Airship Dreams: Escaping Gravity

10th July – 28th November 2021, Sir William Harpur Gallery

10th July 2021 – 20th March 2022, Connections Gallery

Bedford Creative Arts, The Higgins Bedford, the Airship Heritage Trust and artist Mike Stubbs, have joined forces to launch this two-fold exhibition which celebrates Bedford’s airship heritage.

Part audio-visual installation, sometimes performance, Mike Stubbs’ contemporary new media artwork invites the viewer on a spectacular journey – weaving material generated in Unreal games software, immersive audio composition, choir, archive film, and interactive sculptural elements.

Alongside it and curated in partnership with the local community, visitors will discover community treasures, oral histories, artefacts, screened digital materials, animation, graphic design and young people’s responses to the themes.

In addition, a 40 minute installation will be shown on Tuesday – Saturday at 11:30am, 12:30pm, 1:30pm, 2:30pm, 3:30pm and on Sunday at 2:30pm and 3.30pm

Find out more here.

Going to Town – 200 Years of Bedford’s Art

10th July 2021 – 20th March 2022, Wixamtree Gallery

Celebrate artists views of Bedford and the surrounding area in this new exhibition displaying a number of watercolours, oils and prints from the past two centuries, some of which haven’t been seen by the public eye in several decades. The exhibition includes artworks by JMW Turner, Dora Carrington, Thomas Fisher and Stanley Orchart, highlighting their fascination of the town and River Great Ouse.

Find out more here

Victoria Partridge, Keeper of Fine and Decorative Art, gave an interview to BBC journalist Alex Pope about the exhibition. Read the article here. 

Craft Club – Abstract Shading

Wednesday 14th July

10:30am – 2pm

Free, Online Event 

Join local illustrator, Katie Allen, for this relaxed creative session. We will be using colouring pencils to do shading in abstract forms and make unique designs and colour combinations.

You will need the following equipment to join in:

– colouring pencils

– a drawing pencil

– a black felt tip pen or fine line pen

– Old book paper, an old map, music sheets or any plain paper to draw on.

Please email gemma.hutton@bedford.gov.uk for more information and to access the Zoom link.

All Aboard! – Summer Holiday Fun Activities

26th July – 23rd August

Free, Online Event

Join The Higgins Bedford and Spectrum Community Arts for a summer of free, fun online activities for children and young people with disabilities and/or special educational needs.

Travel through a series of pre-recorded video workshops filled with movement, music and games themed around transport, including discovering hidden treasure, getting crafty to make hot air balloons, and dancing like aeroplanes and bikes.

Find out more here.

These workshops are part of Bedford Borough Council’s Summer of SEND, a celebration of all things Special Educational Needs and/or Disability (SEND) across Bedford.

The Higgins Bedford has been Nominated for Best Art Gallery

The Higgins Bedford is delighted to announce that we’ve been nominated for the Best Art Gallery in Hertfordshire and Bedfordshire in the 2021 Muddy Stilettos Awards. Muddy Stilettos is the UK’s biggest lifestyle website outside of London and the awards are celebrating local businesses and venues.

The Higgins Bedford has now made it through to the final five. If you have enjoyed a visit to The Higgins Bedford or admire the art collections, please do show your support and vote for us to win.

Voting ends 5pm on Friday 23 July.

Cast your vote here.

Hidden Painting Discovered in the Collections

Conservation work for the Going to Town – 200 Years of Bedford’s Art exhibition has revealed the discovery of a hidden oil painting in the collections. The artist and date of the painting remains unknown but you can read about this exciting discovery on our blog.

Read more here.

Celebrating Bedfordshire Museums

The Higgins Bedford was featured in a new video recorded by SHARE Museums East, celebrating local museums that are ready to welcome back visitors. Take a look to see highlights of some real treasures you can find right here in Bedfordshire.

Watch the video here.