- Cheltenham Art Gallery & Museum
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Gerrit Dou, Selfportrait, 1635-8
Cheltenham Art Gallery and Museum in Cheltenham, Gloucestershire was opened in 1899. It offers free admission, and has a programme of special exhibitions.
The museum is housed in a Regency building on Clarence Street, designed as the Cheltenham Public Library by architect William Henry Knight, who also designed the Cheltenham Synagogue. [1]
Baron de Ferrieres, a former Mayor and Liberal MP for Cheltenham, gave 43 important paintings, mostly from Belgium and the Netherlands, to the town. He also donated £1,000 towards the building of a gallery in which to display them. The Museum was opened in 1907 in the adjacent former Schools of Art and Science. A major extension to the building was opened by the Princess Royal in September 1989, where the main entrance to the gallery is now situated.
The museum is particularly noted for its Arts and Crafts collection of furniture, textiles, ceramics, carvings, silver and jewellery which is recognised as an outstanding collection of international importance for which the Art Gallery & Museum has received Designated status.
Cheltenham's history is well represented, and in addition there are paintings spanning four centuries, oriental collections of pottery and costume, and archaeological treasures from the neighbouring Cotswolds.
The Edward Wilson gallery shows the life of the Antarctic explorer who perished with Scott on his expedition to the South Pole in 1912.
References
- ^ Sharman Kadish, Jewish Heritage in England : An Architectural Guide, English Heritage, 2006, pp. 100-101
External links
Categories:- Culture in Cheltenham
- Museums in Gloucestershire
- Museums established in 1899
- Art museums and galleries in Gloucestershire
- History museums in Gloucestershire
- Decorative arts museums in the United Kingdom
- Local museums in Gloucestershire
- 1899 establishments in England
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