Contact Us | Press Office | Turner Triumph Seals Barber's Record Year
Press Release: 6 February 2004
Turner Triumph Seals Barber’s Record Year
A record-breaking 21,000 art-lovers saw this winter's Turner exhibition at the Barber Institute of Fine Arts, making it the most successful show in the university gallery's history.
'The Sun rising through Vapour': Turner's early Seascapes closed at the Barber last Sunday after attracting a mammoth 1,555 visitors during its final weekend -- a huge 944 on Saturday, when the Art Bus ferried visitors between the Barber and Turner's Britain at the Gas Hall, and 611 on Sunday.
Gallery staff were also celebrating after 2003 became the Barber's most successful year since 2000. As well as being named 'Art Gallery of the Year' by The Good Britain Guide 2004, 45,060 visitors made it into the galleries last year -- a whopping 20 per cent increase on 2002's figure.
Previously, the Barber's most successful exhibition had been The Blue Bower: Rossetti in the 1860s, which attracted 16,935 visitors between 27 October 2000 and 14 January 2001 -- 222 visitors per day.
But while the Turner exhibition was 13 days longer than the Rossetti, 20,901 people came to see the seascapes -- making a daily average of just over 232.
Barber Senior Curator Dr Paul Spencer-Longhurst, who organized the Turner show, thought the large Turner's Britain exhibition at the Gas Hall, curated by University Curator Dr James Hamilton, might have contributed to the record attendances, turning Birmingham into a Turner magnet for art-lovers nationally.
"It's very gratifying indeed that Turner's early seascapes, often passed over with just a reverent nod of approval, have proved such a draw," said Dr Spencer-Longhurst. "But I'm not at all surprised -- one couldn't wish to curate an exhibition by a more fascinating and versatile artist."
The Barber's Director, Prof Richard Verdi, said: "The Barber has been steadily working towards this level of success for the past 10 years, and the combination of the Turner exhibition and the 'Gallery of the Year' award appears to have clinched it for us. But there's no reason to believe that we won't become even better known -- and appreciated -- in years to come."
| For further information, please contact Andrew Davies, Barber Press and Marketing Officer, on 0121 414 2946 or andrewdavies@barber.org.uk |