Top directors pick favourite artefacts for Museums and Galleries Month 2005
An engine, a Turner battle scene, an aeroplane and a wooden stage are just a few of the ‘objects of …
An engine, a Turner battle scene, an aeroplane and a wooden stage are just a few of the 'objects of desire' chosen by directors of national museums to celebrate the launch of Museums and Galleries Month 2005.
The theme of the month is The Art of Collecting and more than 1,200 museums and galleries around the UK had events and exhibitions organised for May.
Asked to choose their favourite object, all but one of the directors picked something from their own collections. David Fleming, the director of National Museums Liverpool, plumped for the wooden stage on which Lennon and McCartney first played together. 'On it began a musical revolution that changed my life and changed the whole world,' he said.
Gordon Rintoul, the director of National Museums of Scotland, thought big and backed Concorde, one of the latest acquisitions to the the Museum of Flight's collection.
Only Alan Guy, the director of the National Army Museum, dared to break the mould and go for something not in one of his institution's collections. He chose a carving, Scenes from the Life of St George, from the Victoria and Albert Museum.
Describing the carving, Guy said: 'The dragon stares rather peevishly at the fair princess. She must have been a pretty tough cookie, for the dragon's halitosis was said to be lethal, never mind his flames, teeth and tail. I hope this object stays on display for always.'
The theme of the month is The Art of Collecting and more than 1,200 museums and galleries around the UK had events and exhibitions organised for May.
Asked to choose their favourite object, all but one of the directors picked something from their own collections. David Fleming, the director of National Museums Liverpool, plumped for the wooden stage on which Lennon and McCartney first played together. 'On it began a musical revolution that changed my life and changed the whole world,' he said.
Gordon Rintoul, the director of National Museums of Scotland, thought big and backed Concorde, one of the latest acquisitions to the the Museum of Flight's collection.
Only Alan Guy, the director of the National Army Museum, dared to break the mould and go for something not in one of his institution's collections. He chose a carving, Scenes from the Life of St George, from the Victoria and Albert Museum.
Describing the carving, Guy said: 'The dragon stares rather peevishly at the fair princess. She must have been a pretty tough cookie, for the dragon's halitosis was said to be lethal, never mind his flames, teeth and tail. I hope this object stays on display for always.'