ADVENTURES IN TIME AND SPACE – 60 YEARS OF DOCTOR WHO ART EXHIBITION
Weston Museum
21 October 2023 – 27 January 2024
The largest collection of original and digital Doctor Who art ever shown in one location.
Opening at Weston Museum this Autumn
Allons-y, time travellers and art aficionados! Weston Museum is all set to take you on a nostalgia-filled ride with “Adventures in Time and Space – 60 Years of Doctor Who Art.” Opening in October 2023, the exhibition celebrates the show’s whopping six decades of greatness. This family exhibition promises to be a treat for all those who’ve shared an adventure with the Doctor or dreamed of the stars.
Expect to be greeted by the images of familiar faces of the Doctors we’ve cherished through the years – from the stern charm of William Hartnell to the iconic scarf-swirling of Tom Baker, the heroic action of David Tennant, the ground-breaking brilliance of Jodie Whittaker, and with the excitement of the new Doctor to come, Ncuti Gatwa. It wouldn’t be Doctor Who without the Doctor’s most infamous villains including the Daleks, Cybermen, and a whole host of aliens, nasties and strange creatures.
“The exhibition draws on iconic art from all eras of the show’s history,” says exhibition curator John McLay. “There are displays of several book covers, a range of 1990s VHS video art, spreads from annuals, comics and graphic novels, and a multitude of collectible Doctor Who merchandise that is nowadays rarely seen except listed on Ebay at extortionate prices.”
“I‘ve been thrilled by the response of many private art collectors, artists and Doctor Who fans who have generously opened up their collections for the exhibition. Their contributions have meant we have original art from the very earliest days of the programme’s history, through to the present day. The exhibition includes nearly 50 pieces of Target cover artwork; the original cover of the very first Doctor Who annual, published in 1965; an impressive wall display of comic covers; an original painting prop from the programme, used in 1989; and a newly commissioned artwork celebrating Doctor Who’s connection to Somerset.”
Featured artists include Andrew Skilleter, who has for the last forty years been responsible for a varied range of merchandise and book cover art; legendary fantasy artist Chris Achilléos, who singlehandedly defined the cover look of the Doctor Who paperback range in the early 1970s, still emulated by digital artists of today; and Colin Howard, the artist responsible for many memorable magazine covers and VHS video art work. Also represented are comic artists including Dave Gibbons of Marvel comics fame, Lee Sullivan, Scott Gray, Mike Collins, Ron Turner, Gerry Haylock, Richard Piers Rayner and Robert Hack. The line-up continues with pop culture chronicler Jeff Cummins, Jessica Martin, Bill Donohoe, David McAllister, Sophie Leong, Gwen Burns, Eren Angiolini, Roy Knipe, Claudia Gironi and Anthony Dry & Stuart Crouch.
So hold onto your sonic screwdrivers and join us at Weston Museum this Autumn as we journey back to the roots of the longest-running Sci-Fi television programme known to humanity. From Doctor Who’s classic era that graced our screens from 1963 to 1989, to the modern reboot that’s been stealing our hearts since 2005, this exhibition is a heartwarming journey for lovers of imaginative art and adventurers of all generations.
Adventures of Space and Time: 60 Years of Doctor Who Art has been organised by the South West Heritage Trust in partnership with Events of Wonder for Weston Museum. It is an unofficial exhibition, and not licensed by the BBC.