Birmingham Museum & Art Gallery announces next phase of reopening

Birmingham Museums Trust has announced the next stage in its phased reopening of Birmingham Museum & Art Gallery as it shares more of the city’s collections and tells stories about Birmingham as a complex, vibrant, multicultural city. The Trust is boosting Birmingham’s part in the national story. 

Several gallery spaces will re-open to the public on Thursday, 24 October 2024 at 10am, after essential maintenance work to the heating, electrics, lifts and roofing was completed on schedule across the whole Council House complex.

The stunning Round Room Gallery, Industrial Gallery, Bridge Gallery and Edwardian Tearooms are among the gallery and visitor spaces to reopen in time for October half-term week.

The museum’s iconic Round Room will be at the heart of the reopening with new and familiar artworks back on display surrounding Jacob Epstein’s stunning bronze sculpture, Lucifer.

The Industrial Gallery will reopen with a new ‘Made in Birmingham’ display, which celebrates the city of a thousand trades, its self-deprecating humour, creative people and their worldwide impact.

The popular Tearooms and Shop will also reopen in October for hot drinks, a new food and drink menu and unique gift collections and collaborations with local artists and makers in the museum shop.

Due to visitor demand, the Victorian Radicals exhibition of world-famous Pre-Raphaelite art will continue in The Gas Hall until at least Christmas 2024.

The gallery spaces due to reopen in October have had extensive and sensitive flooring and roof restoration work meaning visitors will see their favourite artworks in a whole new light.

Sara Wajid and Zak Mensah, Co-CEOs at Birmingham Museums Trust, said: “We know this is news that a lot of people have been waiting for and we are so happy to be able to open more of Birmingham Museum & Art Gallery. We can’t wait to welcome visitors again in time for October half term. It’s such an important institution for the people of Birmingham and we’ve made those people central to the new displays that you will all be able to see.

“When we re-opened the museum with ‘pop-up’ displays during the Commonwealth Games in 2022, visitors told us they loved the refresh and seeing and feeling the stories of all Birmingham people front and centre. We heard that, as well as the message that people wanted to see more of the collection, understand more about our history and needed more for families and children.”

Key galleries to reopen on 24 October

Made in Birmingham 

The Industrial Gallery reopens with an exciting new display telling the ‘Made in Birmingham’ story, featuring people who were born here, or came here, and made the city their home; the making and remaking of Birmingham as a place; and the products and ideas made here that have helped change the world. Key objects include the HP Sauce factory sign, Ginny Lemon costume and Benjamin Zephaniah’s typewriter. 

The Industrial Gallery Balcony will present ‘Deviance & Difference’, a show curated by internationally acclaimed artist Osman Yousefzada, featuring artworks by BCU School of Art graduates alongside some of Birmingham’s historic art collection including works by Francis Bacon, Donald Rodney and Barbara Hepworth.

Wild City

Wild City opens two new galleries dedicated to children and families, telling stories about nature in the city. Wild City looks at wildlife and the natural environment in the past, present and future and Birmingham’s historic links to animals, encouraging children to look at and understand the nature we can see on our doorstep today, and children’s hopes for the future.

Key objects include the famous portrait of the Official Rat Catcher to the City of Birmingham by Arthur Charles Shorthouse (1870-1953), children’s artworks on the walls and a small soft play and coffee area.

Modern Muse on the ‘Bridge Gallery’

A changing display area is planned for the long gallery bridging the space between the original museum and the extension wing. This space will focus on displays about people and places in the city.

Visitors will be able to see an exhibition of works by internationally-recognised artist Arpita Shah. Modern Muse is a series of portraits of South Asian women who live and/or work in Birmingham and the West Midlands. Originally commissioned by GRAIN Projects, the portraits were acquired by Birmingham Museums Trust.

The display also features Birmingham Museums’ important miniature portrait of Arjumand Banu Begum (Mumtaz Mahal) – the Taj Mahal was built as her tomb – as well as modern miniatures in the same style.

Round Room: One Fresh Take

The Round Room is the museum’s front room and has been a showcase for the city’s art collection for almost 150 years. For 2024 the new display offers a fresh perspective by highlighting how art can help us see the world differently. Explore how artists from David Cox to Jittish Kallat, Joan Eardley to Cold War Steve, have brought their own fresh take to places that are meaningful to them. It’s a chance to enjoy the beautiful Round Room architecture, with Jacob Epstein’s Lucifer sculpture also back on display.

Featuring Curtis Holder

A changing display space around creativity and the city is set just before the entrance to The Tearoom. The first display in this space is work by Curtis Holder, who won Sky Arts Portrait Artist of the Year in 2020 and was commissioned to draw Birmingham Royal Ballet’s director, Carlos Acosta. The display features the Carlos Acosta drawing as well as Holder’s working sketches, and drawings of other familiar figures. Holder was inspired by some of the Pre-Raphaelite art in the city collection and six of the Briar Rose Series by Edward Burne-Jones (1833-1898) are also on display.

Birmingham Museum & Art Gallery maintenance work

The building’s visitor lift has been upgraded, meaning accessibility is improved. The Grade II* listed building has been maintained and preserved with maintenance on the historic floors in the Round Room, Industrial Gallery and Edwardian Tearooms, and the roof has been repaired and the glass roofs cleaned for the first time in more than 25 years. 

Birmingham Museum & Art Gallery will open Wednesday to Sunday from 10am until 5pm. Visitors won’t need to book a ticket and more information can be found at birminghammuseums.org.uk