Visiting Artist's Talk - Richard Parry

Richard Parry has led the Grundy Art Gallery (Blackpool) as Curator since 2013.

In that time he has curated and organised over 15 exhibitions and 2 symposia, including solo exhibitions by Matt Stokes, Lisa Wigham and Heather Phillipson, plus group the show ‘Modern History vol. 1’ involving 14 artists from the North West. In 2015 the gallery began an annual programme of exhibitions on the theme of light involving Angela Bulloch, Conrad Shawcross and Rafael-Lozano-Hemmer, which saw a doubling of audience numbers. The programme in 2016 has included a major group show on neon and the launch of Turner Prize-winner Mark Leckey’s new commission for the Arts Council Collection’s 70th Anniversary at the gallery.

Prior to joining the Grundy, Parry was Assistant Curator at the Hayward Gallery (2008-2013), where he curated and organised exhibitions including ‘Psycho Buildings’ (2008; named by the Guardian as one of their top 10 exhibitions of the decade), ‘The New Décor’ (2010), ‘Tracey Emin’ (2011) and ‘Wide Open School’ (2012; where the gallery was turned into a giant ‘school’ run by artists).

Before the Hayward, he worked in the Exhibitions and Collections Department of the British Council, where he organised international touring exhibitions and undertook collections management.

Parry is also a critic and writer and has regularly written for art magazines including Frieze, Art Review and Modern Painters amongst others.

The venue for this talk is Lecture Theatre F (G.74), Chemistry West Block, University of Leeds. Directions to the venue can be found online here.

The VAT series hosts talks by an exciting range of arts practitioners from around the world every Monday afternoon 14:00 to 15:30 during teaching weeks.

All of our talks are compulsory for all Fine Art students but open to anyone else who would like to join us.