The New Art Gallery Customer Service Standards Publication date Oct 2008 Version 2.0 Created by The New Art Gallery The new Art Gallery Customer service standard Page 1 of 7 A. What does the The New Art Gallery service do? We provide the West Midlands a high quality cultural and educational service and a focus for civic pride and community identity. A gallery of outstanding excellence, our artistic programming, presentation, development and interpretation of collections are a model of how art galleries can contribute meaningfully to 21 st century culture. B. What can our customers expect from The New Art Gallery service? These are our Customer care values. We will: 1. Manage your request promptly 2. Provide good quality services 3. Be helpful, fair, honest, professional, courteous and consistent 4. Provide the relevant information that you need 5. Take ownership of your query 6. Be realistic in what we say we can do, or can’t 7. Treat your personal information as confidential and keep it secure 8. Listen to your comments ~ and learn from them. 9. To have all gallery information provided in a clear and concise format that I can understand/interpret. 10. Excellent customer service 11. Quality exhibitions and interpretation 12. Educational value 13. Community satisfaction 14. To be creative in our approach to all our work 15. To support and nurture artists in every aspect of their work 16. To work with audiences and artists together 17. To explore that which can be innovative and challenging 18. To be inclusive and welcoming in everything we do 19. To be receptive and committed to new ideas and external initiatives The Garman Ryan Collection The Garman Ryan Collection occupies a permanent, specially designed home on the First and Second floors of the Gallery. Given to the people of Walsall in 1972 by Lady Kathleen Garman and her friend, sculptor Sally Ryan, the collection contains 365 works; a broad and eclectic range of both European and non-European art and provides a fantastic permanent resource for local people. Lady Kathleen Garman was the widow of Sir Jacob Epstein whose work is well represented in the Collection. It also includes works by artists such as Picasso, Braque, Van Gogh, Modigliani, The new Art Gallery Customer service standard Page 2 of 7 Monet, Renoir, Cézanne, Gericault, Delacroix and many others along with significant works by artists affiliated with the family such as Theo Garman and Lucian Freud. Representation of family members is also common within the Collection, which together with the modest size of most works (which include sketches, drawings and watercolours on open display), the domestic scale of the individual galleries and the themed groupings, offer the viewer an intimate and rewarding experience. One gallery contextualises the Collection by presenting photographs and information about key members of the family, an introductory video featuring local people and archive material such as love letters between Epstein and Kathleen. Interactive games and puzzles are also available in the gallery for visitors to use, to encourage a deeper engagement with particular works. The Garman Ryan Collection is accessible and searchable on the Gallery's website, www.artatwalsall.org.uk The Permanent Art Collection The Permanent Art Collection consists of art works collected since the foundation of Walsall Museum and Art Gallery in 1892. All of the works (with the exception of those collected under the Contemporary Art Society's Special Collection Scheme) are owned by Walsall Council. The art collection was separated from the local history collection and the local archive in 1976. It comprises around 1,500 works of art in a range of media, largely from the 19th and 20th centuries with a few recently collected works from the 21st century. These art works have been collected through a series of donations, bequests and purchases. Around a quarter of the collection comprises topological works of the Borough of Walsall and its people from different periods. Since the early 1970s, the gallery has also collected contemporary art works in a range of media, many of which make connections with the Garman Ryan Collection and/or are by artists from the West Country or artists who have exhibited as part of the Exhibitions programme. The Garman Ryan Epstein Collection The Garman Ryan Epstein Collection was formed in 1996 with the intention of creating a partner collection to the Garman Ryan Collection, which is a closed collection. This Collection contains over thirty works of art by artists closely related to the Garman Ryan Collection, in particular works by Sir Jacob Epstein, which have been purchased, bequeathed or donated to The New Art Gallery. The Contemporary Art Society’s Special Collection Scheme This Lottery funded scheme ran between 1998-2004 and has supported the acquisition of contemporary art and crafts across the country. In Walsall, the collecting policy enabled works to be collected, which demonstrated the diversity of contemporary sculpture and within