麻豆约拍

Neil MacGregor presents a new series for 麻豆约拍 Radio Four celebrating the role and ambition of museums the length and breadth of the country, and in the process he'll be find answers to the question 鈥榃hat are Museums For in 2022鈥�.

Once again the challenge for today's museum is how to best serve a community that has experienced the industrial decline of the last half-century. In Bishop Auckland's case, it was the demise of the Coal industry that left the region facing so many challenges. The Auckland Project response was the opening of a Miners Art Gallery, to run alongside their celebrated paintings by the Spanish artist Zubaran of Jacob and his twelve sons. And to give that Castle treasure new context, the Trust has opened a third gallery celebrating the golden age of Spanish Art. Driven by founder Jonathan Ruffer, the ambition is to show that art is democratic, and that the very best of painting from Spain can matter to any community given the opportunity to see it.

Museums have always been telescopes trained on the past to help locate a sense of place in the present. Neil believes that role is an active one, responding to changes in the people museums serve and the shifting social and cultural landscape they inhabit. After spending much of his life at the centre of our national Museum life in London, Neil is taking to the road to discover more about the extraordinary work being done in cherished Museums outside the capital, from Stornoway to Stowmarket, and Belfast to Birmingham.

In each episode he visits a single museum, inviting them to choose an object from their collections which they feel best illustrates their civic role, and the way they relate and want to relate to their local audience. Very rarely have they chosen a crown jewel from their often priceless collections. More often it's an object with a particular local resonance, or which helps tackle episodes from the past which are being viewed very differently by citizens in the 21st century.

He鈥檒l be visiting the great national museums of Wales, Northern Ireland and Scotland, as well as major city institutions in Birmingham, Leeds, Liverpool and elsewhere. And in spite of the challenges of the last two years, everywhere he meets passionate teams who are dedicated to providing a unique experience for both local audiences and visitors from further afield.

Neil writes: 鈥淲hat鈥檚 going on in our museums is at once challenging and exciting and it can only really be understood by visiting as many as possible and finding out how they have approached what is a vital role in providing a sense of local, regional and national identity.鈥�

Producer - Tom Alban
Original music composed by Phil Channell