Ghislaine Howard
Ghislaine Howard is internationally recognised as a painter of powerful and expressive means. Her paintings, prints and drawings chart and interpret shared human experience.
Ghislaine was named as a ‘Woman of The Year’ in 2008 for her contribution to art and society. Born in Eccles, she studied Fine Art at Newcastle University, then moved down to London and immersed herself in the collections of art both in this country and abroad. In 1980 she moved back to her native north-west with her husband, the art historian Michael Howard.
In 1985 she held her first major one-person exhibition at Salford Art Gallery, then home to the L.S. Lowry collection. The critic Jim Aulich wrote of this show: ‘Luscious and unorthodox, these pictures are strikingly original in what they depict within the tradition of figure painting’.
Ghislaine has published and exhibited widely and has work in many public and private collections, both here and abroad, including Manchester Art Gallery, The Whitworth, and the Royal Collection.
Exhibitions of her work have taken place at many prestigious venues including Manchester Art Gallery, Canterbury Cathedral, Imperial War Museum North and the British Museum.
She is currently working on a major project entitled 'The Seven Acts of Mercy' and a monograph relating to her life and work, 'The Human' written by her husband the art historian Michael Howard, was published by Manchester Metropolitan University in 2016.
Ghislaine is both delighted and honoured that Greater Manchester Chamber of Commerce have given over the Tony Wilson Rooms situated on the ground floor of the Chamber to house a changing selection of her works, including selections from her 365 Series of daily paintings and the sequence of paintings relating to ‘Embracing Manchester’.
Selected Exhibitions since April 2016
Oakham Contemporary, launch exhibition, October 2020
Castlegate Prize Finalists’ Exhibition’, Castlegate House Gallery, September - October 2020
‘We will Always Be Together’, at ‘The Fire Within’, The Galleries, Wigan curated by Al and Al, October 2020 ongoing
‘Portraying Pregnancy: from Holbein to Social Media’, The Foundling Museum, January - August 2020
‘Love is a Rebellious Bird’, The Galleries, Wigan, curated by Al and Al, November 2019 - August 2020
‘Towards an Impossible Painting’, Greater Manchester Chamber of Commerce, August 2019
‘Two Painters’, (with Ian Norris), Collect Art, June 2019
‘The Fire Within’, The Galleries, Wigan, curated by Al and Al, May- July 2019,
Solo Show, Callaghans’ Fine paintings, Shrewsbury April - June 2018
Greater Manchester Chamber of Commerce, March 2018 ongoing
‘Embracing Manchester’, Saint Ann’s church and House of Fraser, Deansgate, Manchester, May 2018
‘Drawn to Paper, Art Decor Gallery, Whalley, July 2017
Retrospective, Collect Art, March - June 2017
‘From Degas to Ghislaine Howard’, Gateway Gallery, March – April 2016
‘Be Still’ part of the PassionArt Trail, John Rylands Library, February – April 2016
Inaugural exhibition, Gateway Gallery, November – December 2015
Young Masters Dialogues, Sphinx Fine Art, London, October 2015
‘Return of the Prodigal Son’, Manchester Cathedral, July – September 2015
‘Portraits’, Whitworth Art Gallery, Manchester, March 2015
‘The 365 Series’ at the PassionArt Trail, Manchester Art Gallery, April 2014
‘Pinhole Man’, Cresswell Crags Museum, Summer 2014
‘PassionArt Trail’, St. Ann’s Church, Manchester, March – April 2014
‘Poetry, Passion and Painting’, Wendy J Levy Contemporary Art, May 2013
‘Ice Age Art: Arrival of the Modern Mind’, The British Museum, March – June 2013
‘The Choreography of Walking’, Chapman Gallery Salford University, March 2011
‘The Circus Animals’ Desertion’, Birr Arts Festival, Ireland, August 2010
‘The 365 Series’ Imperial War Museum North, March 2009
Slic Dessin, Paris, with The Cynthia Corbett Gallery March 2009
‘Towards The Empty Tomb’, Liverpool Cathedral, 2008/9
‘The Intimate Portrait’, Whitworth Gallery Manchester, September 2007- January 2009
‘The Stuff of Life’, Saltaire Festival, September 2008
‘Towards the Empty Tomb’, Derby Cathedral, February – March 2008
‘Changing Eight’, Liverpool Hope University College, January 2007
‘One Family – Three Painters’, Wendy Levy Contemporary Art with Michael and Cordelia Howard, June 2007
‘Vesali Icones’, Paintings used as the setting for Sir Peter Maxwell Davies’s ‘Vesali Icones’ with the musical ensemble Psappha, Gulbenkian, Lisbon, January 2005; Queen Elizabeth Hall, May, 2005 and Buenos Aires, June 2005
‘Encounters’, Solo Show, Wendy J. Levy Contemporary Art, November 2004
‘A Shared Experience’, two linked exhibitions at the Sheridan Russell Gallery, London and the Cynthia Corbett Gallery, London. September – October 2004
artLondon with the Cynthia Corbett Gallery, 2004
‘Sex in the City’, The Cynthia Corbett Gallery, The Glass House Gallery, London 2004
‘Out of Office’, Manchester Technology Centre, April 2004
‘Presence’, Saint Paul’s Cathedral, London, February 2004
Selected Works from the BBC Residency, BBC, Manchester, June 2001- April 2004
artLondon with The Cynthia Corbett Gallery, June 2003
‘The Unguarded Moment’, The Cynthia Corbett Gallery, artLondon, May 2002
