Carboniferous Monsters
100 million years before the Dinosaurs
Main Gallery
Monday 10 June to Saturday 31 August
Step back to the Carboniferous period, 100 million years before the dinosaurs. Visit tropical forests and swamps teeming with bizarre and ferocious ancient monsters, some of which had larger teeth than T. rex. Meet the dinosaurs’ distant ancestors, the very first reptiles, the largest creepy-crawlies ever to live, and prehistoric animals unlike anything you’ve ever seen before!
Come face-to-face with scorpions the size of dogs, millipedes the length of crocodiles, and giant meat-eating dragonflies the size of seagulls.
This blockbuster national touring exhibition features stunning 350 million year-old original fossils, reconstructed giant prehistoric animals, and skeleton casts from museums around the world, many of which have never been displayed in the UK before.
This exhibition shows what Durham and the Dales was like 300 million years ago, and explores how the remains of these prehistoric plants were the source of the carbon which formed coal. Discover how these ancient forests and swamps are linked to fossil fuels that powered the industrial revolution and the climate change we’re facing today.
Suitable for prehistoric monster fans of all ages!
Art Cares
Main Gallery
Wednesday 11 September to Saturday 30 November
Art Cares is a transformative exhibition showcasing care experienced young people’s art works.
Previously displayed in bus shelters across the region as part of the Art Stops project, the art works will be brought together as a whole collection at Bishop Auckland Town Hall.
Young people are at the forefront of this exhibition, their artworks expressing the thoughts and messages that these young people are passionate about; showcasing their diversity and shouting out to the world . . .“Art cares”
For more information, visit Investing in Children – ART STOPS.
Invisible Visible
The Strong Room
Wednesday 11 September to Saturday 30 November
Being disabled can feel akin to being both invisible and hyper visible, without ever really feeling seen.
Invisible Visible invites an unflinching foray into the individual and collective experiences of those with disabilities in the workplace, illustrating the stories that need to be centred in order to incite change towards a better world.
This exhibition details seven unique and anonymous first-hand accounts of being disabled in the workplace, translated into visual language to incite conversations around a topic that is too often treated as taboo. With unabashed honesty the collection chronicles a narrative forgone by wider society, and which challenges the very foundation of our relationship with both work and disability.
Invisible Visible is created by artist Hope Caitlin in collaboration with social enterprise organisation Changing Relations and in partnership with Bishop Auckland Town Hall and Durham University.