Welcome to New Expressions

'Good Money: A currency competition for Handsworth' (2015) Poolman and Rowe. Commissioned by Soho House (Birmingham Museums Trust) as part of New Expressions 3

'Good Money: A currency competition for Handsworth' (2015) Poolman and Rowe. Commissioned by Soho House (Birmingham Museums Trust) as part of New Expressions 3

New Expressions 3 establishes a national approach to collaboration between contemporary artists and museums. It explores how partnership working can be structured in the future to provide fresh approaches to collections and engaging visitor experiences across England. It builds upon the regional foundations developed by New Expressions 1 and 2 in South West England.

From spring to summer 2015, 18 lead artists presented specially commissioned work in partnership with 15 museums across the South West, Midlands and North of England. Taking museum collections as their starting point, projects ranged from long-term interventions to one-off performances.

Three strands of activity took place during 2014 and 2015:

  • Nine major artist-museum collaborations across the South West, the Midlands and the North of England: six at Arts Council Major Partner Museums and three at National Trust properties
  • Six experimental projects developed by artists and museums new to working together - part of a New Opportunities Awards (NOA) scheme
  • A national programme of events and evaluation to share experiences and build knowledge; helping to create a country-wide network of artists, museums and partners who are ambitious about collaborating.

New Expressions 3 is a national pathfinder programme delivered with its partners: the network of Arts Council Major Partner Museums, the National Trust and the Contemporary Visual Art Network (CVAN). Visual Arts South West is leading the partnership between New Expressions and CVAN for their counterpart organisations; Visual Arts North by North West in the North and East Midlands Visual Arts Network in the Midlands. New Expressions' activity and legacy are managed by the New Expressions programme board.

  • Keith Harrison

    Born in West Bromwich, raised from the age of 8 in Birmingham, and now based in Plymouth, Keith Harrison challenges preconceptions about the use and practice of ceramics.

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  • Poolman & Rowe

    Chris Poolman (b.Oxford, 1980) and Elizabeth Rowe (b.

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  • Sean Griffiths

    Sean Griffiths is Professor of Architecture at the University of Westminster.

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  • Emma Smith

    Emma Smith has a social practice that is both research and production based and responds to site-specific issues.

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  • Uta Kogelsberger

    Artist Uta Kogelsberger is working with Cumbria Museum Consortium as part of New Expressions 3..

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  • John Wood & Paul Harrison

    John Wood and Paul Harrison explore the physical and psychological parameters of the world around them through a series of immaculately constructed video works, informative and uninformative text pieces, drawings, doodles and half thoughts, and quite useful sculptures.

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Latest News

  • New publication captures 8 years of unlocking creative potential

    17 January 2017

    Read here

  • Keith Harrison awarded Jerwood Open Forest commission

    09 January 2017

    Read here

  • Evaluation shows value of supported approach to collaboration between artists and museums

    16 August 2016

    Read here

  • Board Statement: New Expressions and the future

    24 May 2016

    Read here

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