APPLICATION PACK Application deadline: 6 February 2019 Shortlist announcement: May 2019 Winner announcement: July 2019 artfund.org/museum-of-the-year #museumoftheyear 3 Art Fund Museum of the Year Recent winners and finalists 4 The biggest museum prize in the world, Art Fund Museum of the Year The judges 6 seeks out and celebrates innovation and exceptional achievement in museums and galleries across the UK. What the judges are looking for 8 We award one outstanding winner £100,000 and each of the other Our work with finalists 10 finalists £10,000 to support future activity. Eligibility 12 It’s a moment to spotlight the originality and creativity of the museum sector. During the process each year’s finalists – selected from How to apply 14 applications from museums of all kinds and sizes – typically see a major boost in attendance and profile, strengthened support from stakeholders What happens after you’ve applied 16 and wider public recognition. Winner announcement 17 The prize also helps to reinforce finalists’ relationships with their audiences both locally and nationally and to make new, Timeline 18 lasting connections. Terms and conditions 19

2 3 4 Jupiter Artland, West Lothian; ArtGallery Finalists: Arnolfini,; Bethlem Museum of theMind, ; and attracted anotably diverse audience. displays thatwere entertaining, challenging, rooted inscholarship, The museumproduced ambitiousandinnovative exhibitions andnew Winner: Victoria andAlbertMuseum,London 2016 London; Modern,London Centre of Horseracing SportingArt,Newmarket; SirJohnSoane’s Museum, Finalists: Lapworth Museumof Geology, ;NationalHeritage serving thelocalcommunity. its inaugural Hepworth Prize for Sculpture, andshowed adedicationto The galleryhosted asequenceof specialexhibitions, sawthesuccessof Winner: TheHepworth 2017 Women’s Library; ThePostal Museum,London Finalists: Brooklands Museum,Weybridge; Ferens ArtGallery, Hull; redevelopment undertaken incloseconsultation withthecommunity. and worked inCornwall, reopened in2017 following amajor Celebrating theimportant contribution of 20th-century artists wholived Winner: Tate St Ives 2018 attention to themany andvaried accomplishments of UKmuseums. Art Fund Museumof theYear hashelpedto draw nationalandinternational Recent winners andfinalists

Tate St Ives, 2018 © Marc Atkins Anne Barlow, Director, Tate St Ives, ArtFund Museum of theYear 2018 Ives nationally andinternationally.‘ communities, of aswell astheincreased importance Tate St This significant award recognisesourcommitment to local century programme. andambitious contemporary artists art visitors andapositive responseto ourdisplaysof iconic20th building projectledto anexciting year, withanincreasein incredible honour.Therecognitionof ourtransformative Fund‘Winning Art Museum of theYear 2018 was an 5 The judges Brenda Emmanus Broadcaster and journalist Brenda Emmanus has Each year an independent panel gathers to select the winner of Art Fund presented programmes and documentaries across Museum of the Year. The judges for 2019 are: BBC television and radio. Previously an arts and features editor for the Voice Newspaper Brenda has also been a facilitating judge for two anthologies Stephen Deuchar commissioned by Penguin Books and the Creative Director of Art Fund since 2010, Dr Stephen Arts Awards for the Stroke Association. Deuchar has chaired the judging panel since 2013. Before joining Art Fund, Stephen was the first director Bridget McConnell of (1998-2009), having previously spent 12 years as a curator then exhibitions director at the Chief executive of Glasgow Life, Bridget McConnell National Maritime Museum, Greenwich. is the strategic lead ensuring Glasgow is a world- leader in culture and sport. Career highlights have included overseeing the £35 million refurbishment of David Batchelor Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum and the opening Artist David Batchelor has exhibited widely of the Riverside Museum, named European Museum internationally, with recent exhibitions in London, of the Year in 2013. A fellow of the Royal Society of Tehran and Melbourne. Deriving from a long-term Arts, Bridget was made CBE in 2015 in recognition of interest in colour and urbanism, his work comprises services to culture. three-dimensional structures, photographs, paintings and drawings. Bill Sherman

Bill is director of the Warburg Institute (University of London), one of the world’s leading centres for the study of images, ideas and societies, and was previously director of research and collections at the Victoria and Albert Museum and founding director of the Centre for Renaissance & Early Modern Studies at the University of York. Active on editorial boards, trusts and councils on both sides of the Atlantic, he served as associate editor of Shakespeare Quarterly for over a decade. 6 7 What the judges are looking for

To be considered for Art Fund Museum of the Year 2019, please show us how your achievements over the preceding year stand out, what makes your work inventive and the impact it has on your audiences. These achievements might include: —— bold and imaginative exhibitions, collection displays or conservation projects —— learning programmes which help to develop skills, knowledge and enjoyment in new ways —— acquisitions which have had a real impact on the museum and its audiences —— creative use of technology or digital media —— diversity or access initiatives which greatly broaden audience engagement and participation The Hepworth Wakefield, 2017 © Marc Atkins © Marc 2017 Wakefield, The Hepworth —— programmes of modernisation, reorganisation or reinterpretation —— new buildings, refurbishments or reinventions of existing spaces ‘Innovation and ambition come in many guises, and in museums and galleries of many kinds – large, small, historic, contemporary, scientific. Our winner will show exceptional creativity and ingenuity – whatever the type of institution or context.’

