Museum revamp sparks debate over art displays

Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery's recent refurbishment has drawn criticism from an art historian who claims world famous artworks have been sidelined in favour of "gimmicky" modern displays.

Ruth Millington, a Birmingham-based art historian and author, said some of the gallery's most significant paintings had been removed from public view following the re-opening.

She said works by artists such as David Cox and Canaletto had been replaced by contemporary installations and displays focused on local culture - some presenting, she claimed, "stereotypical" views of the city.

Bosses said more people were coming since the re-opening and the venue was not just for "highly educated art historians".

The venue re-opened earlier this year following a major refurbishment programme aimed at modernising the visitor experience and attracting new audiences.

"Unfortunately," Millington told BBC Radio WM, "after this refurb, I feel like a lot of great masses have been hidden away - we've got new displays which focus on stereotypical views of Birmingham, [like] the cob [a bread roll], baths [in Moseley] and the BT Tower, which I feel doesn't show the city in the best light.

"I just feel like if you ask Chat GPT, what would you write about Birmingham, that's what it would write, and I feel like the museum could do better. It's meant to be a place of inspiration and education, and it should be surprising visitors."

Millington said she was concerned that some of the gallery's artistic heritage was no longer being given the prominence it deserved.

"The round room, which is when you first come in, it's architecture is glorious and I feel like the current curation in there doesn't quite match the space.

"It used to be jam-packed with academic paintings, old masters, pictures of Greek gods being pulled along in their carriages, and it was a place of absolute wonder.

"The walls now are white, and the pictures have been hung in a color-coded arrangement, which just seems to be a bit gimmicky and lacking vision."

Sara Wajid, co chief executive of Birmingham Museums Trust said visitor numbers had increased since the re-opening and that the museum was working to make its collections accessible to a broader audience.

"The museum isn't only for highly educated art historians, and the truth is we have to do a lot of different things.

"By putting on the Ozzy Osborne working class hero show, we have attracted more visitors than ever, in particular people who've never been to the museum before.

"We should be cultural leaders who are working for the people of Birmingham to get them the best they deserve," she said.

Wajid said the refurbishment was only one stage of a wider transformation, with further fundraising under way to restore additional galleries and bring more works from the collection back on display.

"We got a lot of money back in 2020 to refurbish the museum, but that was to only refurbish and mend the roof.

"Some artworks haven't been able to [be displayed], because several of the galleries are still in disrepair, in need of refurbishment."

Visitors had also praised, she said, some of the museum's existing attractions, including its renowned Pre Raphaelite collection and the restored tearoom.

"Fine art is brilliant, and it tells you so much, and there is imagination and worlds to explore, but you have to put the people at the center of the vision, and the people of Birmingham's voice was missing," Wajid said.

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