News archive 1999
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View of a 2001 future in Liverpool Museum, December 1999
Rex Makin endows new galleries at city museums, November 1999
Donors thanked as museums appeal reaches final
£200,000, November 1999
Paint, thread and sequin "Mirage" wins John Moores, September
1999
Sands of Time, July 1999
National Museums Liverpool and Loughborough University develop
new marble consolidation technique, or "microscopic welding", March 1999
National Museums Liverpool 2001 - The Heritage Lottery Fund awards
National Museums Liverpool £23.97M, July 1998
UK wins top European culture award for the first time in 11 years,
June 1998
View of a 2001 future in Liverpool Museum
Liverpool Museum will be almost doubled in
size as part of the 34 million National Museums Liverpool 2001project
which will see 30,000 extra items brought out of storage and put on public
display. One million artefacts and specimens have been moved as builders
prepare for its massive multi-million pound refurbishment
The museum will be transformed by the addition of many features including a
six-storey glass-topped central atrium, a new ground level entrance and a host
of new galleries and attractions.
These will include the Exploration Zone, a hands-on centre for natural
sciences and human history, the Bug House where the world of insects and
spiders is brought to life and InfoWorld, an attraction with
multi-media presentations and events. The new World Cultures Gallery will be in
the Upper Horseshoe Gallery and will explore Africa, Asia, the Pacific and the
Americas.
Loraine Knowles, keeper of Liverpool Museum, says: "This is a tremendously
exciting time. After years of detailed preparations, things are now happening.
We shall make this museum fit to face the Millennium with confidence."
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Rex Makin endows new galleries at city museums
Well-known Liverpool solicitor Professor Rex
Makin has made cash gifts to support new galleries at two city museums.
The gifts will be split between the China Trade Gallery in the World
Cultures section of Liverpool Museum and the
Liverpool Lives Gallery at the Museum of
Liverpool Life.
Professor Makin hopes that his gifts will encourage others to back what
is now the very last stage of the fundraising for National Museums Liverpool
2001. This 34 million project is transforming Liverpool Museum
and improving facilities at the Museum of Liverpool Life and the Walker
Art Gallery. National Museums & Galleries on Merseyside (National
Museums Liverpool) has to find a final 200,000 by the end of the year.
It has raised more than 2 million towards a fundraising target of 2.67
million.
Richard Foster, director of National Museums Liverpool, says: "We are extremely
grateful to Professor Makin for his very generous donation. This is the fifth
time in the last seven years that Professor Makin's family has assisted
National Museums Liverpool with a large donation. Professor Makin's generosity
to the many causes he supports is of huge benefit to Merseyside."
Professor Makin cites his family background as a reason for donating towards
the new galleries. One of his great grandfathers came to Liverpool in Victorian
times and set up a seamen's outfitters in Old Hall Street. It attracted
mariners from all over the world. The original shop carried on trading until
well after the Second World War.
Professor Makin says: "I was brought up with the trade of the port. They sold
all things that seamen needed and they were money changers, watchmakers and
jewellers."
His father was brought up in Park Lane, part of Liverpool's old Chinatown, and
manufactured trunks for seamen. When this trade ended, he switched to other
lines to earn a living. His relatives imported musical instruments.
"When I heard of the project that was being contemplated at Liverpool Museum, I
thought there was no finer way to commemorate my own family connection with the
port."
On his support for the Museum of Liverpool Life, Professor Makin says:
"Liverpool has always been a cosmopolitan city. It has preached integration of
ethnic minorities and people of different religious backgrounds for centuries.
I hope these gifts will encourage others to support National Museums Liverpool
2001 so that it may not only be a resounding success but a phenomenal
success, from which all citizens will benefit."
Both gifts are inscribed: Dedicated with affection to the people of Liverpool
by Shirley, Rex, Susan, Robin, Madeleine and Moses Makin.
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Donors thanked as museums appeal reaches a final £200,000
In November 1999 Cherie Booth QC and Lord Rothschild hosted events in London's
Downing Street and Spencer House to thank and update major donors to the
National Museums Liverpool's National Museums Liverpool 2001 project.
This 34 million project will see Liverpool Museum doubling in size with
many new attractions as well as improvements at both the Walkker Art Gallery
and Museum of Liverpool Life.
The evening started at 10 Downing Street where Cherie Booth greeted guests for
a reception. Then the 50 guests moved on to Spencer House, St James's Place,
for supper hosted by Lord Rothschild.
