A new management organisation is being set up in 2025 to care for and share the Arts Council Collection. Established in 1946, it is one of the largest and most important national collections of modern and contemporary British art in the world. The Collection includes more than 8,000 works of art and reaches more than one million people each year.
The Southbank Centre has expertly managed the Collection since 1986. However, the Arts Council Collection requires additional storage capacity to continue collecting, caring for work and sharing it with the nation. The organisation will be moving into the Coventry City Centre Cultural Gateway (CCCCG), the former IKEA building, which is being repurposed. The CCCCG is part of a multi-million-pound investment in the West Midlands region. Its development provided an appropriate moment to review the management of the Collection and put in place plans for its future.
The consolidation of the organisation into one location with a dedicated new management structure will ensure the continued support and development of the Collection. The building will be a fitting legacy of Coventry City of Culture 2021. In addition, it will create employment opportunities and partnerships between the Collection and local organisations.
The Southbank Centre will support the set-up of the new management organisation, ensuring a smooth handover when the new Coventry centre is ready. They will oversee all activities related to the Collection until the new entity is fully operational. They will also support the first stage of the new organisation’s development, which will be the recruitment of an inaugural Chair and founding trustees in early 2025.
The new organisation will continue to focus on high quality collection management and acquisitions, increasing the reach of the Collection to partner venues across the UK. It will provide access to art works, digitally and in exhibitions, hosted by galleries, hospitals, schools and other publicly accessible buildings. It will develop its own imaginative and ambitious touring shows, ensuring that audiences across the UK, and internationally, can experience the very best of British art.
Sir Nicholas Serota, Chair of Arts Council Collection’s Acquisitions Committee, and of Arts Council England, said: “This move marks an exciting new chapter for the Collection, and for our aim to bring art closer to communities across the UK. Coventry is a city with a rich history of creativity and innovation. It has a vibrant cultural landscape, enriched by the legacy from UK City of Culture 2021, and this will ensure the Collection continues to inspire, engage, and connect people from all walks of life. I would also like to express our heartfelt thanks to the Southbank Centre for their expert care and stewardship of the Collection over the past four decades.”
Mark Ball, Artistic Director of the Southbank Centre, said: “As the Arts Council Collection relocates its stores to Coventry, the time is right for a new Midlands-based organisation to take a lead in managing the Collection for the benefit of the nation. Over four decades of expert stewardship the ACC team at Southbank Centre has developed and opened up the Collection, transforming it into a national resource for the benefit of museums, galleries, audiences and communities. I want to pay tribute to all the Arts Council Collection staff past and present who have worked with such care and imagination, and who will continue to work over the next two years to ensure a successful transition to the new independent organisation”.