Stephen Deuchar, Art Fund director, and chair of the judges

8 9 Our work with finalists ‘Our grant from Art Fund helped us to develop a social story film in collaboration with the Ambitious about We want to help finalists make the most of being shortlisted for Autism charity and six young people with autism. The film Art Fund Museum of the Year, and to take full advantage of the helps visitors to understand what we offer and to make an opportunities it presents. informed choice if a visit is right for them. We are quite a We don’t expect you to tell us how you plan to use the prize money. complex museum being split across two sites, and what we We make this investment in our winner and finalists simply on the offer can be overwhelming due to the interactivity, colours understanding that they will spend it to the benefit of their audiences. and sounds. The input of the young people was invaluable Helping you make connections in that it ensured we included the right information in the right way.’ We support finalists in their communications strategy, providing on-site and digital promotional materials and developing creative Hannah Smith, community learning officer, the Postal Museum, engagement activities. 2018 finalist In 2018 this involved us organising a Student Road Trip, sending five Student Art Pass members on a whistlestop tour of all five finalists. Producing social and video content to tell the story of their journey, the students acted as ambassadors for the museums, sharing their experiences with their peers online.

Helping you reach audiences The prize promotes access to museums for the widest possible audience. Each finalist is offered funding to undertake access training or a project most suited to their organisation, and we encourage finalists to use this aspect of the prize as a prompt to think about access and inclusivity in new or more embedded ways. A finalist in 2018, the Postal Museum used this funding to create a bespoke orientation film for visitors with autism spectrum disorder. The Postal Museum, 2018 © Marc Atkins Museum, 2018 © Marc The Postal

10 11 Eligibility

Art Fund Museum of the Year is open to all museums, galleries and historic sites in the UK. Applicants are usually either fully or provisionally accredited under the Arts Council England Accreditation Scheme, but exceptions are readily considered where organisations are in the public sector, have charitable status or conduct activities that are based on the care, display or interpretation of collections of artistic, historical or scientific interest. Organisations should also be open regularly to the public. Only one entry may be made per individual museum or gallery, though where an organisation operates several venues an entry may be submitted for each. Institutions can enter in consecutive years. We are keen to encourage as many strong entries as possible. If you are Brooklands Museum, 2018 © Marc Atkins Museum, 2018 © Marc Brooklands unsure whether your organisation is eligible, please contact prize project manager Emma Coleman on 020 7225 4822 or [email protected] ‘Being chosen as a finalist for Art Fund Museum of the Year 2018 has done so much for Brooklands Museum. In our 30th year, we have been in the spotlight like never before and we have no doubt that the contacts we made and the increased attention we received will make a huge difference to what we can do in the future. Most of all, our volunteers, staff and trustees were thrilled to see what the museum achieved.’

Tamalie Newbury, director & CEO, Brooklands Museum, 2018 Finalist

12 13 How to apply ‘I read recently that John Dryden said the purpose of art is to delight and instruct, with the emphasis on delight – because Applications are open from 12 December 2018 to 12 noon on 6 February instruction is not always delightful but delight is always 2019, and are made online. instructive. I can’t think of a better account of why I have If your museum has had an exceptional year, we strongly encourage always loved going to museums, or of how they do their work.’ you to apply. The best way to begin the process is to have a conversation with Art Fund, so do get in touch with Emma Coleman at David Batchelor, Art Fund Museum of the Year 2019 judge [email protected] or on 020 7225 4822. To apply, log in to or create your My Art Fund account at artfund.org/my-art-fund, where you’ll be asked to submit: —— your completed online application form, which is accessed in My Art Fund —— a letter from your museum or gallery director confirming their wish for the organisation to be considered for Art Fund Museum of the Year 2019 and agreeing to our terms and conditions for finalists (see p19) —— up to six high-quality images of your museum that best illustrate your application —— a download link to a film or self-playing PowerPoint presentation which shows the judges why your museum could be Art Fund Museum of the Year. (We appreciate that museums have varying levels of in- house digital skills and resources at their disposal. You are welcome to use existing footage or images.) —— You may also send us no more than six pieces of print material relating to your work in 2018/19, for example an annual report, exhibition catalogue, marketing leaflet or visitor feedback. If you need support using the online application form or are unable to complete your application, please let us know and we will provide you with an alternative.