The invitation list included many well-known figures in the arts and museum
world along with leading patrons of National Museums & Galleries on
Merseyside (National Museums Liverpool).
Richard Foster, National Museums Liverpool director, said: "We are extremely
grateful for the splendid support given by our donors. Thanks to them, we are
now within 200,000 of achieving our target. Members of the public can help by
supporting our public appeal."
Lady Vaizey, chairman of National Museums Liverpool Development Trust, said:
"On behalf of the Board of Trustees, I would like to thank all those who have
so generously donated to National Museums Liverpool 2001.Their support will
help to make this ambitious project a reality which will have a lasting
legacy."
Money was raised from a number of sources: 23.97 million from the Heritage
Lottery Fund (its largest-ever grant to a museum project), a 3.65 million
European Regional Development Fund Objective One Grant, 3.43 million from
National Museums Liverpool and a target of 2.67 million from the fund-raising
campaign including the public appeal.
Building work has started at Liverpool Museum and is due for completion in
November 2001. New attractions will include the Exploration Zone with natural
sciences and human history displays, the Treasure House enabling visitors to
examine fragile items under expert supervision and the Bug House, where the
world of insects and spiders will be brought to life.
The Walker Art Gallery improvements will begin in August 2000 and are
due to be finished in July 2001. Improvements include the refurbishment
of the Prince George Gallery and a gallery for prints and drawings. Work
has begun at the Museum of Liverpool Life, due for completion July 2000.
There will be two new displays - one with the theme Home and Community
and the other about the
King's Regiment.
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Paint, thread and sequin "Mirage" wins John
Moores
A surreal desert landscape created with acrylic paint, thread and sequins
is the winner of the 21st John Moores, at The Walker Art Gallery,
Britain's leading contemporary painting competition.
"Mirage"is the work of Dutch-born artist Michael Raedecker. He wins the top
prize of 25,000 while 10 other prize winners receive 1,000 each. A panel of
five judges including writer Germaine Greer and "Times"art critic Richard Cork
sifted through 2,100 entries for the prestigious exhibition.
As an undergraduate, Michael studied fashion. His experiences of the properties
of thread and the techniques of sewing have underpinned the evolution of his
painting style. "Painting, thread and sequins are combined to create a hybrid
image," says exhibition organiser Alex Kidson.
"Mirage"is a dream-like panorama featuring hypnotic detail and microscopic
life, creating a surreal atmosphere.
Michael studied at the Gerrit Rietvelt Academie and Rijksakademie, both in
Amsterdam, followed by Goldsmiths College, London. He has held one-man
exhibitions in The Hague, Amsterdam and London and group shows in Holland,
Germany, Israel and South Korea. Among Michael's most recent London exhibitions
have been "Loose Threads"(Serpentine Gallery 1998), "Die Young Stay Pretty"
(ICA 1998) and "Examining Pictures" (Whitechapel Art Gallery 1999).
The other John Moores 21 prizewinners are "Untitled (Blue)" by Alan Brooks; "In
Transit"by Gang Chen; "Changing the Need" by Christopher Cook; "Poured
Painting: Dark Red / Black / Dark Red" by Ian Davenport; "Safe (Quick Fix)"by
Angela De La Cruz; "Tent" by Kaye Donachie; "The Death of Nelson (No. 50)" by
Stephen Farthing; "Confession"by Jason Martin; "Hometime" by George Shaw and
"Armchair Painting (When All Is Said And Done)" by Amikam Toren.
Prof. Greer says of "Mirage" and Michael Raedecker: "The first prize winner is
an interesting and disturbing artist, whose subversiveness is cunningly belied
by his restricted palette and smooth transitions. The longer you look at this
big apparently shy picture the dizzier you feel."
John Moores 21 is funded by the National Museums Liverpool and the John Moores
Exhibition Trust, supported by the Foundation for Sport and the Arts.
This year's exhibition is part of the Liverpool Biennial of Contemporary
Art.
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"The Sands of Time - An Introduction to the Sand Dunes of the Sefton Coast"
The results of one man's fifty years study of Sefton's coast and sand dunes are
revealed in a new book, "The Sands of Time - An Introduction to the Sand Dunes
of the Sefton Coast" by Dr Philip Smith.
Dr Smith spent his childhood at Ainsdale, where he played on the dunes and kept
pet natterjack toads. He returned to the area in 1968 as a lecturer in Applied
Biology at Liverpool Polytechnic (now the Liverpool John Moores University) and
made extensive use of the dunes in his work. Following his retirement in 1992,
he has been an advisor to the Sefton Coast Life Project.
