The season begins on Thursday 23 September with Art in Prison: Creativity and the Criminal Justice System. This talk explores how can art benefit people in the criminal justice system, as well as examining how artists can be inspired by archival material. Speakers include Jo Tapp, Arts Manager at Koestler Arts; Susanna Menis, Lecturer in Law at Birkbeck London University; and Neil Dembry, Custodial Manager at Askham Grange in York, who talk about their experiences of art and archival research, creative projects in prisons and the impact they can have on the people taking part.
On Thursday 28 October, join them for an exploration of Victorian criminality with Shocking Murder! Investigating Suspicious Death in Victorian Ripon. In 1874, two savage murders rocked Ripon. In both cases, the formal murder investigation began with an inquest. In this talk, postgraduate student Sophie Michell will discuss how Victorian coroners worked, and how inquests formed the basis of a murder trial.
Aspiring writers can take part in an online workshop inspired by archival material from the Workhouse Museum on Thursday 11 November. The Writing the Workhouse: Creating Fiction from Found Materials workshop will be led by novelist and short story writer Amy Lord. During the session, participants will explore how to write in response to found material, using it as a spark for their imagination.
Two further talks will also take place later in the year, on the themes of transportation to Australia and Dickens and foundlings. Home or Away: Life After Transportation to Australia will be on Thursday 25 November and will discuss the use of transportation as a punishment in Victorian England and consider what life might have been like for convicts after their sentence was complete.
On Thursday 16 December, join them for Dickens and the Poor Law: Foundlings in Victorian England to explore the impact of the New Poor Law on the work of Charles Dickens and what it meant to be a foundling in Victorian England.
Tickets for each session cost £5 per person and can be booked via riponmuseums.co.uk. All sessions take place on Zoom. Contact the museum team by emailing info@riponmuseums.co.uk or call 01765 690799.
Ripon Museums Online Programme
- Art in Prison: Creativity and the Criminal Justice System, Thursday 23 September 7pm
- Shocking Murder! Investigating Suspicious Death in Victorian Ripon, Thursday 28 October 7pm
- Writing the Workhouse: Creating Fiction from Found Materials, Thursday 11 November 7pm
- Home or Away: Life After Transportation to Australia, Thursday 25 November 7pm
- Dickens and the Poor Law: Foundlings in Victorian England, Thursday 16 December 7pm
