Hastings Contemporary

Robot Tours

In a UK first, Hastings Contemporary, an independent charitable arts organisation on England’s south coast, has teamed up with the D4D project, Accentuate UK and Bristol Robotics Lab to offer its members and audiences the opportunity to continue to visit…

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A Personal Message from Our Director, Liz Gilmore

Dear Friends,

Hastings Contemporary has closed its doors to the public until further notice to ensure the safety and wellbeing of all our staff and visitors and to help – as part of a national effort – to reduce the spread of coronavirus (COVID-19). We are not alone: this is an unprecedented moment for the arts in the UK and every other gallery, museum and arts venue in the country.

My team and I would like to thank you all for the messages of support we have received. I know from your messages that you will miss being able to visit Hastings Contemporary, not just to see our exhibitions and take part in our events, but also to seek respite and renewal in our peaceful, quiet building, or to look out over our views across The Stade. And I know that the gallery will certainly miss the daily stream of visitors lingering over its walls, provoking conversation, openness, and curiosity.

At Hastings Contemporary we have always been deeply committed to harnessing the power of art and creativity to inspire change. Every time we experience a work of art we see the world and ourselves that little bit differently. Art is nothing if it does not inspire us.

We want to continue to be able to inspire you, harnessing the power of art to create a space in your day where you can feel powerful, energised and most yourself.

We are moving quickly and proactively to turn our gallery walls inside out and in the coming days and weeks we will be bringing you the best of what Hastings Contemporary has to offer without you having to leave your home. Not only will we be sharing images, video content, interviews and information from our past, current and future exhibitions, but we’ll also be expanding the very limits of what it means to be an art gallery in 2020.

As some of you may have seen on the BBC news, in a UK first our visitors will be able to go on robot-assisted tours of our current exhibitions, Anne Ryan: Earthly Delites, and The Age of Turmoil. We’ve also been developing a new online hub of art and mindfulness resources, formulated especially to be used where we felt they were needed most right now – for the children of frontline and key workers. Our Artist Patron, Sir Quentin Blake, is posting a new drawing every day on our Instagram, inspiring others to do the same. We’ve built our very own online shop, and have a large variety of Quentin Blake originals for sale. And there will also be virtual galleries, livestreams, still life drawing workshops, and more, as part of an ever-burgeoning digital offer.

Barriers to accessing art are huge in many places in the cultural sector, and far precede this health crisis, and I’m proud to say that Hastings Contemporary has very worked hard, since its inception, to be disability-friendly and accessible to all. Everyone can and should have the chance to experience art without walls or barriers, and we hope to be one of a cohort of independent galleries who will lead the charge to a more resilient, inclusive future. To that aim, we are working hard to ensure that we provide the best online resources we can, to pioneer new means of cultural participation, and to develop innovative new projects that will provide further work and opportunities for the many artists, educators, and local businesses who we support.

We hope that you will join us on our journey by signing up to our newsletter and keeping up-to-date with all our future digital programming announcements on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook and Vimeo – every comment, every like, every follow, every conversation and donation will help us. By supporting our work you are not only supporting the gallery, you are helping support many artists across Hastings and further whose interests we represent and advocate for at a national level.

Want to help further? Then please consider a small donation to Hastings Contemporary while our doors remain closed. We rely on ticket sales to keep going, so every small gift will help us during this difficult time. Text ARTONSEA to 70085 to donate £3, or please consider donating a larger amount via the link below.

I encourage all of you to read and follow the latest NHS guidance: https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/coronavirus-covid-19/

For more up to date information from the government, visit https://www.gov.uk/guidance/coronavirus-covid-19-information-for-the-public

Yours sincerely,

Liz Gilmore,

Director, Hastings Contemporary

Make a Donation to Hastings Contemporary

To donate an amount of your choice please click here.

Every donation we receive will help us during this difficult time. Thank you for your support.