"The Sands of Time" is published by National Museums & Galleries on
Merseyside with financial help from the European Union LIFE-Nature Project and
is produced in full colour throughout. It looks at the history of the Sefton
dunes, which are still the largest dune area in England and shows how some 40%
of the original Sefton Coast dune area has been lost to redevelopment.
The towns of Bootle, Crosby, Formby and Southport are all built on sand and the
book shows how other areas have been altered by military use, agriculture,
forestry and recreation and how an important stretch of dunes has survived
virtually intact.
Also examined is the area's rich diversity of wildlife, both plant and animal,
some of which, such as the natterjack toads of the author's childhood, are
rated as internationally important.
The book describes conservation initiatives in the region such as the Sefton
Coast Management Scheme. This was created in 1978 to bring together the main
landowners and users to pursue common policies to protect and enhance the
coast. Since then, the significance of the area has further been reinforced by
the establishment of the Sefton Coast Life Project, part funded by the European
Commission, to support action for nature conservation including land purchase
and habitat management.
Curator of Botany at Liverpool Museum, Dr John Edmondson said: "This is likely
to be a best seller as it deals with one of the most important areas for
wildlife in North West England."
"The Sands of Time" is available from local bookshops and from the Liverpool
Museum shop priced 8.50 or by mail order from priced 8.50 + 1.50 p&p from
National Museums Liverpool Enterprises Ltd., 127 Dale Street,
Liverpool L2 2JH. For credit card orders ring 0151 478 4685.
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National Museums Liverpool and Loughborough University develop new marble
consolidation technique, or "microscopic welding"
Conservators at National Museums Liverpool have been working with scientists at
Loughborough University to develop a new method of marble consolidation. The
project is part of a comprehensive plan to improve conservation techniques used
for treating stone and marble sculpture.
The research was made possible by an award from the Scientific and Engineering
Council (SERC). National Museums Liverpool's sculpture section has won four
SERC awards during the past 10 years, mainly for its research into laser
technology. These awards are hard to come by and it is a tribute to the
innovative nature of our research that we have had so many.
The idea of repairing pollution-damaged marble by growing new marble crystals
follows on from our successful projects in devising laser-cleaning systems for
removing pollution encrustations from sculpture.
John Larson, Head of Sculpture Conservation at National Museums & Galleries
on Merseyside, says: "We now know that we can carefully clean the most severely
weathered marble sculpture without damage, using lasers. This still leaves us
with the problem of consolidating the marble to prevent further surface loss
and degradation.
"Traditionally, friable marble is consolidated with synthetic resins such as
acrylics, salines and epoxies. These have a number of disadvantages.
These resins saturate damaged areas when applied, often causing darkening of
the surface.
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Long-term weathering trials show that most of these treatments break down after
about 10-15 years and retreatment is necessary.
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Retreatment is not only expensive, it means that only compatible materials can
be used for the process. There is also the problem that because the resin
blocks internal pores, a second application may have little effect and could
cause disruption to the first treatment.
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One argument that has become increasingly important is the ethical one. By
saturating a sculpture with a synthetic resin, conservators can be accused of
destroying the integrity of the object by turning it into a block of plastic."
John Larson continues: "In designing our research project, we touch an entirely
different approach to the one described above. We knew that mineral crystals
were often grown synthetically for specific industrial processes and it seemed
possible that these techniques could be adapted for our purposes.
"During their three-year programme of work, Dr Ian Sutherland and Clare Madden,
of Loughborough University, minutely examined the crystal structure of decayed
marble and also its chemistry.
"Their work has resulted in a simple system of applying solutions of calcium
hydroxide and calcium carbonate which, when subjected to warm streams of carbon
dioxide gas, rapidly produces crystal growth. The crystals produced are
identical in appearance and chemistry to the original crystals of decayed
marble. Applied properly, the solutions will not cause growth on the marble
surface, only between the crystals.
"This is like a form of microscopic welding and, after treatment, one can test
the added strength in the marble, simply by touching it."
"Clare and Ian have also looked at the problem of protecting the marble surface
against water ingress and pollution build up after treatment. By applying a
monolayer of stearic acid, water is repelled from the surface although moisture
vapour can still enter the pores in the stone.
"This research has provided us with an exciting technique for preserving marble
that is chemically compatible with the original, allows stone to breathe, does
not alter its colour and also allows for re-treatment. The method can be easily
applied and is not expensive."
