Historic celebration of Henry Moore begins at Leeds Art Gallery

Captions: (from top image) Henry Moore 1898-1986 Reclining Figure 1929, Leeds Museums and Galleries. Reproduced by permission of The Henry Moore Foundation

Shelter Scene: Henry Moore 1898-1986 Two Seated Figures 1941, Leeds Museums and Galleries. Reproduced by permission of The Henry Moore Foundation

Henry Moore 1898-1986 Mother and Child 1932 White Alabaster, Leeds Museums and Galleries

Henry Moore 1898-1986 Atom Piece (Working Model for Nuclear Energy) 1964-5, Bronze, Tate Britain (If used all credits to be given in full)

The biggest exhibition seen at Leeds Art Gallery in over 20 years begins this week.

The free exhibition celebrating the works of world-famous sculptor Henry Moore opens to the public on Friday 4 March.

The exhibition organised by Tate Britain, London in collaboration with Leeds Art Gallery sees over 100 works by the Castleford-born artist on display for free in the city where he studied at Leeds School of Art (now Leeds College of Art), and at the art gallery where he laid the first foundation stone when it was extended in 1982.

The exhibition, which is the largest to be held at the Leeds City Council-managed gallery on The Headrow since the British Art Show in 1990, brings together a collection of Moore’s stone sculptures, wood carvings, bronzes and drawings which have never been seen together before in the city.

**********MEDIA OPPORTUNITY*****************************
What: Media preview tour of the Henry Moore exhibition at Leeds Art Gallery
When: From 3pm on Thursday 3 March.
Where: Leeds Art Gallery is located on The Headrow, LS1 3AA.
Who: The tour will be led by Head of Displays at Tate Britain Chris Stephens who will be available for interview.

Please note: All photographers attending will be required to sign a disclaimer form concerning commercial use of any images taken of works during the tour.
****************MEDIA OPPORTUNITY**************************

The display covers both the pre-war and post-war era concentrating on British loans as it challenges the familiar image of Henry Moore (1898-1986) as an artist. It features works loaned from Tate Britain, the Henry Moore Foundation, private collections from around the country and pieces returning to the UK from display at the Art Gallery of Ontario in Canada where the show has been since leaving Tate Britain last year.

After surviving the horrors of the First World War where he served on the Western Front, the impact it left on Moore can clearly be seen in the display through his ‘Shelter Drawings’ from the Blitz on London, ‘The Helmet’ which he sculpted shortly before the Second World War began reflecting the mood of anxiety in the nation, and ‘Atom Piece’ which expresses the fears of nuclear annihilation which he produced in the 1960s during the Cold War.

Moore’s obsession with the maternal relationship is also explored, with numerous representations of the mother and child which he repeated throughout his career being on display. There are also several works of reclining figures which became synonymous with Moore including two large Elmwood figures which are among the largest in the exhibition.

Items of Moore’s work from Leeds Art Gallery’s own collection will be on show, while Moore’s local links are also further reinforced by his drawings of coalmining in his native Castleford.

Leeds City Council executive member for leisure Councillor Adam Ogilvie said:

“We are all really excited that the waiting is almost over and this fantastic exhibition is about to begin. It is the biggest exhibition to be held at Leeds Art Gallery in over 20 years and it is wonderfully fitting that it is for Henry Moore who has such strong links with the gallery and the city.

“We are really proud to be offering this exhibition free for everyone to see and would like to thank everyone who has worked so hard to make it happen. We hope people of all ages flock to see it as it really is something special.”

Head of Displays at Tate Britain Chris Stephens said:

“We are delighted that the Henry Moore exhibition, following its success in London, will be presented at Leeds Art Gallery. It is very appropriate for Moore to return to the city where he began his career."

Director of The Henry Moore Foundation Richard Calvocoressi said:

“The Henry Moore Foundation is proud to have helped realise this exhibition, both with our grant support, and by lending works from a collection which was established by Moore himself.

“There are many ongoing connections between the artist and his native Yorkshire, not least the Henry Moore Institute next door to Leeds Art Gallery. The Institute, a world leader in sculpture studies, exists as a result of Moore's generosity and foresight."

The Henry Moore exhibition at Leeds Art Gallery is organised by Tate Britain, London in collaboration with Leeds City Council and supported by the Henry Moore Foundation, Renaissance Yorkshire, Leeds Art Collections Fund, Welcome To Yorkshire and Arts Council England with sponsorship from Abstract Group of Companies and Stewarts Law LLP.

The free exhibition runs from Friday 4 March to Sunday 12 June 2011. For more information on Leeds Art Gallery visit www.leeds.gov.uk/artgallery

Prints and Portfolios - an exhibition of Henry Moore’s prints, lithographs and deluxe publications - will be open daily at the Henry Moore Institute (next door to Leeds Art Gallery) until April 3 2011.

