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| Shirley-Anne Somerville, Minister for Further Education, Higher Education and Science, with a maquette of an part of The Regenerators which will be placed into the GSA's Archives and Collections along with other material from the project |
Internationally important collections at university museums will share £3.6 million of funding announced today at The Glasgow School of Art by Shirley-Anne Somerville, Minister for Further Education, Higher Education and Science. The funding will be managed by the Scottish Funding Council.
University museums look after over two million items which account for around 18% of Scotland’s national collection. They include the Charles Rennie Mackintosh Collection at The Glasgow School of Art, a collection of musical instruments at the University of Edinburgh and a collection of historic scientific instruments at the University of St Andrews.
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| Image: left to right Dr Stuart Fancy (Director Research and Innovation, SFC); Shirley-Anne Sommerville Minister for Further Education, Higher Education and Science, artist Luke Andrew, Professor Tom Inns - (Director of the GSA); Richard Parry (Director of the Glasgow International Festival of Visual Art) |
The announcement was made at The Glasgow School of Art (the GSA) whose Archives and Collections continually document the work of its staff, students and alumni. The Minister was shown artwork which is about to be added to the Archives and Collections. Commissioned as part of the 2018 Glasgow International Festival of Visual Art they formed part of a vibrant public art display in the city’s East End. The Minister met two of the young artists who contributed to the artwork though workshops supported by Glasgow School of Art’s Widening Participation team.
Shirley-Anne Somerville, Minister for Further Education, Higher Education and Science, said:
“Hearing from students at the Glasgow School of Art, it is clear that the collections play an important part in their day-to-day learning as well as providing a service to the wider research community. Our funding will support projects across nine Scottish universities to enhance the public accessibility of their museums and galleries and help build on existing community engagement and outreach work.”
“We are grateful for the ongoing support for The Glasgow School of Art’s Special Collections announced by the Minster for today,” says Director, Professor Tom Inns.
“Our Archives & Collections contain material dating back over 170 years to the early years of the School including our Mackintosh collection.”
“They are also a dynamic, evolving resource, and I am delighted to announce today that material from The Regenerators, a major artwork commissioned by Glasgow International Festival of Visual Art for the 2018 Director’s Programme, will be placed in the GSA Archives.
The Regenerators was made by one of our graduates, the acclaimed artist Mick Peter, with contributions from 19 young people who have benefitted from our Widening Participation programmes. It is an artwork that encapsulates what is special about Glasgow and the GSA.
We would like to thank GI Director, Richard Parry, and Mick for the opportunity to offer future generations of students and researchers access to this wonderful work.”
John Kemp, interim chief executive of the Scottish Funding Council, said: “Scottish university museums are an important educational and cultural resource for the nation. This funding is a significant investment in the valuable work that goes on there and will also support the museums’ ambition for the future in areas such as digital technology.”
Jacky MacBeath, Convenor of University Museums in Scotland, said:
“This is fantastic news for university museums in Scotland. This grant will support innovative work in university museums, from local inclusion programmes to international engagement projects.”
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Note to Editors:
The universities that will share the grant are:
Aberdeen
Dundee
Edinburgh
Glasgow
The Glasgow School of Art
Heriot-Watt
Robert Gordon University
St Andrews
Stirling