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Triennial Exhibitions

The Guild is currently funding a series of three exhibitions, held every three years at the Millennium Gallery, Sheffield. The series is intended to introduce and explore some of the ideas of Ruskin via a mixture of historic and contemporary art, craft and decorative art. The Guild's own collection is also prominently exhibited, as are new commissions. Outreach work also takes place.

The first exhibition, entitled Can Art Save Us? was held in autumn 2009 and considered Ruskin's ideas surrounding sustainability and the environment. Key loans were obtained including Joseph Wright of Derby's painting, An Experiment on a Bird in the Air Pump from the National Gallery, and Beat Klein and Henrike Kuhne's installation Property which concerned the collapse of Ireland's 'Celtic Tiger' economy. This piece was exhibited alongside works from the collection that illustrated Ruskin's ideas concerning the rise and fall of Venice.

The next exhibition Force of Nature; Picturing Ruskin's Landscape will run from December 2012 to June 2013 and will look at Ruskin's thoughts concerning landscape. In particular, the exhibition will address the notions of the physical and emotional truths of landscape art.

The third and final exhibition is likely to take place in autumn 2015 and will address the ideas of creativity and craftsmanship.

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