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National Museums Liverpool 2001- The Heritage Lottery Fund awards National
Museums Liverpool £23.97M
The Heritage Lottery Fund announced in July 1998 that it was awarding National
Museums & Galleries on Merseyside 23.97m. This is the second largest single
grant ever made by the Heritage Lottery Fund, and the largest it has ever
awarded to a museum project. The award is for National Museums Liverpool 2001,
National Museums & Galleries on Merseyside's major capital project for the
21st century. The 33.72m National Museums Liverpool 2001 project will create
new opportunities for public access, enjoyment and lifelong learning.
National Museums Liverpool 2001 will transform Liverpool Museum and
carry out major developments at The Walker Art Gallery and Museum of Liverpool
Life, three of the National Museums & Galleries on Merseyside. National
Museums Liverpool 2001 will create 10 new attractions across the three
sites, refurbishing 16,000 sqm of historic buildings, restoring 8,000
sqm of galleries to public use, and bringing 30,000 objects and works
of art out of store. There will be 500 jobs created during construction
and 50 additional permanent jobs following completion.
Local, national and international audiences stand to benefit from much greater
access to collections, buildings and information. Interactive areas will
increase fourfold, and there will be 1,000 sqm of greatly improved education
and visitor services, including facilities for disabled users. National Museums
Liverpool's audience is projected to increase to between 1.2million and
1.3million by 2004/5, an extra 300,000 to 400,000 visits a year (National
Museums Liverpool attracted 900,000 visits in 1997/8).
Completion of the National Museums Liverpool 2001 project in 2001 will act as a
fitting celebration of the 150th anniversary of the founding of Liverpool
Museum in 1851.
The Heritage Lottery Fund grant will provide 71% of the total National Museums
Liverpool 2001 project cost, and National Museums Liverpool is hopeful that an
Objective 1 ERDF grant will also be allocated to the project. The balance will
come from National Museums Liverpool's own resources and an National Museums
Liverpool 2001 fund-raising campaign.
Commenting on the announcement in July 1998:
The Chairman of National Museums Liverpool's Trustees, David McDonnell,
who is National Managing Partner for Grant Thornton, said: "This marvellous HLF
grant moves us closer to realising a long planned project that will
dramatically increase lifelong learning opportunities and access for all. The
project will reaffirm National Museums Liverpool as an international visitor
attraction, centre of excellence and educational resource in the heart of
Liverpool. National Museums Liverpool already has world class collections and
world class expertise. We have won 17 national and international awards for our
work over the last 12 years, since we were established as a national museum.
Most recently, we won the prestigious European Museum of the Year Award 1998
for the Conservation Centre. The Trustees and staff of National Museums
Liverpool are delighted that we can continue to build on these successes." Mr
McDonnell added: "It is worth remembering that National Museums Liverpool 2001
is not a project in isolation. It complements and connects with other exciting
plans for the city and the region."
Director of National Museums Liverpool, Richard Foster, said:
"At National Museums Liverpool, we believe that museums and galleries are key
places for social interaction, and that they have an important part to play in
everyday 21st century life. National Museums Liverpool 2001 is all about
delivering this vision, and providing real social, educational and economic
benefit for a wide audience."
National Museums Liverpool 2001 at Liverpool Museum
The most dramatic developments will take place at Liverpool Museum. National
Museums Liverpool plans to:
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1. Extend Liverpool Museum by acquiring the lower floors of the adjacent Grade
II* listed Mountford Building. The buildings are integrally linked - two floors
of Liverpool Museum oversail the Mountford building.
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2. Create a new, street level entrance leading into a dramatic six-storey
atrium and circulation spine at the centre of the new museum complex, providing
a range of new visitor facilities.
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3. Create inspiring new displays on world cultures and habitats, restoring fine
1906 horseshoe-shaped galleries, one of which has been closed for more than
half a century. The new displays will bring out of store thousands of
treasures, many never shown before due to lack of space, and will include a new
family attraction called The Bug House
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4. Develop a multi-disciplinary, interactive learning centre, The Exploration
Zone, the first of its kind in the UK in combining natural sciences and human
history material.
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5. Develop an innovative, behind-the-scenes attraction called Treasure House,
where visitors can select and examine rare and fragile objects from the
collections. This exciting facility will support personal study, homework
projects and leisure pursuits.
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6. Make best use of the latest information and communication technologies
throughout the museum, in galleries, in reception areas and as stand alone
features.
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7. Introduce a new concept into museums, the InfoWorld Theatre. Here visitors
can enjoy advanced, multi-media presentations related to National Museums
Liverpool's collections, drawing on global information resources and combining
live inputs, telepresence and virtual reality.
