This autumn, Cornwall Museum and Art Gallery in Truro brings together artists who blur traditional boundaries and refuse to be categorised.
Art Any Way celebrates pure freedom of expression and fresh creative perspectives. The museum has teamed up with Outside In, the national charity supporting artists who face significant barriers to the art world, and Cornwall-based arts organisation Shallal, which champions equity in creativity.
Look out for one of the more unexpected exhibits: The Hound of Geevor, a dog made entirely from rubber boots found deep in Geevor tin mine by artist David Kemp, who died earlier this year. Elsewhere you’ll find paintings by Alfred Wallis, Bryan Pearce, John Emmanuel and Tony O’Malley, drawn from the museum’s own collection alongside pieces from the Schools Art Collection, owned by Cornwall Council and cared for by the museum. Some works in the show reach as far back as the Renaissance.
Museum Co-Director Bryony Robins said: “Art Any Way will feature an eclectic range of artists who all offer us fresh and exhilarating approaches. The thing that unites them is their compulsion to create by any means, resulting in an exhibition full of intriguing stories of human ingenuity as well as exuberant art.”
The exhibition also features works by Terry Shaul, held in a private collection. Shaul’s paintings drew crowds last year, when the work of this undiscovered artist went on display for the first time in 34 years.
From Outside In’s collection come three very different makers. Ben Wilson paints miniatures on discarded pieces of chewing gum. Aradne creates ‘drawings in stitch’, inspired by a childhood spent in Africa. And Jewish émigré Friedrich Nagler carved small sculptural heads from bone, metal, plastic – and even bread.
Molly Breton, Director of Outside In, said: “We know that our art world is poorer when we exclude certain aspects of creativity from our shared history and experience of art making. Yet self-taught and non-traditional artists continue to face significant barriers to getting their work recognised. That is why we’re thrilled to be partnering with Cornwall Museum and Art Gallery, to bring works from Outside In’s collection to new audiences.”
Jo Willis, Shallal’s Founder and Director, said: “Shallal is going to be 40 in 2027, and continues to grow and diversify. The collaboration with Cornwall Museum and Art Gallery for Art Any Way is a good example. It’s great to see our artists thriving in the studio, learning transferable skills, and on the way forging lifelong friendships through the joy of creativity and spontaneous sharing.”
