Now Open: The Great Cosmic Mother ✨🌛

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Photograph of two young men talking and smiling in front of two of Monica Sjöö's paintings, 'House-wives' and 'Aspects of the Great Mother'

NOW OPEN: Monica Sjöö: The Great Cosmic Mother

Discover art as activism in this new retrospective.

Monica Sjöö's richly detailed paintings call for peace, reproductive rights and climate justice. Each corner of these huge works is packed with symbolic figures, shapes and patterns, alongside slogans and texts. Whether carried as a placard, or displayed in this new exhibition of the artist's work, the messages are unequivocal.

18 November 2023 - 25 February 2024. Tickets £6-£12

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UPCOMING EVENTS

A young person with brown hair is crouching over a piece of fabric, painting a figure with their hands raised in the air.

Children Heard and Seen: Hand in Hand Launch Event

Celebrate the new artwork created by children and young people impacted by parental incarceration. From 10:30am-12:30pm there will be festive snacks, crafts, and a tour of the portrait display. Saturday 2 December, 10:30-12:30pm. Free, drop-in.

Find out more

A graphic showing a silvery triangle against a night sky. On the triangle the word 'late' is written in bold capital letters in a pale grey.

MAO Late x Ruskin

An evening of performances, conversation, drinks and music centred on creative community and inspiring exchange programmed in collaboration with The Ruskin School of Art. The galleries will be open till 9pm, with a special opportunity to see Monica Sjöö: The Great Cosmic Mother for free. Thursday 7 December, 6:30-10pm. Free, booking essential.

Book free tickets

Photograph of large, unexpectedly shaped earrings in black, gold and red.

Feel Festive

If you and your loved-ones exchange gifts, we've got beautiful options from independently-owned businesses available in our Shop.

Thoughtful gifts

From Saturday 2 December - Sunday 10 December, you'll also get 20% off limited edition prints, for a truly one-of-a-kind present. Drop into the Café during opening hours to view the editions. Friends and supporters will get early access to this sale, so keep an eye out for an upcoming email!

Limited Edition Prints

Photograph of fairy lights in the Modern Art Oxford shop.

Christmas Opening Hours

We're open for most of the festive period, but we do have some updated opening hours.

Closed:
24-26 December
1 January

Reduced Hours:
31 December, 12-4pm

Graphic with the words 'Boundary Encounters' written in yellow on a red background with a curving blue line.

Seasonal Specials

Discover a special seasonal menu in our café including pumpkin spice and gingerbread hot chocolates and coffees. Or why not tuck in to a mince pie, brie and cranberry panini, or a traditional Swedish bun, full of seasonal spices.

Friends of Modern Art Oxford get unlimited free entry to Monica Sjoo: The Great Cosmic Mother as well as a range of other benefits. Treat someone you care about this festive season with a Friend gift membership. Order before 14 December to get the gift pack in time for Christmas.

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EXPLORE ONLINE

'Our Bodies Our Selves', a painting by Monica Sjöö showing a series of female silhouettes including a nude torso and two women embracing.

Young Creatives Reflect

Members of the Young Creatives Collective have been sharing their personal responses to Monica Sjöö's work.

You can read their reflections online, or see them displayed as part of the wall text in our ongoing exhibition.

Read now

COMMUNITY

Still from 'The Afterlight' showing a woman's eyes.

Photograph of the entry to Modern Art Oxford with people gathered by the door.

MAO Recommends:
The Afterlight at the Ultimate Picture Palace

Cinematic fragments spanning hundreds of films bring together actors who share one common trait: they are no longer alive. Crafted into an otherworldly montage, Charlie Shackleton’s experimental film essay exists as a sole 35mm film print, fading with each screening. Eventually it will disappear entirely. Thursday 30 November, 6:30pm.

Book now

MAO Recommends: Speed of Trust at Fusion Arts

Discover an installation of glass sculptures, hangings, lighting, and soundscapes, accompanied by a personal essay exploring how we relate to what we don’t know, we don’t know. Rosie McLean's work challenges our preconceived notions and makes the familiar unfamiliar. Opens Saturday 25 November, 11am-6pm.

Learn more

Modern Art Oxford is supported by:

Modern Art Oxford
30 Pembroke Street
Oxford
OX1 1BP
info@modernartoxford.org.uk
(0)1865 722733

Opening hours:
Tuesday - Saturday 10am - 5pm
Sunday 12 - 5pm
Closed Monday
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Image credits:
Visitors at Monica Sjöö: The Great Cosmic Mother, 2023. © Modern Art Oxford. Photo by Oxford Atelier.
Young person drawing, 2023. © Modern Art Oxford. Photo by Mills Brown.
A graphic reading 'LATE'.
Merchandise at Monica Sjöö: The Great Cosmic Mother, 2023. © Modern Art Oxford. Photograph by Oxford Atelier.
Photograph of fairylights in the Modern Art Oxford shop. © Modern Art Oxford
Star decorations © Modern Art Oxford
Monica Sjöö, Our Bodies Our Selves, 1978. Courtesy Monica Sjöö Estate and Alison Jacques, London © Monica Sjöö Estate. Photo: Albin Dahlström / Moderna Museet.
Still from The Afterlight, 2021. © Charlie Shackleton.
Visitors in the gallery. © Modern Art Oxford. Photo by Oxford Atelier.
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