Manchester Museum, part of the University of Manchester, will reopen to the public on 18 February following a publicly funded architectural transformation, designed by architectural practice Purcell.
The two-story architectural extension will house new galleries, including a new Exhibition Hall, which will open with a Dinosaur display and Golden Mummies of Egypt that ‘challenges Victorian narratives of “ancient Egypt”’, and the South Asia Gallery – the first permanent space in the UK to explore South Asian diasporas, in partnership with the British Museum. A new Lee Kai Hung Chinese Culture Gallery and the Belonging Gallery are also part of the redevelopment.
The themes of cultural exchange and lived experiences will guide the development of these new spaces. The South Asia Gallery will be co-curated with the South Asia Gallery Collective – a group of 30 individuals consisting of community leaders, educators and artists – to examine the connection between South Asia and Britain, and the legacy of Empire. Their curatorial practice will also explore contemporary South Asian culture and creativity through the afterlives of historical artefacts. In addition, the Belonging Gallery will negotiate ideas of belonging through stories of historical and contemporary migration.
