Art Fund Museum of the Year

The MAC: The Belfast museum that reaches out to Northern Ireland's disadvantaged communities

Spurred by a rise in hate crime in the region, The MAC has been collaborating with five charities to open the museum to minority groups

In partnership withArt Fund Museum of the Year 2023

The Burrell Collection: the recently reopened Glasgow museum is asking fresh questions of its objects and its audience

The country-park-based collection has returned with a new mission to create more diverse audiences and abandon preconceptions

In partnership withArt Fund Museum of the Year 2023

Wartime museum on remote Scottish island one of five UK cultural centres shortlisted for world's biggest museum prize

Winner of the Art Fund's Museum of the Year prize will receive a £120,000 award at a ceremony on 17 July

Obituariesfeature

Rafael Viñoly—museum 'starchitect' who believed in experience over aesthetics—has died, aged 78

Uruguayan-born architect had an acute understanding of the visual arts and produced prize-winning buildings

'As visitors return, the UK’s museums have a new sense of purpose'

The five finalists for Museum of the Year 2022 are changing the world around them, says Jenny Waldman, Art Fund director and jury chair for the £100,000 prize

In partnership withArt Fund Museum of the Year 2022

Tŷ Pawb: an eclectic Welsh centre that wants to be a home for all—including a sweet shop and a dog grooming parlour

Built as a multi-storey car park, this redeveloped Wrexham centre has found its focus on textiles, artists and local groups and offers children’s play and workshops

In partnership withArt Fund Museum of the Year 2022

People's History Museum: a place where protests are remembered—and where they begin

This Manchester museum, which has the world’s largest collection of protest banners, is empowering locals

In partnership withArt Fund Museum of the Year 2022

The Story Museum: a gateway to magical worlds for young readers—hidden in an old post office

From digital poohsticks to Mr Tumnus’s snowy footprints, this Oxford space is a place of great adventures

In partnership withArt Fund Museum of the Year 2022

Museum of Making: a hands-on community hub that honours—and revives—Derby's Industrialist past

At this former mill you can learn about manufacturing history and make something new somewhere old

In partnership withArt Fund Museum of the Year 2022

Horniman Museum and Gardens: asking difficult questions about colonialism, race and environmental issues

The south London institution has been examining its complicated history, listening and reaching out to diverse communities

In partnership withArt Fund Museum of the Year 2022

‘Excellence in Essex’: Firstsite wins Art Fund Museum of the Year 2021

The small contemporary art organisation was awarded the £100,000 prize for its work during the pandemic and engagement with the local community

CCA Derry~Londonderry: a lifeline for artists in isolation on both sides of Ireland's border

The Centre for Contemporary Art filled the lockdown gap with online conversations and social media takeovers

In partnership withArt Fund

Experience Barnsley: a crowdsourced museum in Yorkshire shows how culture can help in the pandemic recovery

The gallery located in the town hall is a true “museum of and for the people”

In partnership withArt Fund

Firstsite: bouncing back from past controversies to become a vital community hub

The Colchester art gallery celebrates its tenth anniversary this year

In partnership withArt Fund

Against all the odds, the UK’s museums are beacons of inspiration

Museum of the Year 2021 celebrates the sector’s triumphs in the face of adversity, says Jenny Waldman, Art Fund director and jury chair for the £100,000 prize

In partnership withArt Fund
Prizesnews

From village life to vaccine centre: Museum of the Year 2021 shortlist announced

Centre for Contemporary Art Derry-Londonderry, Experience Barnsley, Firstsite, Thackray Museum of Medicine and Timespan chosen as five finalists for Art Fund's coveted £100,000 prize

Prizesnews

Everyone’s a winner: Artes Mundi 9 prize awarded to all six nominees

Firelei Báez, Dineo Seshee Bopape, Meiro Koizumi, Beatriz Santiago Muñoz, Prabhakar Pachpute and Carrie Mae Weems each win £10,000 in latest example of award-sharing

Prizesnews

Museums of the year: Art Fund names five joint winners of UK’s biggest arts prize

Aberdeen Art Gallery, Gairloch Museum, the Science Museum, South London Gallery and Towner Eastbourne will share £200,000 award

Prizesnews

Five museums will share £200,000 as Art Fund reboots 2020 prize to battle coronavirus crisis

Museum of the Year prize has been changed from £140,000 awards and the shortlist will be announced in October

St Fagans National Museum of History wins Art Fund Museum of the Year award

The Cardiff museum is the first Welsh winner of the £100,000 prize, beating other finalists including V&A Dundee and Pitt Rivers Museum

Prizesnews

Regional institutions dominate shortlist for £100,000 Museum of the Year award

Northern Ireland's HMS Caroline and V&A Dundee among five finalists for the Art Fund's annual prize

Prizesnews

Tate St Ives wins Art Fund Museum of the Year award

Judges praise “breathtakingly beautiful” extension and the way the museum is “embedded in its community”

Ferens Art Gallery: a northern powerhouse

Hull gallery more than tripled visitor numbers during UK City of Culture year after “Herculean” renovation

In association withArt Fund (2018)
Fundinganalysis

Lauded, but not loaded: being shortlisted for a major prize does not solve a museum's money worries

Being part of the Museum of the Year brings kudos and a big PR boost, but some finalists have still found the financial going tough

In association withArt Fund (2018)

Tate St Ives: a deeper community connection on the Cornish coast

After a bumpy start, the extension to the Tate’s westernmost outpost has been welcomed and is now enabling the gallery to reach its full potential

In association withArt Fund (2018)

The Postal Museum: a ride into the story of mail that really delivers

The newly opened museum takes visitors on a journey underground and reflects major shifts in the nature of human connection

In association withArt Fund (2018)

Glasgow Women’s Library: a museum for the #MeToo era

The library shows that grassroots museums can take a gutsy stand and contribute to global debates

In association withArt Fund (2018)

What swung it? Former Museum of the Year judges reveal the qualities that led to the winners

All museums and galleries do important work—so what makes a truly visionary organisation?

In association withArt Fund (2018)

Brooklands Museum: a paean to the pioneers of motoring and aviation

A historic motor-racing circuit, Concorde and 4D experiences combine to provide a day out of old-school charm with contemporary quirks

In association withArt Fund (2018)