Henry Moore in Leeds is part of Art in Yorkshire, supported by Tate – a year-long celebration of the visual arts in 19 galleries throughout Yorkshire. Works from Tate’s collection of historic, modern and contemporary art will be showcased through a programme of exhibitions and events. For more information visit www.yorkshire.com/artinyorkshire

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For media enquiries please contact:
Roger Boyde, Leisure media relations officer,
Tel 0113 247 5472, Email: roger.boyde@leeds.gov.uk

Secondary school admission figures are good news for pupils

Families applying for secondary school places in Leeds have received good news this week after thousands of young people were told they would be attending their first preference secondary school.

Of the 7,624 places offered to start secondary school in September, 86 per cent were first preference offers, compared to 84 per cent in 2010. A total of eight per cent were second preference offers (nine per cent in 2010) and two per cent were third preference (three per cent in 2010).

The figures are a marked improvement on last year’s and follow months of hard work by Education Leeds and the Choice Advice service to encourage families to submit applications for their three preferred schools – including their closest.

Across the city, families living in Leeds and applying for places in Leeds faired even better with 90 per cent being offered their first preference.*

Councillor Jane Dowson, executive board member for learning at Leeds City Council, said:
“A total of 90 per cent of young people in Leeds have been offered their first choice of school and more than 97 per cent one of their three preferences – which are fantastic figures for Leeds.

“They mean that more young people than last year will be attending one of their preferred schools this September which is a testament to the commitment of families in the city and the hard work of Education Leeds.”

Nigel Richardson, director of children’s services, said:
“It’s great news that Leeds has seen an improvement in the figures for secondary school admissions. Our admissions team has worked hard to encourage every family to submit a completed application with three preferred schools listed in order. This has paid off and as a result thousands of young people will start one of their preferred schools in September.”

For more information on school admissions in Leeds visit www.educationleeds.co.uk/admissions.

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Notes to editors:
*The overall figures are for all secondary places in Leeds and include applications made by families from outside the city. The 90 per cent figure focuses only on Leeds residents applying for secondary school places within the city.


For media enquiries please contact:
Jon Crampton, Leeds City Council press office, 0113 3951577
Email: jon.crampton@leeds.gov.uk

Residents urged to comment on Rawdon conservation area proposals

Rawdon residents have just one week left to comment on plans to designate parts of the village a conservation area.

The plans, proposed by Leeds City Council, will amend existing conservation areas at Rawdon Low Green, Rawdon Cragg Wood and Rawdon little London and create a new conservation area at Rawdon Littlemoor.

Councillor Richard Lewis, Leeds City Council executive board member responsible for planning said:

"These proposals will help safeguard the special architecture and character of the village and protect important buildings from demolition.

“Awarding an area conservation status is an important step and the opinions of local people are a valued part of this process. We welcome people’s views on these proposals.”

Rawdon currently has three conservation areas. These are:
• Rawdon Little London was first designated in 1973 and probably originated as a small farmstead but quickly grew during the late 18th and early 19th centuries largely due to the increase in the local weaving industry.
• Rawdon Low Green - designated 1988 - was a small community that grew up around the 17 century Rawdon Hall.
• Rawdon Cragg Wood conservation area – also designated in1988 - covers a wealthy rural suburb of Victorian villas set in spacious wooded grounds developed in the second half of the 19th century and overlooking the Aire Valley.

The proposed conservation area at Rawdon Littlemoor is to be focused around Little Moor Park extending mainly to the west and south. It includes the listed buildings related to the Quaker movement, characteristic terraces and the church hall on New Road Side as well as the mid twentieth century Greenacre Hall.

The conservation areas will help to protect Rawdon’s unique architecture and historical attractions from inappropriate demolition and development.

The draft proposals for the four Rawdon Conservation Area are available on-line throughout the consultation, at: www.leeds.gov.uk/conservation. The public consultation ends on Friday 11 March.

People can request a copy of the draft appraisal from the council’s conservation team at: Sustainable Development Unit, Leeds City Council, Leonardo Building, 2 Rossington Street, Leeds, LS2 8HD

The proposals will be taken to council officials for approval in March 2011. People can respond to the consultation during the public meeting, or by emailing the conservation team at building.conservation@leeds.gov.uk.

Buildings within a conservation area are protected from unauthorised demolition, and new developments have to meet higher standards of design than elsewhere. Other planning rules are slightly different and permission from the council is needed for certain activities such as tree felling.

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For media enquiries please contact:
Sara Hyman, Leeds City Council press office tel: (0113) 224 3602
Email sara.hyman@leeds.gov.uk