Working in partnership with Portraits of Recovery, Recoverist Curators is a project that is working with a group of people who are in recovery from substance use.
The introductory project display case or Cabinet of Curiosities as a participant has called it, shows previous work by Portraits of Recovery including ephemera, poetry and the Recoverist Manifesto. In conversation with work from the Whitworth collection, both speak to substance use and recovery.
Over the next 18 months, the Recoverist Curators’ will decide how their recovery is defined both through art, and language. Delving into the Whitworth’s collection, the group will re-interpret selected artworks through a Recoverist lens, helping to challenge societal stigma and shame by rewriting the narrative.
This project will also help to develop a ‘Glossary of Recovery’ enabling the Recoverist community to describe themselves within the gallery’s collection. As the glossary continues to grow through the many Portraits of Recovery projects across the city, the glossary will continue to expand allowing it to be a downloadable tool for people to use.
This is the developmental start of a partnership led by Portraits of Recovery with the Whitworth that will see the Recoverist Curators group develop a forthcoming exhibition and one-day conference in 2025.
Recoverist Curators: Cabinet of Curiosities is part of Recoverist Month 2024, which through the arts, changes the conversation on substance use and recovery.
Recoverist = Recovery + Activist
Recoverist Month September 2024 is an initiative led by Portraits of Recovery
Portraits of Recovery (PORe) is a pioneering visual arts charity based in Manchester, inspiring and supporting people affected by and in recovery from substance use (Recoverists).
Generously supported by the Baring Foundation.
