Museums to collaborate on £5.36m touring exhibition programme

Museums and galleries across the UK will work together to share their collections in touring exhibitions in a new £5.36m programme announced this week by the Art Fund.

The national arts charity has launched Going Places, an initiative that will see 20 cultural institutions across the four UK nations collaborate to produce 12 touring exhibitions, in what is described as the “largest investment of its kind in the UK”.

The 20 small to mid-size institutions have formed six networks that will pool their resources and work together to co-create touring exhibitions, with each network producing two touring exhibitions over the next five years.

When the exhibitions tour within the networks, they will be reimagined by each partner museum, working with local communities. Overall there will be 40 unique exhibitions across the five-year programme. 

Local communities will be invited to collaborate with curators and will play a vital role in shaping each exhibition. They will have the opportunity to explore collections not currently on display and select artworks and objects to feature in the exhibitions.

“By collaborating with contemporary artists and craftspeople, participants will also co-create new works inspired by local histories and landscapes,” said Art Fund in a statement announcing the project.

“Personal items and collections will be contributed for display in exhibitions, with community members sharing their own stories and offering fresh perspectives and interpretations.”

Art Fund said the programme “responds directly to museums’ needs for more sustainable and collaborative ways of exhibiting, supporting them to share their collections with one another”.

The charity said the programme aims to help museums and galleries “work together to share their collections with communities through innovative and sustainable approaches to exhibition-making”.

Going Places builds on the recommendations of the research report Going Places: Touring and shared exhibitions in the UK, commissioned by Art Fund and Creative Scotland.

The Art Fund 2024 Museum Directors survey found that 63% of museums are looking to work in partnership with other museums on exhibition making.

The Going Places programme has been supported by grants of £2.86m from the National Lottery Heritage Fund and £1.5m from the Julia Rausing Trust.

Alongside this support, Art Fund says it is continuing to fundraise to “reach the full potential of this programme and make the biggest impact for museums and visitors across the UK”.

Jenny Waldman, director of Art Fund, said: “Going Places is a celebration of UK collections and the people who bring them to life. By pooling resources, sharing expertise and working together, museums are championing a sustainable and collaborative approach to touring exhibitions – while making their collections accessible and exciting for communities across the country.

“As we continue our fundraising towards this programme to make the biggest impact for museums, we are immensely grateful to the National Lottery Heritage Fund and the Julia Rausing Trust for their very generous support for this programme, which will pave the way for a more open and resourceful future for exhibition making.”

The six museum networks

• Green Spaces Shared Places (Arlington Court and the National Trust Carriage Museum; Dales Countryside Museum; Sunderland Culture; The National Memorial Arboretum) will place young communities’ voices at the heart of conversations, exploring the positive impact that the great outdoors can have on people’s health and the ways in which these interactions can be enriched by social, industrial and agricultural heritage. Their first exhibition will open at The National Memorial Arboretum in May 2026.
• Long Distance Connections (Museums Worcestershire; OnFife; Penlee House Gallery & Museum) will begin by exploring the stories of women artists represented across each of their collections, with works from all three museums brought together in dialogue to create new narratives. The first exhibition will open at Penlee House Gallery & Museum in May 2026.
• New Faces New Focus (Aberdeenshire Council; Armagh City, Banbridge and Craigavon Borough Council; Open Eye Gallery) will use socially engaged practice to connect newly formed and isolated communities with their heritage collections. Exploring the theme of journeys – from migration and exile to the milestones, traditions and celebrations of journeys through life. Their first exhibition will open at Open Eye Gallery in September 2026.
• Founding the Future (The Bowes Museum; Russell-Cotes Art Gallery and Museum; Watts Gallery) will uncover new stories and narratives, exploring how their museums, all founded by couples with a passion for art, culture and collecting have relevance to their communities today. Their first exhibition will open at Watts Gallery in October 2026.
• Four Lanterns (Blackwell – The Arts & Crafts house; Dovecot Studios; Tŷ Pawb; William Morris Gallery) will take the Arts and Crafts movement as a starting point to consider the politics, social values and new possibilities emerging around contemporary forms of manufacturing, connecting crafts, contemporary makers and communities. Their first exhibition will open at William Morris Gallery in October 2026.
• Communities of Making (CofGâr – Carmarthenshire Museums & Arts Service; High Life Highland – Highland Folk Museum and Inverness Museum & Art Gallery; the Irish Linen Centre & Lisburn Museum) will explore the evolution of local heritage and traditions of making – such as Irish linen, Scottish wool and Welsh basketry – through objects from their collections including textiles, heritage machinery and paintings. Their first exhibition will open at Inverness Museum & Art Gallery in April 2027.