Home Scotland AGM at the McManus Museum and Art Gallery 13 September 2012

Presenting the prize to the winner of the
Best Kept Garden Competition.

Last night I was reporting to the Annual General Meeting of Home Scotland (Housing Association) members in Dundee. This meeting was held in the McManus Galleries and was well attended by members from Dundee, staff of the Association and folk with an interest in social housing and the work of our housing association in Dundee.

The year 2011 to 2012 has been a busy one for the Dundee Area Committee. We have had 8 meetings, been on an 'away day' in the training room of the new Visitor Centre in Camperdown Park and also taken an active part in discussions with members of the other three Area Committees in Scotland.

Our principal achievements as an Area Committee have been:

• Commenting on and monitoring key changes in the Home family of organisations as these affect our tenants/customers in Dundee;
• Keeping in touch with wider developments in the Home Group and shaping new developments by having members of our committee on the Board of Home Scotland and the National Customer Panel;
• Following up issues that committee members bring to the Area Committee;
• Interviewing key staff from Seddons before endorsing them as single maintenance and repairs contractor for Scotland;
• Holding three consultations with customers/tenants in Blackness Sheltered Housing, Whorterbank and Whitfield;
• Developing links between Criminal Justice in Dundee and our Maintenance Manager so that in future some of our neighbourhoods can be benefit from work by offenders on Community Payback Orders;
• Continuing running the Cleghorn Charitable Trust which provides small grants for basic furnishings for customers/tenants moving into their new home;
• Exploring ways to cut the energy bills of customers/tenants;
• Monitoring the performance of the new UK call centre for Home Group and the new repairs contractor for Scotland and
• Meeting members of the North East England Regional Viewpoint Committee in Durham to see at first hand what their new structure might offer.

Overall it was a very constructive evening with a number of members expressing interest in joining us on the Area Committee.

Open Lecture on Leonardo's Art & Science 6pm Sat 1st Sept Dalhousie Building, University of Dundee - Free Tickets in Advance

Martin Kemp, one of the world's leading authorities on Leonardo da Vinci, will give a public lecture in Dundee on Saturday 1st September to mark the arrival in Dundee of a new exhibition of Leonardo's drawings.

Ten Drawings by Leonardo da Vinci: A Diamond Jubilee Celebration from the Royal Collection is at The McManus: Dundee's Art Gallery and Museum, from August 31st to November 4th. It is the only Scottish venue hosting the exhibition.

Martin Kemp is Emeritus Professor of the History of Art at the University of Oxford and one of the world's leading experts on Leonardo. In his public lecture at the University of Dundee on Saturday September 1st he will explore the ways in which Leonardo's art and science can both be understood as a remaking of nature on the basis of deep understanding of cause and effect.

Free tickets for this event are available from events@dundee.ac.uk, www.dundee.ac.uk/tickets, Tower Building Reception at the University, or by calling 01382 385564/385108.

A drinks reception will follow this event. Please note that overflow theatres may be in operation.

Leonardo da Vinci Drawings - Exhibition at The McManus Friday 31 August to Sunday 4 November 2012

To celebrate the Queen's Diamond Jubilee, the McManus: Dundee's Art Gallery and Museum is showing ten of the Royal Collection's finest Leonardo da Vinci drawings.
In these remarkable works the visitor can witness the remarkable breadth of Leonardo's interests - ranging from hydraulics and engineering to anatomy and map making - and his use of different media - pen and ink, red and black chalks, and metal-point.

The McManus is the only venue in Scotland for this exhibition.

Exhibition Dates Friday 31st August to Sunday 4th November 2012
Venue The McManus - Dundee's Art Gallery and Museum Admission is free.

