Nandy plans to get Government Art Collection ‘out of the basement’

The culture secretary Lisa Nandy has revealed plans to bring the Government Art Collection into communities across the UK.

The collection, which is almost 125 years old, features more than 15,000 works of art from the 16^th century to present day. Pieces from the collection are displayed in UK government buildings and embassies around the world.

Speaking at the announcement of the Government Art Collection’s Robson Orr TenTen Award this week, Nandy said: “It's our intention as a new government that more people will be able to have that incredible experience that I had rifling around through the amazing artworks over the years, being able to see that talent that's celebrated, and being able to be inspired by so many of those incredible works of art.”

The culture secretary said she was “determined to get the nation's great artworks out of the basement and into communities where they belong”.

She said: “We're going to lead by example with the Government Art Collection to make sure that people in every part of our country can see what an incredible treasure trove that is, and in turn inspire us to go and create for the next generation, because it belongs to us all.”

Nandy said it had been a “great sadness” for her to see culture and creativity “erased from our classrooms and our constituencies”.

“It's something that has been neglected and we are absolutely determined that will change, because that ability to live a richer, larger life belongs to every child in our country,” said Nandy.

The government is seeking to ensure “that becomes a reality for [children] again", she added. "Who knows, maybe one of them then can go on to share their gifts with all of us and with the world."

Now in its seventh year, the Robson Orr TenTen Award sees a British artist commissioned to create a new artwork to add to the collection. The 2024 award was presented to the Grenada-born artist Denzil Forrester for his work Altar, which depicts a scene from a reggae music festival in Cornwall.

The award is sponsored by philanthropists Sybil Robson Orr and Matthew Orr.

Museum sector bodies have welcomed the new government’s commitment to widening access to art and culture, but have warned ministers that structural funding is urgently required to keep the sector afloat in light of severe financial pressures.

Museums Association director Sharon Heal said: “We absolutely support getting art and objects out into the regions and into community settings. But let’s not forget that there’s plenty of great art and many nationally significant collections in regional settings already and many local and civic museums are facing insurmountable financial pressures that mean they are struggling to care for and share their collections.

“We urgently need these structural funding issues to be addressed and are calling for emergency funding for civic museums across the UK.”