Swindon Museum and Art Gallery launches virtual exhibition, ‘Optimism: Spring to summer

The Swindon Borough Council-owned venue on Bath Road has been closed for a year due to the global pandemic but Swindon Museum and Art Gallery has been making the best of digital resources to help people access the collection, which is credited with being one of the best in the UK.

This has included the continued work of ‘Art on Tour at Home’, which has developed a number of free online talks, activities and learning resources. This new virtual exhibition has been produced using ArtUK’s curation tool, which has been invaluable for sharing Swindon’s collection with audiences during lockdown.

After the restrictions of winter and lockdown, the choices of artwork in this exhibition are driven by the optimism of the arrival of spring.

Linda Kasmaty, the Chair of the Friends of Swindon Museum and Art Gallery, explained why this exhibition is so important. She said: “The slow reduction of restrictions allows us to look forward to enjoying the changes that Spring brings, followed by the arrival of Summer.

“The artwork reflects these changes with the soft greens of Spring, early flowers, and wide skies. This is followed by the warm days of Summer, brighter colours, the casual enjoyment of the warmth, meeting in groups and travel for holidays. Further lifting of restriction leads to the playing of sports and the warmer colours of the harvest season.

“Our Optimism is finally met with the return of crowds, large groups of people at concerts, fairs, and social events.”

The exhibition will be available to view through ArtUK from Saturday 20 March, the first day of Spring.