Museums across Scotland, from Gairloch to Glasgow, are set to benefit from over £600,000 of funding from Museums Galleries Scotland (MGS).
The national development body has announced 15 projects which have been awarded funding. Several of the awards will fund new posts within museums, in roles focusing on curatorship, learning, and engagement. Other projects will improve the way collections are stored and cared for, ensuring they will be preserved for the benefit of future generations.
An award of £60,000 to Dumfries and Galloway Council will enable them to display the Kirkcudbright Artists Collection in a permanent exhibition space in the new Kirkcudbright Art Gallery. The Collection has Nationally Significant status, and includes over 300 works of fine art, and some 80 works of decorative art and craftwork, connected with the development of the town as an artists’ centre. Highlights of the collection, much of which is currently in storage, include paintings by Edward Atkinson Hornel, Charles Oppenheimer and Samuel Peploe.
Andy Ferguson, Chair of Dumfries and Galloway Council Communities Directorate, said:
“The Kirkcudbright Artists Collection sits at the core of our new Gallery opening in Kirkcudbright in the spring of 2018, and this grant will aid the essential work in getting this important collection out on public display. Dumfries and Galloway Council is very proud of its heritage and historic collections and we are delighted that the recognition fund has shown its support so generously.”
Joanne Orr, CEO of Museums Galleries Scotland, said:
“MGS is pleased to be supporting projects that will contribute to the long-term sustainability and resilience of these museums. The awardees have demonstrated a real commitment to enterprise, skills development, and improving their offering and profile for future visitors.”
Through the Museum Development Fund, MGS distributes a general funding grant from the Scottish Government as well as the ring fenced grants for capital projects and for Scotland’s Recognised Collections.