Monthly Happenings | May

Anticipating sunnier days ahead, we step outside to explore the best that May has to offer. With this in mind, discover five happenings to enjoy this month, from a literary arts festival to a seasonal outdoor dining experience.

The Shape of Things at Pallant House Gallery

The Shape of Things considers the genre of still life and its role in artistic experimentation and contemporary British art. The exhibition explores the themes of identity, migration, climate change and colonialism that historically run through the genre, with a focus on works from women and international artists settling in Britain. From Anwar Jalal Shemza to Mona Hatoum, alongside prominent figures like Vanessa Bell, David Hockney and Lucian Freud, works from around 100 artists will be on display. As you move through the exhibition, the focus shifts from seventeenth-century vanitas to abstraction and conceptual art, considering how still life has always sought to push boundaries with its symbolism.

The Shape of Things is on at Pallant House Gallery, Chichester until 20 October.

Feast Over Fire at Chiltern Hills

Nomadic Dinners is hosting an outdoor dining experience using ancient cooking methods. It has curated a menu celebrating the season with foraged ingredients that are cooked over an open flame.  A ‘restaurant without walls’, dinner will take place in the Chiltern Hills, amongst local wildflowers and a canopy of trees. The experience aims to explore the connection between the surrounding nature of the woodland and ourselves, at a communal table where stories are shared and connections are forged. Nomadic Dinners hosts regular supper clubs, including an upcoming Midsummer Feast.

Feast Over Fire is on at Chiltern Hills, Buckinghamshire on 25 May

Magdalene Odundo at Houghton Hall

Houghton Hall will present an exhibition by ceramicist Magdalene Odundo that playfully disrupts its functional State Rooms. Known for her traditional techniques and exploration of intercultural relationships, eight new handbuilt ceramic sculptures and a curation of early works will be thoughtfully placed to shed light on her references. Magdalene will also introduce a new large-scale sculpture created during her residency at Wedgwood, where she looked into Josiah Wedgwood’s role in the abolitionist movement. Using Jasperware and archival Wedgwood moulds, this piece is adorned with juxtaposing illustrations of slavery alongside contemporary political protest from her birthplace of Kenya.

Magdalene Odundo is on at Houghton Hall, Norfolk until 29 September

Boss Morris at Whitchurch Folk Festival

Boss Morris is performing at the Whitchurch Folk Festival for a community-led celebration. This group of women creatives share an artistically progressive vision of morris dancing, combining traditional Cotswold routines with their own choreography and electronic tracks. Amongst a line-up of folk music, craft workshops and local food, the group will perform its fresh take on folk dance, with an aim to engage new audiences and reclaim the narrative around the culture of ‘Englishness’.

Boss Morris performs at Whitchurch Folk Festival on 11 May

Charleston Festival

Returning for its milestone 35th year, the Charleston Festival promises a lineup of talks and workshops led by an array of artists, literary figures, and changemakers. Highlights include Grayson Perry's exploration of 'outsider art,' discussions on sustainable and ethical eating with Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall and Bee Wilson, and a conversation between Dame Judi Dench and her friend Bill Nighy on the art of theatre and her distinguished career. With an aim to celebrate creativity, drive debate and exchange new ideas, this is a legacy to the Bloomsbury Group, who sought to create their own unique society at Charleston.

Charleston Festival is on at Charleston, Lewes from 16 May until 27 May

Image 1: Ben Nicholson, St. Ives, Cornwall, 1943-45. Courtesy of Pallant House Gallery.

Image 2 & 3: Photography courtesy of Sandy Wood and Nomadic Dinners, and Catherine Frawley and Nomadic Dinners.

Image 4 & 5: Dame Magdalene Odundo, Untitled, 1991. Copyright Magdalene Odundo. Courtesy of the artist. Magdalene Odundo at the Wedgwood factory working on a Jasperware table centre piece commissioned for an exhibition at Houghton Hall. Copyright Borja Martin Gomez.

Image 6: Boss Morris dancing. Photography courtesy of Jon Wilks and Boss Morris.

Image 7: Charleston Festival, 2023. Photo courtesy of Emma Croman and Charleston.