winchester Gallery, Winchester.
project benefits
The project provides participatory and informal educational
opportunities to those not previously engaged in the arts and
to existing users. The scheme offers a graded programme
of talks, a regular newsletter and
interpretive material to those on the Gallery GO mailing
list.
For more information about getting involved with Gallery GO,
please visit their website www.gallerygo.org
The Centre for Contemporary Art Research
During 2000, the John Hansard Gallery established the Centre
for Contemporary Art Research (CCAR) through a partnership
with Winchester School of Art
at the University of Southampton. The Centre is already actively
bringing together established international artists and researchers
to advance critical debate about the future
of contemporary art.
VEKTOR
The John Hansard Gallery has developed a partnership
with four other international organisations
(Basis in Vienna, Documenta
Archiv in Kassell, the Museum for Contemporary
Art in Bosen and the Archive of Art Criticism
in Rennes) to create the new research organisation, VEKTOR
- a European archive project designed to standardise
the documentation of contemporary art
material for analogue and digital recording, and to
cultivate the production of new work.
Oxford Road Project
The John Hansard Gallery has partnered the Oxford
Road Community Project which focuses upon a particular
area of Southampton’s inner city. The project develops
a number of community art activities and relates
them to a series of events including an artist’s
residency, a lecture
series addressing issues of art, architecture and community
and a major conference
on a similar theme.
publishing activities
The John Hansard Gallery has a strong commitment to
the scholarship and publication of critical
and engaging exhibition catalogues, conference proceedings,
journal articles, books and essays. As well as contributions
by staff, the Gallery regularly commissions new writing,
often from a number of disciplines and artists.
John Hansard Gallery publications are distributed through the
gallery bookshop and by
Cornerhouse
Publications. A full list of more than 40 Hansard publications
can be viewed within the bookshop
area of this site.
funding
At the time of its establishment, the John Hansard Gallery’s
activities were funded by the Arts Council of Great Britain
(subsequently the Arts
Council England) and the University
of Southampton. Arts Council’s funding was subsequently
devolved to the Regional Arts Board, Southern Arts (now Arts
Council England South East) whom, together with the University
of Southampton, have continued to invest in the Gallery’s
core activities.
The Arts Council England
has identified the John Hansard Gallery as one of a small network
of key strategic galleries, and recognised
its status through an increase in its core funding of over 500%
in five years. Whilst this has allowed the organisation to grow
its staff base and develop its programme, the Gallery has been
proactive in securing additional project-specific funds from
a number of national and international bodies including the
Arts Council England, the Henry
Moore Foundation, AHRB (Arts and Humanities
Research Board), the National Lottery and a
number of foreign cultural institutions. The success of these
applications has allowed the organisation to stage ever more
ambitious exhibitions and events for the benefit of a broader
visitor base.