the context of a unique new building. Through this scheme, Walsall has been able to add to its collections key works by Gavin Turk, Hew Locke, Mike Nelson, Yoshihiro Suda, Dorothy Cross, Laura Ford, Darren Lago, Estelle Thompson, Richard Woods, Yinka Shonibare and Rose Finn-Kelcey. Some of the works acquired through this scheme have been exhibited or will be in the near The new Art Gallery Customer service standard Page 3 of 7 future. The works that comprise this collection transfer ownership to Walsall Council from the Contemporary Art Society in 2010. Garman Ryan Collection Temporary Exhibitions Exhibitions with the Garman Ryan Collection are intended to develop knowledge and understanding of the Collection, by focusing on an individual artist or work of art or by exploring a relevant theme. Works produced as part of the education programme have sometimes been displayed as part of this programme, particularly where the works have been created in response to the collection. THE DISCOVERY GALLERY The Discovery Gallery offers a hands-on interactive experience where children from 3 – 103 can learn about contemporary art through play. Having pioneered the development of interactive galleries for children and families in the UK, the gallery continues as a leader in the proactive development of spaces for the enjoyment and understanding of the arts maintaining a high quality service that challenges and inspires visitors and new audiences. Temporary Exhibitions On the third floor, the gallery boasts beautiful architectural spaces designed to display a changing programme of exhibitions. These galleries are of world-class specification. Particular emphasis is placed on the support of living artists and developing audiences for contemporary art. Historic art is also occasionally shown, particularly modern art or that which has a clear link to the Garman Ryan Collection. The Gallery is particularly committed to enabling the development of new work and providing opportunities for creative and professional development for artists through its programme and engaging broad and diverse audiences. ARTISTS’ PROJECTS The artists’ studio at The New Art Gallery Walsall provides the potential to support artists in creating new work, to build relationships between artists and their audiences, and to broaden the range of artists and contemporary art practice accessible to visitors. Education Education is at the heart of The New Art Gallery Walsall’s mission; acting as a focus for debate and a source of knowledge on arts education in the borough, regionally, nationally and internationally. The formal and informal public education programme is enhanced by working in consultation and partnership with a variety of statutory voluntary agencies to develop innovate and dynamic lifelong learning opportunities that promote quality and effective arts education. The New Art Gallery Walsall aims to promote the use of visual arts as an educational tool to inspire, excite and develop skills, knowledge and understanding; to contribute to the regeneration and cultural development of the borough; and to The new Art Gallery Customer service standard Page 4 of 7 provide an excellent model of accessibility to reach the broadest possible audiences, locally, regionally, nationally and internationally. LIBRARY and ARCHIVE The New Art Gallery Archive and Library has been developing since the opening of Walsall Museum and Art Gallery in 1892. The Librarian/Curator started to collect periodical editions of The Studio and The Connoisseur, which are still in the library today. The Library at The New Art Gallery contains around 5,000 art books, 200 videos and 40 CD ROMS. A database of its book and catalogue contents is accessible through the Walsall Central Library system. The New Art Gallery General Archive contains files, slides, videos, CDs, photographs and paper copy documentation of the collections and the digital database of the art collections on the Admuse system. There is also documentation relating to past exhibitions from the 1960s onwards including slide documentation, photographs, printed materials, videos and CDs. The Archives of the development and building of The New Art Gallery are held at the Local History Centre in Walsall. The Epstein Collection Archive The current collection was instigated in 1996 as a "partner" collection to the Garman Ryan Collection and the Garman Ryan Epstein Collection. It currently consists of photographs, letters, catalogues, books, tapes, videos and other digitally stored material relating to Sir Jacob Epstein, Lady Kathleen Garman and her family and friends. It also contains material relating to artists whose work is represented in the Garman Ryan Collection. The archive is intended to be a major resource for anyone wishing to research the above areas and acts as a secure repository with appropriate legal restrictions for items deposited by donors and lenders. It also supports the development of interpretation around the Garman Ryan Collection and the work of Sir Jacob Epstein.