Manchester Museum has released a video allowing us to take a look inside their £15m transformation, as work continues to get the historic building ready for its February 2023 opening.
They’ve dubbed the project ‘Hello Future‘ and it includes a brand-new entrance and a two-storey extension which will feature an exhibition hall and South Asia Gallery and will reportedly increase the footfall of the museum by 25%.
The existing gallery and exhibition spaces have undergone extensive refurbishment, which saw more than 18,000 items either moved or protected from the building work.
There will also be a new space called the Belonging Gallery, the Lee Kai Hung Chinese Culture Gallery, and a South Asia Gallery, which is in partnership with the British Museum. New galleries will include a dazzling Exhibition Hall, which will host the internationally renowned Golden Mummies of Egypt.
The museum’s leisure facilities will also be getting an extensive makeover, including a ‘stylish’ new shop and cafe, toilets, prayer space, a quiet room, therapy space, and a picnic area. Accessibility and circulation have been big parts of the refurb, with the museum gaining a new ramped entrance from Oxford Road, which will lead to a new Welcome Area.
It was initially hoped that the museum would be ready to reopen by the end of 2022 but, thanks to challenges brought on by the COVID pandemic, there has been a short delay. It was announced that the museum will instead be re-opening to the public in February 2023.
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While Manchester Museum remains closed, it will be hosting a number of online and pop-up events, while its vast collections are available to explore on its website here:
