Amgueddfa Cymru – Museum Wales  

Facilitating community engagement with artwork in Valleys Re-Told 

The Esmée Fairbairn Collections Fund provided funding to Amgueddfa Cymru to facilitate local communities engaging with artworks in national and local collections, informed or inspired by the South Wales Valleys. The aim of its funded work, Valleys Re-Told, was to encourage and capture new knowledge and interpretations of artworks that reflect the people, culture and identity of the region.

Amgueddfa Cymru partnered with two local museums to engage local community groups and schools. Core to the work was getting to know communities and what they wanted, exploring new ways of doing things, and being comfortable with unknown outcomes.

Amgueddfa Cymru recognised that it’s not about communities needing museums, it’s about museums needing communities.

Meeting groups where they are, finding a connection and responding to their needs was key. A group of young people, for example, were interested in vocational issues such as who conserves the paintings. Another group connected to the social history of a particular photograph.

The work was led by a dedicated position skilled in making connections and building trust.

Examples of some of the work included facilitating the loan from the national collection to a local art group of a painting painted in their village, to display in their village library in an exhibition of members’ work which was inspired by it. The museum team has also supported school pupils to create exhibitions inspired by the collections, at partner museums.

Amgueddfa Cymru also facilitated the loan of artworks to a community charity that wants to bring them back for local people and to display them in different local venues, including at a disused mine’s changing room. Loaning artworks to community groups is complicated and has involved sharing curatorial skills and knowledge and clarifying how much responsibility a community partner is willing to take.

Questioning traditional museum practice and trying to make communities’ requests happen was central. The museum described its approach metaphorically as co-creating ‘desire lines’ where communities want to go, rather than following traditional museum road markings.

The team conducted ongoing evaluation and reflection, amended processes as needed, and staff kept a reflective journal which will inform reflection and evaluation. Early collaborations purposefully involved engaging communities on how to sustain the relationship after funding ended – how to leave them with the tools, knowledge and contacts to work independently, while remaining available to help as needed.

Valleys Re-Told has enabled communities to take ownership over what they want to do. One group, for example, invited an Amgueddfa Cymru director and their local Welsh Government politician to view their loaned painting in its local setting.

Working with communities has reignited joy in the collections for Amgueddfa Cymru, and colleagues report that it is now easier to get artworks out to communities. New roles are being developed so that they embed community engagement across Amgueddfa Cymru museums, and policies have been reviewed so they embed this vision in practice.

Valleys Re-Told has created a ripple effect and other community groups are approaching Amgueddfa Cymru to collaborate.