Appointments
James Grierson has been appointed Chair at the Victorian Society, the charity and society which campaigns to preserve and promote Victorian and Edwardian architecture across England and Wales.
The British Museum has reappointed four Trustees. Vice Chairman of BlackRock, Phillipp Hildebrand; Chief Innovation Officer at UnitedHealth Group, Dame Vivian Hunt; CEO of Associated British Foods (ABF), George Weston and Professor of Law at the London School of Economics (LSE), Dame Sarah Worthington will serve four year terms ending in 2027/8.
Exhibitions
The Walker Art Gallery in Liverpool is to open ‘Conversations’ later this month, a major exhibition celebrating Black British women and non-binary artists. The exhibition features works by around 40 artists in various media in what it claims is “the first exhibition of its kind to be held in a national art gallery in the UK”. The exhibition features a majority of artworks borrowed directly from the artists themselves. It is part of a wider research and collecting project through which the Walker aims to acquire new artwork by Black British women and non-binary artists, who are currently underrepresented within its collection. The exhibition will run from 19 October 2024 to 9 March 2025.
Leeds City Museum will host an exhibition celebrating children’s character Miffy’s 70th birthday, featuring interactive displays and activities that bring the character to life. The exhibition will showcase creator Dick Bruna’s design philosophy and artwork, including his picture books, posters, and book covers. The free exhibition runs from 7 February 2025 – 7 September 2025.
Last September, Leicester Museums and Galleries accepted a gift from the Neuschul Estate of seven oil paintings by Ernst Neuschul – a still life (Sunflowers), a figure in a landscape (Dead Tree) and depictions of the artist’s wife, first son, and a elf portrait. These seven gifted artworks are now on permanent display in Leicester Museum’s German Expressionist Gallery.
Sotheby’s and Charleston are hosting “Radical Modernity: From Bloomsbury to Charleston”, a two-part exhibition celebrating The Bloomsbury Group. Curated by Kim Jones, it features artworks from Charleston and Sotheby’s, including paintings, drawings, furniture, ceramics, and a silk robe by Percy Wyndham Lewis. The exhibition runs 9 November 2024 – 26 November 2024 at Charleston.
Tate St Ives will present a new miniaturist-inspired painting installation by Turkish artist Cansu Çakar entitled ‘New Rarities’. The work explores shifting cultural values of natural resources, including Tyrian purple and Cornish tin, through a shell-like spiral of paper resembling an ancient map. The exhibition will run 19 October 2024 – 5 January 2025.
An exhibition of the Terrence Higgins Memorial Quilt has been unveiled at the National Museum of the Royal Navy in Portsmouth Historic Dockyard. The quilt is dedicated to Terrence Higgins, who served in the Royal Navy from 1963 – 1968 and was the first named person to die of an AIDS-related illness in the UK. The exhibition marks the first time the quilt will be on public display in Portsmouth, and will give serving and retired Royal Navy personnel, as well as the general public, an opportunity to “consider the stories of LGBTQIA+ people past and present who served in the Royal Navy”. The quilt will be on display at the National Museum of the Royal Navy in Portsmouth until December 2024.
The Scottish Maritime Museum is hosting a multimedia exhibition titled “GAFFER: Impressions from a Loch Fyne Skiff”, celebrating the centenary of a unique Loch Fyne Skiff named Kirsty. The exhibition, curated by the Law family, features photographs, salt and peat paintings, drawings, moving images, sound recordings, and now-unused objects to explore the vessel’s history. The exhibition runs from 2 November 2024 – 2 February 2025.
‘Leonora Carrington: Avatars & Alliances’ is a new exhibition coming to Firstsite in Colchester later this month. It will showcase over 70 artworks by the British-Mexican artist, including rarely seen paintings, drawings, and prints. Objects on display include skeletons, fossils, Mayan artefacts, and East Anglian witchcraft items, reflecting Carrington’s eclectic interests. The exhibition runs from 26 October 2023 – 23 February 2024.
The National Galleries of Scotland will display almost 50 rare drawings from Chatsworth House in the exhibition ‘Dürer to Van Dyck: Drawings from Chatsworth House’ at the Royal Scottish Academy building. Works by renowned artists including Albrecht Dürer, Hans Holbein the Younger, Peter Paul Rubens, Rembrandt van Rijn, and Anthony van Dyck will be featured, alongside a recently recovered double portrait painting of Rubens and Van Dyck. The exhibition runs from 9 November 2024 – 25 February 2025.
Funding
The National Coal Mining Museum for England has secured almost £20,000 in funding, from the West Yorkshire Combined Authority, to develop and expand its educational and family resources. This funding will enable the museum to create “inclusive and engaging outdoor experiences” including the piloting of new outdoor events designed for visitors with special educational needs (SEN) and dementia.
15 newly funded projects have been unveiled as part of a £30m funding package announced by the National Lottery Heritage Fund. The announcement comes as the organisation marks its 30th anniversary, and includes museum transformation projects and the protection of vital river habitats.
Ripon Museums £2.5m project among 15 announced by National Lottery Heritage Fund