See what’s happening at Hastings Contemporary on our Instagram

A Personal Message from Our Director, Liz Gilmore:
•
Hastings Contemporary has closed its doors to the public until further notice to ensure the safety and wellbeing of all our staff and visitors and to help – as part of a national effort – to reduce the spread of coronavirus (COVID-19). We are not alone: this is an unprecedented moment for the arts in the UK and every other gallery, museum and arts venue in the country.
•
My team and I would like to thank you all for the messages of support we have received. I know from your messages that you will miss being able to visit Hastings Contemporary, not just to see our exhibitions and take part in our events, but also to seek respite and renewal in our peaceful, quiet building, or to look out over our views across The ...

Open
A Personal Message from Our Director, Liz Gilmore: A Personal Message from Our Director, Liz Gilmore: • Hastings Contemporary has closed its doors to the public until further notice to ensure the safety and wellbeing of all our staff and visitors and to help – as part of a national effort – to reduce the spread of coronavirus (COVID-19). We are not alone: this is an unprecedented moment for the arts in the UK and every other gallery, museum and arts venue in the country. • My team and I would like to thank you all for the messages of support we have received. I know from your messages that you will miss being able to visit Hastings Contemporary, not just to see our exhibitions and take part in our events, but also to seek respite and renewal in our peaceful, quiet building, or to look out over our views across The Stade. • At Hastings Contemporary we have always been deeply committed to harnessing the power of art and creativity to inspire change. Every time we experience a work of art we see the world and ourselves that little bit differently. Art is nothing if it does not inspire us. • We want to continue to be able to inspire you, harnessing the power of art to create a space in your day where you can feel powerful, energised and most yourself. • Please read the whole statement on our website: https://www.hastingscontemporary.org (link in our bio 👆) • #artonsea #art #artists #artgallery #gallery #artexhibition #hastings #eastsussex #sussex #sussexlife #hastingscontemporary

Here is our second resource to help provide a moment of calm and mindfulness to children and adults alike. Please share as far and wide as you can so that we can support front line workers in our community in Hastings, and much further afield.
•
Again, all you need is a pencil or pen (of any kind) and something to draw on. When testing this out we found that the back of a very old takeaway leaflet worked pretty well so please don't feel stuck if you don't have much paper.
•
Make sure you read the breathing instructions in full first. Sometimes deep breathing routines can make people feel a bit dizzy so only do as much of this as feels comfortable.
•
Want to help further? Then please consider a small donation to Hastings Contemporary while our doors ...

Open
Here is our second resource to help provide a mome Here is our second resource to help provide a moment of calm and mindfulness to children and adults alike. Please share as far and wide as you can so that we can support front line workers in our community in Hastings, and much further afield. • Again, all you need is a pencil or pen (of any kind) and something to draw on. When testing this out we found that the back of a very old takeaway leaflet worked pretty well so please don't feel stuck if you don't have much paper. • Make sure you read the breathing instructions in full first. Sometimes deep breathing routines can make people feel a bit dizzy so only do as much of this as feels comfortable. • Want to help further? Then please consider a small donation to Hastings Contemporary while our doors remain closed. We rely on ticket sales to keep going, so every small gift will help us during this difficult time. Text ARTONSEA to 70085 donate £3. • All donations gratefully received and will go straight into our art and wellbeing programmes. Thank you kindly. • #artonsea #hastings #hastingscontemporary #mindfulness #nhs #donate

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Hastings Contemporary

art-on-sea

Hastings Contemporary celebrates the best in modern and contemporary art in an award-winning building. Situated just a few steps from the pebbled beach, the gallery overlooks the largest fishing fleet in Europe, where you can see the town’s fishermen at work.

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About Hastings Contemporary

Opening times:

Tuesday – Sunday, 11am – 5pm
Bank Holiday Mondays, 11am – 5pm
(last admission 4.30pm)

Find us at:

Hastings Contemporary
Rock-a-Nore Road
Hastings Old Town
TN34 3DW

+44 (0)1424 728377

info@hastingscontemporary.org

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We are an independent charity. Your ticket price contributes towards our running costs and joins with support from Arts Council England, Hastings Borough Council, our Members and Supporters to enable the gallery to continue to display its exhibitions and develop its participation programmes.

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