Join us at the Garden Museum for an insightful day conference looking at the creation of museum gardens and how they build audiences, support income generation, and play a role in local cultural placemaking.
In recent years, museums across the UK have begun to commission gardens, from the V&A and Royal Academy, to Whitworth Gallery in Manchester and The Hepworth Wakefield. But why now? And what is a museum garden for?
How can green space outside a museum be used to build audiences and connect them with collections? How can they support income generation, commercial activity and the development of a sustainable business model? And what role do museum gardens have in the development of local cultural placemaking?
Aimed primarily at museum and gallery professionals, and landscape design professionals who wish to develop a well thought-through museum garden project, this conference will bring together a highly experienced group of speakers to answer these questions by presenting specific case studies including The Hepworth Wakefield Garden, Horniman Museum and Gardens, Natural History Museum, Compton Verney and the V&A.
We’ll hear from professionals who have made the case for more actively used, and engaging green space outside the museum, and the designers who have made them. Members of the Garden Museum team will also share what we have learned about the creative fusion of indoors and outdoors.
A specific programme will be available in due course, and contributors include:
- Neil Davidson, Landscape Architect and Partner at J&L Gibbons. Currently Designing the Natural History Museum
- Dr Paul Kenrick, one of the lead scientists on the Urban Nature Project at the Natural History Museum
- Nathalie Glaser, Head of Corporate & Private Events, V&A
- Katy Merrington, Cultural Gardener at The Hepworth Wakefield Garden
- Victoria Pinnington, Director of Communications and Income Generation, Horniman Museum and Gardens
- Edwina Sassoon, Garden Museum Trustee
- Tom Stuart-Smith, Landscape Architect and Garden Designer. Designed The Hepworth, Wakefield
- Abigail Viner, Director of Creative Programmes and Engagement, Compton Verney
Tours of the Garden Museum collections and Dan Pearson designed courtyard garden will take place throughout the day, and ticket price includes refreshments and a vegetarian/vegan lunch from our award winning café.
