Plans to abolish DCMS
Reports say UK Department for Culture to be axed by Prime Minister
— In partnership with Cornflower
Friday 09 May 2025 | news from museums, galleries, heritage and art, including:
Tate Modern celebrates 25 years — but shadow looms 🎂
Sycamore Gap pair guilty of felling historic tree 🌳
Museum rethinking loans to Trump’s America 🇺🇸
Happy Friday.
Ahead of its opening to the public tomorrow, I am happy to confirm that the National Gallery's Sainsbury Wing glow-up is a triumph.
I was lucky enough to be invited to see the Wing’s revamp this week. Let’s be clear from the outset: a fair chunk of the improvements are not ‘things’ you’re going to specifically notice (no one is going to say “oh hell, they’ve moved my favourite column over there!”).
I think the vast majority of people — myself included — won’t really be able to put their finger on what’s actually been done. You just get the sense that it’s brighter, bolder and (sort of) bigger, and that it’s a vast improvement as a visitor experience on what went before. It’s the improvement in how you feel in it, that’s how you know it’s worked.
From Bar Giorgio — the new espresso bar on the ground-floor — to the light-filled upper galleries displaying masterpieces from Raphael to van Eyck, the whole Wing is now a visitor-friendly space. It makes perfect sense for it to become the main entrance to the whole gallery, which it will at 10am on Saturday. And, installing the venue’s name in letters on the Wing’s facade is one of the most pleasingly executed details of the whole thing that you really wonder why it’s taken over 30 years to happen.
And yes, the new Richard Long mud-splatter mural — that I’ve reported in this newsletter before — is ‘a choice’, but I do think it’s brilliant. It is a shame that it ultimately decorates the lifts, but I find poetry in its message — that the entirety of the worlds and emotions evoked in the pictures on the walls of this gallery all ultimately descend from the same cosmic solar energy as this millennia-old mud from the Avon riverbed.
As for the rest of the gallery’s rehang — where 1,000 paintings across the whole building are being shown afresh — I’m yet to experience it. My press preview was a Sainsbury-specific affair. But if the reviews are anything to go by, it’s a triumph. The Guardian call it “a momentous retelling of the story [of art]” in a five-star rave. “Exhilarating” and a “triumph” said the Telegraph.
The elephant in the room is the National Gallery’s visitor numbers. The whole project was enacted to better accommodate the six million annual visitors it was getting at the end of the last decade. Since Covid, numbers have never returned to much over half that. Will this overhaul bring 3 million people back?
But that, perhaps, is a story for the future. For now, the gallery can be proud to close out the year-long celebrations for it’s 200th birthday on a high, and can open its doors tomorrow brighter, bolder and bigger than ever before.
— maxwell
— In partnership with Cornflower
Museum retail’s golden era
Museum retail has never been in better health.
Yes, it’s a golden period according to Simon Nutbrown, who founded his company Cornflower 26 years ago to help organisations maximise their commercial and retail income.
But what sparks his optimism?
“With digital print technology… bespoke product development is available to anyone with a retail operation” Simon told me in a new interview. “Even the smallest attractions can offer something exclusive.”
Simon is adamant that creating product around a unique collection — the concept of “exclusively available here” — is what is helping museum retail to compete with the High Street and online retailers.
So I asked him for his advice for cultural shops that want to start offering more bespoke product.
“Do it, try it!” he told me. “Museum shops have a golden opportunity!”
Read my full interview with Simon here (it might help boost your coffers!)
Top stories 🚨
PM plans to axe Department for Culture
Prime Minister Keir Starmer wants to abolish the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) according to reports — and could do it as soon as next month.
First reported in the Sunday Times, the suggestion is the department’s responsibilities will be split between the business department, the education department and the Treasury, with the ultimate aim being to fire Lisa Nandy, the current DCMS secretary. Rumours of a June reshuffle suggest the axe could fall as early as next month.
“We very much hope the rumours are not true,” Sharon Heal, director of the Museums Association said. “Having a seat at the cabinet table for culture has been a positive for museums…it would be a step backwards.”
