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27/01/2005
Arts Minister seeks reinvigorated museum displays
Arts Minister, Estelle Morris, has announced a series of plans to reinvigorate displays and encourage visitors to come to English museums.
Ms Morris, said that the 2000 museums and galleries in England were "treasure houses" of cultural and national heritage, but she added that too many of the items contained in them are hidden from the public. She said that thousands of high-quality works in major museums were not on regular display, while other museums were seeking fresh items to display.
The Arts Minister hailed England's museums and galleries as being "among the best in the world". She said: "We no longer have to argue the case for investment in them solely in terms of their impact on tourism, education or the economy. They are more deeply rooted in our society than that. But like so many institutions in a changing – and shrinking – world, it makes good sense for museums to look again at where they have got to and where they want to go."
Ms Morris stressed that museums were not in crisis – pointing out that they were receiving "healthy investment" from the government and as well as benefitting from "the brilliance and dedication" of those who worked in the sector. She urged museums to take a more active approach to sharing collections. She said: "We want to see the cultural centre of gravity start to move from the capital – the best of our culture should be accessible to all, no matter where they live. There is a clear and growing appetite around the country for more 'serious' culture while, at the same time, large parts of the collections of some of the major London institutions are rarely seen by the public."
She added: "In a number of our great institutions, work has already started to address this. I want to see more."
The plans, which have been published in a new consultation paper, 'Understanding The Future: Museums and 21st Century Life' include sharing works between museums in order to make them more available to the public and modernising the approach of museum staff.
(KMcA/SP)
Ms Morris, said that the 2000 museums and galleries in England were "treasure houses" of cultural and national heritage, but she added that too many of the items contained in them are hidden from the public. She said that thousands of high-quality works in major museums were not on regular display, while other museums were seeking fresh items to display.
The Arts Minister hailed England's museums and galleries as being "among the best in the world". She said: "We no longer have to argue the case for investment in them solely in terms of their impact on tourism, education or the economy. They are more deeply rooted in our society than that. But like so many institutions in a changing – and shrinking – world, it makes good sense for museums to look again at where they have got to and where they want to go."
Ms Morris stressed that museums were not in crisis – pointing out that they were receiving "healthy investment" from the government and as well as benefitting from "the brilliance and dedication" of those who worked in the sector. She urged museums to take a more active approach to sharing collections. She said: "We want to see the cultural centre of gravity start to move from the capital – the best of our culture should be accessible to all, no matter where they live. There is a clear and growing appetite around the country for more 'serious' culture while, at the same time, large parts of the collections of some of the major London institutions are rarely seen by the public."
She added: "In a number of our great institutions, work has already started to address this. I want to see more."
The plans, which have been published in a new consultation paper, 'Understanding The Future: Museums and 21st Century Life' include sharing works between museums in order to make them more available to the public and modernising the approach of museum staff.
(KMcA/SP)
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