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8. Renew the Aquarium, a popular feature of Liverpool Museum since the 1860s,
adding a hands-on Living Laboratory.
National Museums Liverpool 2001 at the Walker Art Gallery
Developments at the Walker Art Gallery will add a major new attraction
and continue a highly successful refurbishment programme. National Museums
Liverpool plans to:
- 9. Create an international standard exhibition suite, making it possible
for National Museums Liverpool to bring to Liverpool touring art shows
of national and international importance, complementing the Walker Art
Gallery's world famous collections of historic and contemporary art.
The new space will occupy architecturally impressive galleries previously
used for storage and conservation studios.
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10. Create a Prints and Drawings Gallery, part of the exhibition suite and
specially designed for the display of fragile works on paper and
light-sensitive textiles. The gallery will house rotating displays from the
Walker's important collection of watercolours, prints and drawings, currently
hidden from view.
- 11. Create a Craft and Design Gallery, the first dedicated decorative
art space at the Walker Art Gallery. Here visitors will be able to see
an exciting variety of historical and contemporary decorative art and
craft from National Museums Liverpool's wide-ranging collection. The
gallery will include interactive elements and multi-media information
points, introducing an unusual, hands-on approach to making craft and
design more accessible.
National Museums Liverpool 2001 at the Museum of Liverpool Life
Developments at the Museum of Liverpool Life will complete the next two phases
of the Museum, more than doubling existing display space. Both these galleries
are being created with the help of people living within local communities,
building on links forged by National Museums Liverpool over the past decade.
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12. Home and Community will look at the richness of Liverpool's cultural
diversity and explore the links between the people of Liverpool, the River
Mersey and the city. The gallery will present histories of the Chinese, Black,
Irish, Welsh, Jewish and Asian communities, alongside personal stories and
memories.
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13.City Soldiers will tell the story of the King's Regiment in war and peace -
the regiment has been associated with the City of Liverpool since 1881. The
gallery will look at army, family and social life, exploring issues not
generally covered in regimental museums. Central to the display will be
material from the internationally important regimental collection.
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UK wins top European culture award for the first time for 11 years
Then Arts Minister Mark Fisher congratulated Britain's premier national centre
for museum conservation on becoming European Museum of the Year. This was the
first time the award had come to the UK for 11 years.
The Minister said: "The Conservation Centre's winning the European Museum of
the Year Award is just recognition for the exceptional achievement of the
National Museums Liverpool in creating this truly remarkable public and
specialist facility. Through the imaginative application of video technology
and other means, the Conservation Centre gives ordinary museum users access to
an otherwise invisible, but fascinating, aspect of museum activity. Many, many
congratulations. It's wonderful news for Liverpool and thoroughly deserved."
The Minister's comments came as representatives of National Museums Liverpool's
Conservation Centre returned from the European Museum Forum awards ceremony in
Greece. National Museums Liverpool Director Richard Foster and Keeper of
Conservation Andrew Durham brought with them the European Museum of the Year
trophy, an original Henry Moore brass sculpture called The Egg.
National Museums Liverpool Director Richard Foster said: "All of us at National
Museums Liverpool are delighted that our pioneering Conservation Centre,
Britain's premier national centre for museum conservation and the first to open
its doors to the public, should be the recipient of this award, and the cause
of the award returning to the UK after so long. We are also delighted that this
European accolade is made during the UK's Presidency of the European Union."
He added: "We believe that in establishing the Conservation Centre, National
Museums Liverpool has taken a step that no other museum has taken. We have
broken new ground in opening up the hidden world of museum conservators to the
public. In our view, this is what makes the Conservation Centre so special -
the way it combines a public window on the usually hidden world of museum
conservators with a cutting edge, working centre for the care and study of
objects documenting the past".
"Coming to the Conservation Centre is like visiting a hospital for objects and
works of art. In the past, the vital work of museum conservators was all too
often taken for granted. Now our conservators, many of them recognised
authorities in their fields, are able to share their skills with a wider
audience. We are also attracting increasing attention from the international
art and scientific communities. We have experts all over the world interested
in what we do, particularly in our pioneering use of laser technology."
Andrew Durham, National Museums Liverpool's Keeper of Conservation, said: "Two
things make the Centre unique. We have experts carrying out work of the highest
calibre in a huge diversity of areas. We also have a public programme. This
award shows that our international colleagues have recognised that we want to
explain what we do."
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