The Whitworth Facts for Kids

Quick facts for kids
The Whitworth


Former name	The Whitworth Institute and Park
Established	1889
Location	Manchester, England
Founder	Robert Darbishire
Owner	University of Manchester
Listed Building – Grade II
Official name: Whitworth Gallery
Designated:	2 October 1974
Reference #:	1246569

The Whitworth is a famous art gallery in Manchester, England. It has a huge collection of over 60,000 art pieces! You can find it inside Whitworth Park. The gallery is also a part of the University of Manchester.

In 2015, the Whitworth reopened after a big makeover. This £15 million project doubled the space where art is shown. It also brought back some of the building's old features. The gallery now connects better with the park around it. In its first year after reopening, over 440,000 people visited. The Whitworth even won the Art Fund's Museum of the Year award in 2015.

History of the Gallery
- Art Theft in 2003
Building Design and Updates
- Modern Renovation and Expansion
Art Collections
Gallery Directors
Images for kids
See also

History of the Gallery

The Whitworth gallery started in 1889. It was founded by Robert Dukinfield Darbishire. He used money given by Sir Joseph Whitworth. Back then, it was called "The Whitworth Institute and Park." The first building was finished in 1908. Later, in 1958, the gallery became part of the Victoria University of Manchester.

In October 1974, the gallery building was given a special status. It became a Grade II listed building. This means it's an important historical building.

In 1995, a new area called the mezzanine court opened. This part was mainly for showing sculptures. It even won an award for its design. By 2010, the gallery was very popular. About 172,000 people visited it that year. This made it one of the top 10 most visited places in Greater Manchester.

The gallery closed for a big renovation in 2013. It reopened in February 2015 after the £15 million project. More than 440,000 people visited in its first year back. It was even considered for the Stirling Prize, a top award for buildings. The Whitworth also won the Art Fund's Museum of the Year award in 2015.

Art Theft in 2003

On April 26, 2003, something surprising happened. Three very valuable paintings were stolen from the gallery. They were worth about £4 million in total. The stolen paintings included The Fortification of Paris with Houses by Van Gogh, Poverty by Picasso, and Tahitian Landscape by Gauguin.

Later, someone gave a secret tip to the police. The paintings were found rolled up in a nearby public toilet. There was a note with them. The note said the theft happened to show that the gallery's security wasn't very good. After some small repairs, the paintings were put back on display.

Building Design and Updates

The gallery building is a Grade II listed building. It was built between 1895 and 1900. The design is in a style called free Jacobean. It was designed by J.W. Beaumont. The building has two main floors and a basement. It is made of red bricks with matching terracotta decorations. The roofs are green slate.

Modern Renovation and Expansion

The Whitworth Gallery extension

In 2008, a competition was held to design a new extension. Money for this project was secured in 2011. In September 2013, the gallery closed for the big renovation. The £15 million project got help from the Heritage Lottery Fund and the University of Manchester. The architects, MUMA, worked on the updates.

The renovation added more gallery space. It also created a learning studio and a study center. There's now an art garden and a café. The new part of the building is made of glass, stainless steel, and brick. It has two sections that reach into Whitworth Park from the back of the gallery. These sections are connected by a glass walkway. The extension made the gallery one-third bigger than before.

The new extension opened on February 14, 2015. It doubled the public space inside the gallery. This means there's more room to show the gallery's huge collection of over 60,000 items. The new design also connects the building directly to Whitworth Park.

The renovation and extension work won an award in 2015. It was also considered for the RIBA Stirling Prize, a very important award for architecture.

Art Collections

The Whitworth has amazing collections of different types of art. It has many watercolours, sculptures, wallpapers, and textiles. Some very old and important works are by artists like Thomas Gainsborough, Alexander and John Robert Cozens, and Thomas Girtin.

The gallery also shows art from modern and recent artists. You can see works by famous names like Degas, van Gogh, Gauguin, Picasso, Paul Klee, Henry Moore, Barbara Hepworth, and David Hockney. One of its most famous sculptures is Genesis (1929–31) by Sir Jacob Epstein. The gallery also has a special collection of "Outsider Art." This is art made by people who are not formally trained artists.

Gallery Directors

In June 2017, Maria Balshaw left her role as director. She became the director of the Tate, another big art museum. Nick Merriman then took over as the temporary director.

On October 11, 2018, it was announced that Alistair Hudson would be the new director. He now leads both the Manchester Art Gallery and the Whitworth. Before this, Hudson was the director at the Middlesbrough Institute of Modern Art.

Sook-Kyng Lee became the new director of the Whitworth in August 2023. She also became an Honorary Professor at the University of Manchester.