Learn

The Study

Through the glass doors off Gallery 4, The Study gives everyone the opportunity to learn more about our exhibitions and the wealth of ideas that inspire art today. There is a carefully collected library of books and magazines that you might like to browse through. Please make yourself comfortable and enjoy this space to think.

Teachers and group leaders can use The Study to plan their visits. Educational resources for groups to borrow while in the building are also kept here.

Settle in The Study and enjoy our books at your leisure. There is always someone from our team working there if you would like to chat about the exhibitions or to answer any questions.

In the wood panelled room that leads off it you’ll find our Small Collections, housed in four beautiful antique cabinets. Feel free to open doors, pull out drawers and look inside.

All the cabinets are curently housing Postcards from the World Beneath: The collection of Gerhard Stein, curated by the artist Thomas Demand. Demand discovered the collection of Gerhard Stein - reported to include over 50,000 postcards of grottoes - during a period of research for his recent project, Grotto (2006)

The grotto represents a romantic idea of nature. It is one of the most ancient forms of human dwelling, an enchanting and mysterious place of natural beauty, Demand is attracted to their natural theatricality, their primitive yet magical form. Grottoes also chime with Nottingham's own underground history. It is noted for the 400 caves - once dwellings, storerooms, hiding places and even factories - that you can still see in parts of the city.