Manchester Museum heads to the seaside with new Coral exhibition

As coral reefs around the globe continue to be severely degraded by overfishing, pollution, coastal development and warming seas, Manchester Museum explores the fascination with coral as a material, symbol and inspiration for artists, cultures and societies across the centuries. Presenting a plethora of fascinating and beautiful objects, and telling a story about biodiversity and the importance of marine environments today, this show includes pieces of coral from various reefs, loads of info, plus art installations by Mark Dion and textile artist Karen Casper. The organisers are also hoping to create Manchester’s first ‘Crochet’ Coral Reef. Well, it’s the nearest Manchester’s going to get to the ocean, isn’t it?

Thu 29 Nov – Sun 16 Mar 2014, Manchester Museum, Oxford Road, M13 9PL, Tel: 0161 275 2634, Daily 10am – 5pm, FREE, manchester.ac.uk