Drama in Ipswich

The Saatchi Gallery at Ipswich Art School
1 Upper High Street, Ipswich, until 9 January 2011, Tuesday to Sunday, 10–5

The town of Ipswich is not known for its art. It has a museum and various art galleries, but it is perhaps more celebrated as a port, as the birthplace of Cardinal Wolsey and the home of the cartoonist Carl Giles. It has some beautiful old buildings — examples of exquisite pargeting can still be seen in Butter Market in the town centre — evidence that Ipswich was in the 16th century one of the richest towns in England. Now it has one of Norman Foster’s first important buildings: the headquarters of marine insurers Willis, a darkly dramatic reflective glass structure built in 1975, and Grade 1 listed. Today the port seems curiously disconnected from the town itself (you almost wouldn’t know it was there) and the various amenities are scattered between roundabouts without real focus.