If you're local, you might have noticed that the Tate Liverpool has been temporarily closed since the middle of October whilst it embarks on a major renewal project. Whilst it undergoes this transformation, Tate Liverpool has moved into the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) North, Mann Island.
Last year whilst the Tate was hosting the Turner prize, we chatted to Dominic Beaumont, Communications Manager and asked him about working at the epicentre of Liverpool's Contemporary Art Scene.
Working at the Tate Liverpool must be so exciting, have you always worked in Art Galleries?
I haven't always worked in art galleries but I have consistently worked within arts and culture. In my early 20s I was writing articles as a sports journalist in the infancy of online journalism. But while I was doing that I was also freelancing within a range of arts organisations - arts cinema, design and architecture festivals and I decided that was the route I wanted to take. From there I began working as the PR for the Everyman & Playhouse in Liverpool, and had the great good fortune to work on some amazing projects with famous actors, writers and directors. We staged world premieres, shows that ended up going to the West End and won major awards. I’ve been at Tate for about four years and worked on the 30th anniversary of the gallery which was an exciting time, and brought about a new documentary on the gallery. We did some great stuff with a range of staff and some behind the scenes stuff which really celebrated the fact that Tate Liverpool has been a pioneer in placing exciting, contemporary art in cities outside London.
What has been your favourite exhibition to date? And what exhibition would you love to see at Tate Liverpool?
Tate Liverpool has had some incredible exhibitions over the years. The 2019 Keith Haring exhibition was a real highlight for everyone, and but my favourite was probably the 2011 exhibition of Rene Magritte which had an amazing number of the artists work and showed what a master he was. In terms of what I’d like to see more of in the gallery, my first love is street art, I love it’s immediacy and also its diversity; from artists like Vhiwho works in concrete, muralist Conor Harrington and photographer JR. Also love the work of John Akomfrah and Jean-Michel Basquiat.
Best and worst thing about your job?
My least favourite thing is obituaries. The places I’ve worked have often worked or had links with famous people over the years and so I sometimes get contacted for obituaries. This is always a sad time and always hard to make sure you do justice to someone’s life.
On a more positive note, there’s lots I enjoy about my job so it’s hard to pick just one. I enjoy doing broadcast media and have been lucky enough to get a few documentaries on BBC. It’s satisfying seeing those come together with cameras and the hullabaloo that goes with turning what is already an invigorating arts space into a film set for a short while. I also get great satisfaction working with early career artists and getting them their first taste of big press attention, coaching them through it and seeing the thrill that brings to them and their families.
How did you get into communications, was it always your chosen career path?
I’ve always been interested in journalism, film, advertising and how to get a message across effectively so I think the culmination of these things probably made communications and PR a natural fit for me. Despite that I only came to it in my mid-20s.
I think the thing that made the biggest difference for me was the realisation that I need to really enjoy or care about the thing I’m doing PR for and that working in arts and culture was the thing that was going to be most enriching.
I managed to get into communications in a full-time way by trying to do as much as possible and patching together a range of experience. That often meant freelancing, or short-term and part time jobs, sometimes doing 3 different jobs at once. I worked at a cinema, film, design and architecture festivals, all of which gave me different opportunities that I was able to use to get my foot in the door.
Part of our ethos as a brand is to connect with our subscribers and be more than just another fashion brand by providing content thats interesting and engaging, something that enriches your day or is a conversation starter.
We hoped you enjoyed reading this as much as we did, Love Jo & Rachel