Bewdley to host art from national collections

Bewdley Museum will soon be hosting exhibitions from the country’s national art collections thanks to a grant from the Arts Council.

Museum staff have successfully bid for almost £38,000 from the Arts Council’s Ready to Borrow scheme to develop its gallery space in order to qualify for loans from some of the country’s best collections.

The money – together with donations and support from the Friends of Bewdley Museum -  will be used to improve environmental conditions in the Wyre Forest Gallery as well as purchase new display cases and monitoring equipment.

The improved gallery space will be completed by February 2019.   Museum staff will be working with Museums Sheffield during the project in order to borrow significant works of art from the Guild of St George collection. The first exhibition will feature artists such as John Ruskin, Edward Burne Jones and Albrecht Dürer.

Wyre Forest District Council's Cabinet member for Culture, Leisure and Community Protection Councillor Juliet Smith said:

“This is a major step forward for the award-winning museum. The grant and improvements it will fund will allow the museum to host major exhibitions and give local residents and visitors access to artwork from some of the country’s finest collections.

“I’d like to thank and congratulate staff at the Museum for successfully securing the additional funding to make this possible. The investment is good news for residents, visitors, local businesses and the local economy as a whole.”