Nat Edwards, the Royal Armouries Director — one of the 15 national museums directly funded by DCMS — said “if we get drawn into some sort of bureaucratic, technical debate about into which filing cabinet we should put our accounts, there's a real danger we lose valuable time and public attention.”
But a former director of a UK cultural organisation, told the Art Newspaper anonymously that it could actually solve problems. DCMS is “too diverse in its portfolio and too ineffectual in lobbying the Treasury” they said. (Read more)
🔗 OPINION | It’s so tempting to abolish the culture department — but don’t do it, Keir | Richard Morrison in the Times
Tate Modern celebrates 25 years
Louise Bourgeois’s iconic steel spider Maman is towering over Tate Modern’s Turbine Hall again, where it was first unveiled a quarter of a century ago. The sculpture — which greeted HM Queen Elizabeth II when she inaugurated the gallery on 11 May 2000 — is back to mark the venue’s 25th anniversary. A weekend of celebrations begin today, including two late-night parties until 23:30.
Alongside talks, workshops, music and tours, the birthday weekend sees a new trail of 25 inspiring artworks launched, which highlight much-loved classics and new arrivals — from Andy Warhol and Salvador Dalí, to Monster Chetwynd. You can also nab new, limited edition ‘life’ memberships to Tate for £2,500.
Media coverage this week has hailed Tate Modern’s 25 years of impact on Britain and the world. Yet current woes — deficits, layoffs, shrinking visitor numbers, questionable curation — have overshadowed. The New York Times called it “the museum of the century” but said its galleries now “stank of resignation and self-doubt.” The Financial Times said it’s current curatorial “approach diminishes the permanent display.” The Sunday Times said there’s “a sense of lost excitement.” (Read more)
Sycamore Gap pair guilty of felling historic tree
Two men have been found guilty of the "mindless destruction" of the world famous Sycamore Gap tree, the felling of which in 2023 sparked international outrage and saw significant damage to the historic Hadrian’s Wall.
Daniel Michael Graham, 39, from Carlisle, and Adam Carruthers, 32, from Wigton in Cumbria, were each convicted of two counts of criminal damage, including the damage caused when the tree fell onto part of the ancient wall. Prosecutors said the pair carried out the "mindless thuggery" as a "bit of a laugh" but, when they realised the public's fury, they were too cowardly to confess.
Welcoming the juror’s unanimous verdicts, the National Trust, which had owned the tree since the 1940s, said the "needless" felling had "shocked" people around the world. They said there would be a "positive legacy" however, with 49 saplings grown from the tree set to be distributed to charities and organisations across the country.
The men will be sentenced on July 15. (Read more)
UK news 🇬🇧
Funding victory to mark VE Day ✈️
Nearly £14m from the National Lottery Heritage Fund has been awarded to two museums to commemorate the 80th anniversary of VE Day. £9.3m will go to the RAF Museum Midlands in Shropshire to support a new collections hub and visitor facilities. The National Museum of the Royal Navy will get £4.4m to create a new museum for the Royal Marines in Portsmouth Historic Dockyard. (Read more)
Orwell archive saved for public 📚
160 archive items from George Orwell — which were at risk of being sold to private owners in an act dubbed “cultural vandalism” — have been saved for the public. The pieces relate to four early novels including The Road to Wigan Pier. They’ve now been purchased by University College London, which already holds the the world’s most comprehensive Orwell archive. Orwell’s son Richard Blair said he was “relieved” they now won’t be “gobbled by various collectors, never to be seen again.” (Read more)
Dickens descendants at museum centenary 🎂
Charles Dickens’ living descendants will — for one day only — lead tours and readings around the London museum where the author lived. The 9 June will mark exactly 100 years since the Charles Dickens Museum opened, and each room will feature a member of Dickens’ family including author Lucinda Dickens Hawksley. Entry to the museum will also be free that day. (Read more)
Bargain Hunt art expert admits terror offences 📺
