Art often flourishes in adversity and in the Second World War, the Island's internment camps were a hive of creativity.
This artistic legacy and the work of other refugee artists will be the subject of an illustrated lecture entitled Forced Journeys: Artists in Exile in Britain, c. 1933-45 at the Manx Museum on Saturday 10th April.
The lecture will be given by Sarah MacDougall and Rachel Dickson, curators from the Ben Uri Gallery in London, and ties in with an exhibition of the same name which will be hosted by The Sayle Gallery, in association with the Ben Uri Gallery, from 10th April - 23rd May.
The illustrated talk will explore the decisive impact of internment on the life and work of a significant group of emigre and refugee artists (primarily of German and Austrian descent) who were exiled in Britain during the Second World War.
The Isle of Man was a major centre for civilian internment during World War Two, with several thousand German, Austrian and Italian ‘enemy aliens’ being held in a series of internment camps created from requisitioned hotels and boarding houses in Douglas, Onchan, Peel and Ramsey.
Manx National Heritage holds a growing collection of artwork and associated material created in these camps in its collections and a selection of artwork is currently on display in the National Art Gallery at the Manx Museum.
Funding for the Forced Journeys exhibition at the Sayle Gallery has been provided by the Isle of Man Arts Council, Manx Heritage Foundation, The Friends of Manx National Heritage and private sources.
The Forced Journeys: Artists in Exile in Britain, c. 1933-45 illustrated lecture will be held at 2.30pm on Saturday 10th April at the Manx Museum.
Tickets are ?3 and are available at the Manx Museum shop.
Other events being held at the Manx Museum in conjunction with the exhibition at the Sayle Gallery are: a Wartime Memories day at the Manx Museum on Saturday 24th April (free admission) and the Life Behind the Wire workshop, which includes a guided walk, on Saturday 22nd May (tickets ?20, available from the Manx Museum shop).
Further details of all Manx National Heritage events can be found at www.storyofmann.com
