30/07: London's Wallace Collection turns 110
Category: Cultural Pursuits
Posted by: Editor
London, England -- On June 22 2010 the Wallace Collection celebrated its 110th anniversary as a national museum open to the public. The 22 June also marked the 10th anniversary of the Centenary Project, offering the visitor a completely new dimension to the Collection, with over a third more public space and vital museum facilities, while enabling the integrity of the galleries and their special intimate and domestic atmosphere to remain intact.
By providing in the old basement five new galleries for exhibitions, conservation and the reserve collections, together with a studio, lecture theatre, visitors’ library and meeting room for education, capped by the stunning glazed central courtyard at the heart of Hertford House as a restaurant, the Wallace Collection was ready to meet the 21st century head on.
The Collection has been able to achieve more for the visitor, of all ages and interests, than it could possibly have dreamed of in 2000 (not least, when anticipated visitor numbers of 350,000 a year were not projected until 2025, a figure already reached by 2008). The Collection is immensely grateful to all those who through their generous philanthropy have made this possible and now looks to the next ten years to build on these successes.
Currently at The Wallace Collection: the Art Treasures of Spain in European Armoury II
In 1937 the Spanish Civil War was rapidly destroying Spain's greatest cities, and along with them, the country's cultural heritage. The Republican government asked for international support. One of the first to come to their aid was James Mann, Keeper of the Wallace Collection. In recognition of the support given during the Civil War, in January 2010 the Wallace Collection was awarded the Order of Arts and Letters by José Luis Rodriguez Zapatero, Prime Minister of Spain. The Order, along with a display about Mann's work in Spain, will be exhibited. Runs to November 2010 Follow this link for further information on the Wallace Collection . . . .
By providing in the old basement five new galleries for exhibitions, conservation and the reserve collections, together with a studio, lecture theatre, visitors’ library and meeting room for education, capped by the stunning glazed central courtyard at the heart of Hertford House as a restaurant, the Wallace Collection was ready to meet the 21st century head on.
The Collection has been able to achieve more for the visitor, of all ages and interests, than it could possibly have dreamed of in 2000 (not least, when anticipated visitor numbers of 350,000 a year were not projected until 2025, a figure already reached by 2008). The Collection is immensely grateful to all those who through their generous philanthropy have made this possible and now looks to the next ten years to build on these successes.
Currently at The Wallace Collection: the Art Treasures of Spain in European Armoury II
In 1937 the Spanish Civil War was rapidly destroying Spain's greatest cities, and along with them, the country's cultural heritage. The Republican government asked for international support. One of the first to come to their aid was James Mann, Keeper of the Wallace Collection. In recognition of the support given during the Civil War, in January 2010 the Wallace Collection was awarded the Order of Arts and Letters by José Luis Rodriguez Zapatero, Prime Minister of Spain. The Order, along with a display about Mann's work in Spain, will be exhibited. Runs to November 2010 Follow this link for further information on the Wallace Collection . . . .