‘Intimacy’, the Mostyn Gallery and the Lowry, Arts Council, January – April 2002
‘Art on Paper’, representing the Cynthia Corbett Gallery, London, Royal College of Art, February 2002
‘Works by Ghislaine, Michael and Cordelia Howard’, Duke’s Oak Gallery, October 2000
One person exhibition, Amnesty International Conference, Edinburgh, May 2001
Exhibition in Aid of the Medical Foundation Caring for Victims of Torture, Royal College of Art, London, October 2000
‘Times of Our Lives, Endings and Beginnings’ April – October 2000, Whitworth Art Gallery, University of Manchester
Recent Work, solo exhibition, Horizon Modern Art, Brussels, November 1998
The Discerning Eye, London, invited artist (by critic/curator Richard Kendall), November 1998
‘The Informal Portrait’, Whitworth Art Gallery, University of Manchester, November – January, 1997-8
Paintings and Drawings of ‘The Women of Troy', solo exhibition at the National Theatre, London, June 1995
‘Caught in The Act’, paintings and drawings produced as the official painter to Manchester’s year as ‘European City of Drama’, solo exhibition, British Council, Manchester, November, 1995
‘A Shared Experience', solo exhibition, Manchester City Art Gallery, resulting from a six month residency in Saint Mary’s Maternity Unit, Manchester, April ‑ May 1993
‘Critic’s Choice’, Wendy Beckett, Bruton Street Gallery, London May- June 1992
Solo Show, Flying Colours Gallery, Edinburgh, September 1991
Stations of the Cross the Captive Figure
The Stations of the Cross / The Captive Figure, Realised in conjunction with Liverpool Hope University College and supported by Amnesty International and North West Arts Board, 2000 – 2001 have been exhibited at the following venues:
Liverpool Cathedral and Liverpool Metropolitan Cathedral, April – May, 2000
Liverpool Hope Chapel, May 2000 – March 2001
Canterbury Cathedral and The Cynthia Corbett Gallery at 54, The Gallery, London, March – April 2001
Liverpool Cathedral, March – April 2002
The Research and Education Centre, Wythenshawe Hospital Manchester, October 2002
Gloucester Cathedral, March – April 2003
Derby Cathedral and Art Gallery, March – April 2005
Bakewell Festival, August 2008
Liverpool Cathedral, including ‘The Empty Tomb’, February – March 2008
Exeter Cathedral, Feb – May 2009
Wirksworth Parish Church, 2010
Lichfield Cathedral February – May 2011
With the 365 Series and Judas: the Departure, York Minster, February – May 2011
With the 365 Series, Chester Cathedral, March – April 2011
York Minster, February – May 2012
Manchester Cathedral, November 2013
Oscott College, March – May 2014
Old Glossop Parish Church, April – May 2015, April – May 2016
Saint Mary’s Church, Shrewsbury, March - June 2019
Publications
Embracing Manchester, exhibition catalogue, 2018
Drawn to Paper, Michael Howard and Julie McCabe, Art Decor, 2017
The Human Touch, Michael Howard, published by Manchester Metropolitan University, 2016
The Northern School: From Degas to Ghislaine Howard, Martin Regan, Gateway Gallery, 2016
PassionArt Trail: Be Still, Lesley Sutton, 2016
PassionArt Trail, Lesley Sutton, 2014
The Circus Animals’ Desertion, Irish Arts Council, 2010
Death’s Broken Dominion, Laura Gascoigne, The Tablet March 2008
Twelve Women Artists, Judy Rose, Wendy Levy Contemporary Art, 2006
Presence, Meryl Doney, (ed.), exhibition catalogue, St. Paul’s Cathedral, London, 2004
Stations of the Cross / The Captive Figure, edited by Michael Howard of Manchester Metropolitan University with contributions by Dr. Joan Crossley, Leicester University and Dr. Shannon Ledbetter, Liverpool Hope University College
Exhibiting Gender, Sarah Hyde, Whitworth Art Gallery, Manchester University Press, September 1997
Steeple Chase Park, poetry by Frances Neagle, 1996
Artist’s Diary, Art Review, March 1994
Portraiture and Drawing the Figure, Ray Smith, published by Dorling Kindersley, in association with the Royal Academy, 1994
A Shared Experience, Manchester City Art Gallery and Wellcome Foundation, essay by David Peters‑Corbett, 1993/4
Reviews in various publications including: Anglican Theological Review, British Medical Journal, ACE Magazine, Gallery Magazine, The Guardian, Modern Painters, The Women’s Art Journal;
Features: Art Review, The Artist Magazine, Big Issue, Daily Telegraph, The Tablet.
Television and Film
Who Do You Say I Am? BBC1, Easter 2007
Part of the team that produced Degas and the Dance; the production was awarded The Peabody Award in May 2004
Featured artist in Mischa Scorer’s Omnibus film for BBC 1, Degas, The Old Man Mad About Art, 1996
Featured artist in Granada Television’s In Celebration programme, The Nude, transmitted July 1994
Radio
Featured in Women’s Hour, 1993 various contributions to local B.B.C. broadcasts; occasional contributor to G.M.R. current affairs and arts programme.
Collections
Work in various collections including The Royal Collection; Manchester Art Gallery; Whitworth Art Gallery; Graves Art Gallery, Sheffield; Salford City Art Gallery; the BBC, Saint Mary’s Maternity Unit, Manchester; the Manchester Metropolitan University, Her Majesty’s Prison Service, British Medical Association, Liverpool Hope University College.
Private collections: Great Britain, Eire, France, Belgium, Germany, USA, Australia and elsewhere.