News
Letters: November 2006
Are museums ready for the new web wave? James Morrisons’ thoughtful but ultimately unsatisfying piece about online cultural projects (Museums Journal September 2006, p24) raises more questions than it answers. Morrison questions the relevance and value for public money of much of what has been done over the past ten years, but does not suggest …
UK lags behind rest of world on acquisitions
UK museums and galleries cannot compete effectively for acquisitions on the world stage, according to new research by the Art Fund.
National Museum Wales seeks funds for art scheme
Amgueddfa Cymru/National Museum Wales (NMW) is kicking off its centenary celebrations with an exhibition in London that will be used to gather fundraising support for the £5.4m redisplay of its art collection at the National Museum Cardiff at Cathays Park. Art Treasures of Wales will be at Christie’s from 14-17 January and NMW is hoping …
Bury excluded by MA and de-accredited
Bury Metropolitan Borough Council has been barred from membership of the Museums Association (MA) and removed from the Museums, Libraries and Archives Council’s (MLA) accreditation scheme because it sold a painting from its collection. A Riverbank by LS Lowry, which was in the collection of the Bury Art Gallery and Museum, was sold at auction …
Ten line up for Gulbenkian Prize
The fifth Gulbenkian prize longlist was announced in London at the end of last month. The ten-strong list is made up of new openings and museums and galleries that have undergone refurbishments, redisplays or opened exhibitions during 2006. The ten finalists are: Braintree District Museum, Warner Textile Archive, Braintree, Essex; De La Warr Pavilion, Bexhill-on-Sea, …
Ipswich and Colchester join up
The museum services in Ipswich and Colchester are to merge from 1 April after both councils voted to support the decision. The combined Colchester and Ipswich Museum Service will be responsible for about 85 staff and six museums. The councils have agreed to fund the new service at existing levels, plus inflation, for the coming …
Open all hours
This year's Museums and Galleries Month featured special events, late-night openings, torch-lit tours, live music and storytelling. As part of the celebrations, 50 museums and galleries also screened the blockbuster film Night at the Museum. Museums Journal sent writers to five venues to sample what was going on
Restoration of the Cutty Sark
It is hoped that the clean-up operation at the Cutty Sark, which was badly damaged by fire in May, will be able to begin this month.
Spy
When Spy heard that the Museum of London (MoL) would be hosting a comedy night, it seemed too good an opportunity to miss. Would the Museums, Libraries and Archives (MLA) London be talking about the London hub business plan? Perhaps Tessa Jowell would be discussing the funding arrangements for the Cultural Olympiad? So it was …
Major Viking hoard found in North Yorkshire
A major Viking hoard found in North Yorkshire was declared treasure last month. The hoard was discovered by a father and son metal-detecting team in the Harrogate area earlier this year and was reported by them to their local finds liaison officer. Experts have said the hoard, currently with the British Museum, is the most …
A spy in the house…
It was an awesome display of power as Charles Saumarez Smith, Neil MacGregor and Mark Jones sat side-by-side before the first session of the Culture, Media and Sport select committee. It put one in mind of the closing sequence of the film Ghostbusters, where the eccentric brainbox, the reclusive genius and the suave, smooth-talking one …
Ipswich and Colchester join up
The museum services in Ipswich and Colchester are to merge from 1 April after both councils voted to support the decision. The combined Colchester and Ipswich Museum Service will be responsible for about 85 staff and six museums. The councils have agreed to fund the new service at existing levels, plus inflation, for the coming …