Museum & Art Swindon will open to the public at its new, larger home next week.
The former Swindon Museum and Art Gallery at the Georgian Apsley House in Old Town closed to the public during the pandemic, and never reopened, with Swindon Council citing the significant financial investment required to maintain the building.
Work started last July on converting the first floor of the council’s Art Deco headquarters at Euclid Street into a display space for its collection – which includes one of the best collections of 20th Century British art outside of London.
On display will be one of the museum’s famous Lowry paintings, as well as a perfume bottle created by Sir Grayson Perry.
Also making a welcome return is one of Swindon’s earliest inhabitants – the fossil remains of the Welcombe Avenue Ichthyosaur from around 155 million years ago, while Roman pottery and Saxon artefacts chart Swindon’s pre-railway history.
While the town has a whole museum dedicated to the railways on which its fortune was built, its social history collection includes toys made by Swindon-based Bluebird.
More recent artefacts include empty vaccine vials from the Covid-19 Vaccination Centre at STEAM – where, for a brief period in 2020, Swindon led the world in the number of people vaccinated against coronavirus.
However, fans of the ‘Swindon Crocodile’ – a gharial, shot in India in 1915 and acquired by Swindon in the 1930s – will have to wait for her reappearance.
The new venue, which is free to enter, will provide around 40 per cent more display space compared to its previous home.
Opening exhibitions for the museum include:
- Elisabeth Frink: A View from Within – produced using the Arts Council England National Portfolio Organisation funding through Wessex Museums
- Double Take – explores inspiration and creativity using artworks from the Museum & Art Swindon collections alongside works produced by 200 Swindon school children
- Pieces of Me – an exploration of identity through art, co-curated with young people from Swindon
- Origins – an exhibition showcasing some of the diverse material collected by Museum & Art Swindon since its inception
- The History of Swindon – galleries telling the history of Swindon from the Jurassic period up to today
Councillor Marina Strinkovsky, Swindon Borough Council’s cabinet member for planning and placemaking, said: “I’m thrilled that we’re finally able to open this amazing museum and provide a new home for Swindon’s impressive collection of art and artefacts.
“People might be wondering ‘where’s the gharial?’, well don’t worry, that’s the next project for the museum staff. There’s already a project underway to bring the gharial into its new home at Museum & Art Swindon – hopefully arriving by the end of the year!
“This is just the start of our plans to improve Swindon’s art and culture offering and I’m excited that our Arts and Cultural Strategy will be available for public viewing later this month.
“We’re committed to building a better Swindon and having incredible museums such as this one, not to mention STEAM and Lydiard House, is a big part of that.”
Councillor Jim Robbins, Leader of Swindon Borough Council, said: “I’m proud of the team and the Council for getting this museum over the line.
“The Civic Offices is a fantastic building and having Museum & Art Swindon located here is only going to make it a bigger part of Swindon’s offering.
“I’m excited to see people enjoy the art we have within our collections and to learn more about our history before the railway.”
Linda Kasmaty, chair of the Friends of Museum & Art Swindon, said: “We’re very pleased and excited that Museum & Art Swindon is opening and look forward to continuing to support them in their new premises on the first floor of the Civic Offices, and publicising the museum and art gallery which we predict will become a cultural beacon, attracting visitors from not only within Swindon but surrounding areas.
“We’re looking forward to being able to see some of the magnificent Swindon collection of 20th Century art again as well as the new interpretations in the museum.”
Apsley House has been sold to property developer Arthur Dallimer, who has submitted plans for retail units, a restaurant, and offices for small businesses.