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Cornwall Museum unveils new name as it announces plans for reopening
Truro institution will open new art gallery displaying nationally significant collection
The former Royal Cornwall Museum in Truro is to reopen on 1 March under a new name and visual identity.
Now known as Cornwall Museum and Art Gallery, the 200-year-old institution is in the midst of a major transformation that began last year.
As part of the redevelopment, the museum will unveil a new art gallery next month displaying its nationally significant permanent collection, which includes more than 500 artworks dating from the 1300s to the present day.
The collection spans works from the German, Italian and Dutch renaissances to English history and landscape paintings, the Pre-Raphaelite and Newlyn schools, and St Ives modernism.
The museum has also launched a new visual identity and website. Julie Caplin-Grey, the museum’s chair of trustees, described the evolution of the museum and the resurrection of the art gallery as “a bold step into the future while respecting the past”.
Artistic director Bryony Robins said: “At times during our history we have been known as an art gallery as well as a museum because of the notable collection of paintings, sculptures, and drawings. When we took a step back and looked at our holdings and exhibitions, it was clear that we could and should be a museum and an art gallery once again.”
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Along with displays of works from the permanent collection, the museum will launch a programme of art exhibitions, beginning with Biodiversity by the contemporary Cornish artist Kurt Jackson, and continuing with Exploring Time: A Painter’s Perspective by the artist and environmentalist Tony Foster.
The second-floor balcony, which overlooks the central gallery, will feature a “salon hang”, with paintings displayed on the walls from floor to ceiling, alongside cases displaying sculptures and fragile works on paper.
Robins said: “Works will be grouped together in a mixture of themes and movements, inviting connections across space and time and prompting visitors to make associations with historical objects elsewhere in the museum.”
She added: “The founders of the museum wanted to enable cultural experiences for all – something which remains a cornerstone of our mission today. With an updated name and a new look, we’re inviting a whole new generation to engage afresh with the incredible cultural riches of Cornwall.”
Improvements to the venue’s upper galleries and facilities will continue in 2026-27.