McManus: Dundee's Art Gallery and Museum Albert Square Meadowside Dundee DD1 1DA website

The Scottish Colourist FCB Cadell - Exhibition at the McManus Galleries Friday 6 April to Saturday 17 June 2012

The McManus: Dundee's Art Gallery and Museum will be exhibiting 40 paintings by the Scottish Colourist FCB Cadell from this Friday.These works have been selected from the highly acclaimed exhibition in Edinburgh at the National Galleries of Scotland which opened last October.The exhibition features paintings that illustrate all of Cadell's major themes: he is renowned for his stylish portrayals of Edinburgh New Town interiors and the sophisticated society that occupied them; equally celebrated are his vibrantly coloured, daringly simplified still-lives of the 1920s, and his evocative landscapes of the island of Iona. Exhibition Dates Friday 6 April to Saturday 17 June 2012. Venue The McManus: Dundee's Art Gallery and Museum
Admission Free

How far will you go for Fairtrade in 2012?

Fairtrade Fortnight runs from 27 February - 11 March. 2012 is the year that they are asking everyone to Take a Step for Fairtrade! It can be a simple step, like swapping your tea to Fairtrade, or a bigger step, like asking everyone in your office to do it too. You’ll be joining thousands of others all over the UK when you take a step for Fairtrade. Make it as inventive, daring, funny or messy as you like.
Every step counts for millions of farmers, workers and their communities in developing countries who urgently need a better deal from trade. 

Watch the Step This Way Campaign Video

Visit Fairtrade's website to register your step for 2012.

Attend the Fairtrade Talk in Dundee and hear Guest Speaker Masauko Khembo of Kasinthula Cane Growers Limited in Malawi. Wednesday 29 February 7-9pm at the McManus Galleries No entry fee. Fairtrade wine, juice and nibbles will be served.

Queen Elizabeth II Portraits by Cecil Beaton - Exhibition Opens at McManus Galleries Dundee Fri 30 September 2011

VandA at Dundee 

An Exhibition

Queen Elizabeth II Portraits by Cecil Beaton at The McManus: Dundee's Art Gallery and Museum 

From Friday 30 September 2011 - Sunday 8 January 2012

Admission Free

V &A Exhibition of Cecil Beaton Royal Portraits at McManus Galleries from 30 September

This autumn visitors to the McManus Galleries will be able to enjoy a unique preview of an exhibition of photographic portraits, many previously unpublished, of the Queen by Cecil Beaton. This exhibition, curated by the V&A as part of the celebrations to mark the Monarch's Diamond Jubilee, will run from September 30 to January 8 in Dundee before transferring to the V&A in London. This is the first in a series of partnership projects between the McManus and the V&A as part of the run-up to the establishment of the V&A in Dundee.

Titian's Diana and Actaeon @ McManus Galleries 6 Aug - 5 Sept

The McManus Galleries in Dundee is hosting Titian's Diana and Actaeon on its special Scottish tour, marking the first anniversary of the nation's acquisition of this magnificent painting.

Titian is one of the most influential artists of all time. His exceptional handling of paint, bold use of colour and original approach to subject matter had a huge impact on generations of painters. This is a unique opportunity to see this masterpiece of European painting in Dundee. It is part of the National Galleries of Scotland's commitment to bring great art to as many people as possible across the country.

It will be on show at the McManus Galleries from Friday 6 August - Sunday 5 September (both dates inclusive). There are no admission charges to the Gallery for this exhibition and booking is not necessary.

The painting was acquired for the nation by the National Galleries of Scotland and the National Gallery in London in February 2009 following a large scale public and private fundraising campaign. Diana and Actaeon was bought for £50m with generous contributions from the Scottish Government, The National Heritage Memorial Fund, The Monument Trust, The Art Fund (with a contribution from the Wolfson Foundation) and through public appeal, 2009.

Magnificent McManus Galleries

On Tuesday, I visited the recently reopened McManus Galleries: Dundee's Art Gallery and Museum. I think Dundonians will appreciate that the long period of closure for the comprehensive refurbishment of the building and the reorganisation of displays has been thoroughly worthwhile. The refurbished museum and gallery now opens onto the south side of Albert Square which has now been fully pedestrianised. We now have a world class city museum which visitors to Dundee will appreciate and will go out of their way to visit. Be prepared to be impressed by the quality of our hidden gem of a museum and gallery. It is now fully accessible for people with disabilities. Dundee can be justly proud of its magnificent 'new' museum and gallery.