14 15 What happens after you’ve applied Winner announcement

All applications received by the deadline are assessed by an Art Fund The winner of Art Fund Museum of the Year 2019 will be panel and presented to the judges, who then choose the finalists. announced at an evening reception at a central London venue in We will invite finalists to join us in London on 10 April 2019 to discuss early July 2019. how to maximise the opportunities the prize presents. The public The winning museum will receive £100,000 and the winner’s plaque. announcement of the shortlisted museums will be made in mid-May 2019. Each finalist museum will receive £10,000 and a finalist plaque. Please highlight this to your prize project leader and colleagues working across marketing and communications. The decision of the judging panel is final. Each museum will be visited by the judges for a half-day during June 2019. Prize project manager Emma Coleman will liaise with each organisation to confirm the date for the visit. There will be one official visit to each museum, but additional visits may be made by the judges privately at any time.

‘I was lucky to be working at the V&A when we were we were a finalist for Art Fund Museum of the Year 2016. I’m delighted to be on the other side of the table this year, and know that the institutions who apply will be as excited as we were to share the extraordinary work they do in helping people to understand the world around them. The process not only brought new visitors to our buildings and collections but brought out the best in the museum itself.’

Bill Sherman, Art Fund Museum of the Year 2019 judge Andria Zafirakou at the Art Fund Museum of the Year 2018 award ceremony © Chris Tubbs © Chris ceremony Year 2018 award of the Fund Museum at the Art Andria Zafirakou

16 17 Timeline Terms and conditions

—— 12 December 2018: Applications open We ask finalists to: —— work collaboratively with us as part of a joint initiative to celebrate —— 6 February 2019: Applications close (12 noon deadline) and promote the shortlist. Art Fund can provide advice and press and marketing support as needed. Further information is provided in the —— By 1 April 2019: Shortlisted museums contacted (strictly embargoed briefing pack given to finalist museums until May announcement) —— support Art Fund’s wider audience engagement campaign by offering a special benefit for visitors with a National Art Pass from the date —— 10 April 2019: Workshop in London attended by finalists’ prize project of the shortlist announcement in mid-May to 30 September 2019, to leaders with senior marketing and press representatives be determined in conversation with our marketing team. This could consist of: —— Mid-May 2019: Shortlist announcement • offering visitors with a National Art Pass free entry; or for non- charging museums, offering a shop and/or cafe discount —— June 2019: Judges’ visits to finalist museums • offering visitors with a National Art Pass free entry to exhibitions, —— Early July 2019: Art Fund Museum of the Year 2019 award ceremony or 50% off exhibitions —— display Art Fund Museum of the Year print and digital print and digital materials such as leaflets, posters and digital assets onsite and ‘As a broadcaster I’ve been proud to actively help open up online, at least for the duration of the prize competition the culture in our country to everyone. At its heart, Art Fund —— be represented at the award ceremony in London in early July 2019 by Museum of the Year highlights the very best museums and the director and a small number of staff encourages everyone to go and experience them first-hand. —— provide Art Fund with feedback at the end of the competition to help I’m looking forward to being a judge for the prize in 2019, us assess the impact of the prize and improve our processes would encourage ambitious organisations to apply, and I and For further information and guidance please contact prize project can’t wait to share their work widely.’ manager Emma Coleman on 020 7225 4822 or [email protected]

Brenda Emmanus, Art Fund Museum of the Year 2019 judge We look forward to receiving your application.

18 19 “Our responsibility is to protect and enhance the great legacies of museums and galleries for future generations, particularly at a time when public sector funding is facing unprecedented cuts.

Being a judge for Art Fund Museum of the Year is not only a great honour, but a fantastic opportunity to see how we are responding to the challenges we all face.’

Bridget McConnell, Art Fund Museum of the Year 2019 judge

About Art Fund Art Fund has been supporting UK museums and galleries for over 100 years. We give grants to help museums acquire works of art for their collections, share them with wide audiences, and support the training and professional development of curators. Art Fund Museum of the Year is one of the ways in which we advocate for museums all year round, including lobbying on their behalf and publishing research into key issues within the sector. As an independent charity, we receive no government funding and are entirely supported by our membership of 139,000, who buy the National Art Pass, as well as by the generosity of many trusts, foundations and other individuals. artfund.org

20 National Art Collections Fund. A charity registered in England and Wales 209174, Scotland SC038331