There’s a reason Mancunians are proud of The Whitworth. It isn’t just a gallery – it’s Manchester’s green‑heart art palace. It’s part of who we are.
First opened in 1908 within Whitworth Park, it’s part of the University of Manchester and home to over 60,000 artworks spanning centuries. After closing for 16 months and a £15m overhaul, it reopened on Valentine’s Day (14 February) in 2015, doubling its exhibition space and reconnecting fully with the park.
Walking through the two new glass wings into that courtyard feels like stepping into a vision – they don’t just open the building to the park, they invite the park in. You emerge in the ‘Art Garden’, framed by glass walls and leafy scenes. Up in the café, you’re literally in the trees, perched in a floating box above the greenery, with huge windows all round. The effect’s so beautiful you almost forget you’re in a city.
Inside, the historic building’s been stripped back to its bones – those former tight, dark galleries have been thrown wide open. Skylights flood the central halls with light. Now there’s space to show more of the permanent collection – from Turner watercolours and Van Gogh to Picasso, along with British textile gems and contemporary work by Bridget Riley, Hockney and more.
The first big show was Cornelia Parker’s work, her biggest ever UK exhibition. Her pieces are bold and clever, fitting that newly expanded space perfectly. The redesign by MUMA architects even kept every mature tree untouched – they’ve created views, not walls.
Outside the building, the park path becomes a sculpture trail – works like Sarah Price’s art garden and sculptures by Simon Periton and Nathan Coley line the route. There’s a lovely nod to biodiversity, too – wild flower gardens that invite butterflies and bees into the city.
Under Dr Maria Balshaw, the gallery transformed into a place where art and nature meet. As she said, it was about unlocking potential and making this space truly belong to everyone – city folk, art lovers, families alike.
It’s clever, it’s calm, and very much Mancunian. The old meeting the new in a building that’s grown up with its city.
Pop in for free – take a wander, grab lunch up in the trees, then lose yourself in a Turner or a Picasso along the way. There’s nothing quite like it.
The Whitworth is a terrific mix of old and new with a notable collection of paintings, sculptures and showcases many other works by iconic artists such as Van Gogh, Pablo Picasso and J.W. Turner… and is well worth a visit.
Visit their website here
The Whitworth, The University of Manchester, Oxford Road, Manchester M15 6ER