An art dealer who has appeared as an expert on the BBC’s Bargain Hunt has admitted failing to report art sales to a man suspected of financing Hezbollah. Ogheneochuko Ojiri sold artwork worth about £140,000 to Nazem Ahmad. US prosecutors say Ahmad was a “major Hezbollah financial donor” who used high-value art and diamonds to launder money and fund the group. Today Ojiri pleaded guilty to eight offences under the Terrorism Act. (Read more)
Global news 🌎
France 🇫🇷
The Louvre closed its major exhibition on 13th century artist Cimabueat early last weekend when a hailstorm caused a water leak. The Art Newspaper’s Martin Bailey was in the gallery, and witnessed drips just meters from Cimabue’s Maestà, arguably the greatest early European painting. Some water fell on the base of the nearby Three Acolytes sculpture. A spokesperson confirmed the museum “did experience some water infiltration”. Importantly, “no works were damaged”. (Read more)
USA 🇺🇸
Director Judd Apatow will be the first ever guest curator of an exhibition at LA’s Academy Museum of Motion Pictures. The filmaker behind The 40-Year-Old Virgin and Knocked Up will curate a show on the history of film comedies. It’ll open in 2027. Apatow said he will “showcase some of my favorite films and filmmakers” and that he was “honored to curate this project alongside the museum’s talented team and with access to the Academy Collection.” (Read more)
Netherlands 🇳🇱
The Mauritshuis museum Director — home to Vermeer’s Girl With a Pearl Earring — has said they’re reconsidering loaning artworks to the USA because of Trump’s funding cuts and targeting of museums. Martine Gosselink said current loans were in train but that “we will be extra careful and we need guarantees” She added “how do you know for sure that the museum will still be open and working and operating during the whole period of the loan?” (Read more)
USA 🇺🇸
A giant musical ‘blow-up’ sculpture of the Incredible Hulk by Jeff Koons has sold for $3 million on the opening day of Frieze in New York. The sale by gallery Gagosian soared ahead of estimates, and signifies surprisingly brisk business at the art fair, when most commentators expected Trump and tariffs to dampen sales. But galleries report strong sales, including a $1.2 million monumental work by Rashid Johnson sold by Hauser and Wirth. And don’t worry, two more of Koon’s works are still available. (Read more)
Netherlands 🇳🇱
In a surprising announcement, police have said they believe ancient Romanian gold treasures which were stolen in a raid on the Drents Museum in January have NOT been melted down. The thefts shocked Romania, due to the objects’ “exceptional cultural…importance.” As police confirmed that two arrested suspects will remain in custody for another 90 days, they said they think the suspects “still have control over” the treasures. (Read more)
News in brief
Chicago director takes leave
The director of the Art Institute of Chicago has taken voluntary leave following reports he stripped off his clothes on a flight. The museum said it “takes this very seriously and has opened an independent investigation.” (More)
Climbing Churchill to be a crime
The government will make climbing on Winston Churchill’s Parliament Square statue a crime. It’ll be added to a list of war memorials that’ll soon be illegal to climb as part of an in-progress parliamentary bill. Punishment will include jail time. (More)
Robbie’s exhibition. No regrets?
Robbie Williams has unveiled his ‘art’ exhibition at London’s Moco. Critics have not been entertained. “Incredibly bad art” said the Guardian. “Self-absorbed art [that] treats its viewers like idiots” said the i paper.
Museum fashions a future
Hopes for reopening Bath Fashion Museum — closed since 2022 — have received a boost after a project to secure a new home was awarded over £760,000 in Lottery funding. (More)
Memorial to her majesty
The five shortlisted designs for the national memorial to Queen Elizabeth II have been unveiled. The winning design will have a budget up to £46m. Some of the ideas, it’s fair to say, are rubbish. (More)
Making money with exclusive products
In a new interview, I’ve discovered why museum retail has never been in better health. Speaking to expert Simon Nutbrown, he told me that “museum shops have a golden opportunity.” (Find out why)*
*This is sponsored
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