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Herbert Art Gallery and Museum

Coordinates: 52°24′26″N 1°30′22″W / 52.407159°N 1.506098°W / 52.407159; -1.506098
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This is an old revision of this page, as edited by Nev1 (talk | contribs) at 18:57, 31 August 2011 (→‎History: 2008 HLF grant, 50th anniversary events). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

The Herbert Art Gallery and Museum
The extension to the Herbert Art Gallery and Museum
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Established1960
LocationJordan Well, Coventry, England
Public transit accessPool Meadow Bus Station
Websitewww.theherbert.org

Herbert Art Gallery and Museum is a museum and art gallery in Jordan Well, Coventry city centre, England. It is named after Alfred Herbert, who funded it.[1]

History

Plans for the museum were drawn up in 1938 after the famous Coventry industrialist, Alfred Herbert, donated £100,000 towards such a building. Construction started in 1939.[2] Only the basement was completed when the Second World War intervened, and the city's destruction during the Coventry Blitz meant that construction was suspended.[2] New plans were drawn up in 1952, and in May 1954 the foundation stone was laid by Alfred Herbert, who also donated another £100,000 to the project.[2] The building was opened by Lady Herbert in March 1960, three years after Alfred Herbert's death.[2]

In 2005 The Herbert hosted an theatre project for children, showing them what it would have been like to be evacuees in the 1940s. The event won two awards, one for excellence in the field of heritage and the other for engaging children with history.[3][4] The first phase of a two-phase refurbishment was completed a year late in 2005 with £3 million of funds from Coventry City Council, Advantage West Midlands and the European Regional Development Fund.[2] In 2007 and early 2008 the second phase was completed at a cost of £20 million.

This regeneration resulted in:

  • A new entrance on Bayley Lane
  • A 500 sq metre glass-covered court
  • New café area
  • New education, training, gallery, creative media and arts information facilities.
  • A Coventry History Centre
  • New exhibitions telling the story of the city and its people
  • New gallery spaces for touring and locally produced work
  • More spaces for use by schools
  • Facilities to preserve the city's archive and museum collections

The Heritage Lottery Fund granted nearly £200,000 to The Herbert and Wolverhampton Art Gallery in 2008 for acquisitions in relation to the theme of peace and reconciliation.[5][6]

The museum won the Guardian Family Friendly Award 2010.[7] The same year, the gallery was shortlisted for the Arts Fund Prize in recognition of its outstanding work in engaging new and diverse audiences taking yearly visitor figures from 55,000 up to 320,000.[8] To celebrate the 50th anniversary of the museum's opening, The Herbert held several events throughout the year.[9] In March more than 1,000 people attended a special event where ten objects, including a 16th-century tapestry and Shakespeare's ring, illustrating the history of Warwickshire, were put on display.[10]

Ground floor

The covered court of the museum and art gallery

The ground floor has a 500 sq metre glass-covered court, a unique piece of architecture amongst Coventry's skyline. Underneath the court are the entrances to the Coventry History Gallery and Archive rooms, both offering an insight into Coventry's past. Further along the building are two galleries, as well as training and learning spaces.

First floor

The first floor of The Herbert Art Gallery and Museum houses several diverse and interesting galleries, and includes a large hireable exhibition space called 'The Studio', frequently used by the public and organisations. Also housed on this floor is the New Media Suite, with modern IT facilities, the Herbert Media Recording Studio (live and Control rooms) and MIDI Suite.

Permanent gallery spaces include Sculpture, Old Masters, Art Since 1900, Elements (Natural History) and also houses four temporary exhibition spaces.

The temporary exhibition programme includes exhibition from national and international galleries such as The British Museum, V&A, Southbank Centre and Natural History Museum. Self created exhibitions are also created exploring local themes and social history.

Second floor

On the second second floor there are further Herbert Media facilities including the Standard Definition and High Definition editing suites, a corporate training room and arts information centre with excellent resources and reference library.

Herbert Media

Main article: Herbert Media

Herbert Media is the museum's in-house media service. They provide recording studios, video editing rooms and training rooms, and produce much of the audio and visual sequences for the Museums exhibitions and permanent displays.[11] They also frequently coordinate 'community response' films to exhibitions within the gallery as a way of further connecting art to the community. They also specialise in making films and interactives for other museums and art galleries and were rewarded for their high standard of work in the 2009 Godiva Awards - winning the Innovation in Business Practice category.[12]

Associated Arts and Heritage sites

  • The Lunt Roman Fort is located 3 miles from Coventry city centre and close to Coventry Airport. Near Coventry, it is a partial reconstruction of the fort that was established there in AD 60.
  • The Priory Visitor Centre [1] is located in Priory Row, Coventry city centre. This boasts the remains of medieval buildings from Coventry's first cathedral.

References

  1. ^ "History | The Herbert". The Herbert Art Gallery and Museum. Retrieved 24 May 2011.
  2. ^ a b c d e McCarthy, James (2 September 2005). "Bright New Look For The Herbert; First Phase Of City Art Gallery Revealed". Coventry Evening Telegraph. {{cite news}}: |access-date= requires |url= (help)
  3. ^ Tappenden, Roslyn (26 May 2005). "Herbert Museum's Kids In The Blitz Project Is A Winner!". Culture24. Retrieved 31 August 2011.
  4. ^ Prudames, David (16 June 2005). "Kids In The Blitz & A Stately Rap – Roots & Wings Winners Revealed". Culture24. Retrieved 31 August 2011.
  5. ^ "Collecting Cultures – HLF Announces Grants For Acquisitions". Culture24. 5 June 2008. Retrieved 31 August 2011.
  6. ^ Cane 2010, p. 23
  7. ^ "Coventry Herbert Museum and Art Gallery wins Guardian Family Friendly Award 2010". Culture24. 1 April 2010. Retrieved 31 August 2011.
  8. ^ Dimmer, Sam (1 June 2010). "Lord Mayor Backs Herbert Campaign". Coventry Evening Telegraph (Nuneaton Edition). p. 8. {{cite news}}: |access-date= requires |url= (help)
  9. ^ Cane 2010, pp. 6–7
  10. ^ Cane 2010, pp. 17–18
  11. ^ "Art Gallery Houses Media Suite". Coventry Evening Telegraph. 12 February 2004. p. 14. {{cite news}}: |access-date= requires |url= (help)
  12. ^ "Herbert Media Wins Godiva Award" (Press release). Herbert Art Gallery & Museum. 2009. Retrieved 7 July 2011. {{cite press release}}: Unknown parameter |month= ignored (help)
Bibliography

Cane, Simon (2010). "Renaissance West Midlands: Collections" (PDF). Museums, Libraries & Archives. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |month= ignored (help)

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Herbert Art Gallery and Museum.

52°24′26″N 1°30′22″W / 52.407159°N 1.506098°W / 52.407159; -1.506098

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