Events at Cornwall Museum & Art Gallery

    Tony Foster: Exploring Time, A Painter's Perspective

    Tony Foster is a Cornwall-based artist and environmentalist. For 45 years he has painted ‘en plein air’ in the wild places of the world, undertaking expeditions to rainforests, icebergs, deserts and mountains. In 1994 he was elected a Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society.

    Foster’s watercolours reflect on the forces of nature and change in these wild places, his powers of observation resulting in work which is both scientifically valuable and sublimely beautiful.

    In his major new exhibition, Exploring Time: A Painter’s Perspective, Foster focuses on continuity and transformation in ourselves and the world around us. From the earliest convulsions which formed our planet to fleeting shifts in weather, he poses the question of how our own lifespans relate to both the timeless and the transient.

    This touring exhibition, sponsored by The Foster Museum in Palo Alto, California, begins here before heading to the Royal Watercolour Society in London, the Dayton Art Institute in Ohio, and other venues across the United States.

    8th July - 25th October 2025
    12th July - 12th October

    I Grew Up 80s Exhibition

    Ready for a rad exhibition? Like Marty McFly in his DeLorean or Bill and Ted in their phone booth, this exhibition takes you on a time-travelling adventure. Blow the kids' minds with a visit to the pre-internet age!

    In a galaxy far, far away, in a time of excellent adventures, things were rad – or at least radically different. Pre-internet, the 1980s was the age of the cassette tape, the shell suit, and Dirty Dancing, a time when driverless cars, artificial intelligence and virtual reality were the stuff of Hollywood blockbusters rather than a fact of life.

    In this immersive exhibition, Cornwall Museum and Art Gallery will transport you back to 1980s Britain with more than 200 nostalgic objects. Get ready to hear “I remember that!” and “I had one of those!” reverberating off the Artex walls as, like Marty McFly in his DeLorean or Bill and Ted in their phone booth, this exhibition takes you on a time-travelling adventure to revisit ten remarkable years.

    Those who grew up in the 80s and early 90s will be filled with childlike glee – plunged back into the bright cultural landscape that shaped a generation. It’s the museum equivalent of a Saturday morning in front of Going Live! or a trip to Woolworths to pick up the latest Now That’s What I Call Music.

    For the kids of today, this is history but not as they know it. The 80s feels like a parallel universe – one that’s now the backdrop to hit shows like Stranger Things, Snowfall, and Glow.

    More than just one long mix tape of reminiscence, I Grew Up 80s also poses challenging questions, such as how kids got their kicks before social media, Minecraft, and Netflix? Celebrate play as it was back then, investigating the objects, hobbies, treasures and trends that were part of an 80s childhood, exploring toys, music, sport, fashion, food, books and TV – all with a generous spritz of high-volume hairspray thrown in.

    Under 18s enter the museum free of charge, and Annual Passes for adults are just £10. Look out for the summer activity programme, with free weekly family activities based around the exhibition.

    Activity
    Things to do
    Pin

    Stay connected

    Find us on socials and stay connected with the Cornwall you love.

    We use cookies to personalise content and ads and to analyse our traffic. You consent to our cookies if you continue to use our website. (Privacy Policy)