Annual Review 2011/12 - Glasgow Life

Glasgow Life Annual Review 2011/12 31
“Glasgow is Scotland’s creative powerhouse, producing artistic and cultural work that
is both crucial to the nation’s economy and Glasgow’s unique distinction as a vibrant
destination, enjoyed by citizens and tourists alike.”
John Myerscough (2011)
Glasgow Museums celebrated a substantial
increase in visitors to the City’s collections with
more than 3.5 million recorded attendances.
This increase can largely be attributed to the
opening of the Riverside Museum and the
huge surge of visitors coming to see this iconic
attraction on Glasgow’s waterfront.
more
than
3.5
MILLION
VISITS
The Riverside Museum was opened to the
public, on time and on budget, in June 2011.
In its first year, it has attracted more than
1.5 million visits against an initial target of
650,000. The response to the museum from
local, national and international media and
visitors to the venue has been overwhelmingly
positive. In November 2011, HRH the Princess
Royal formally opened the museum and Kofi
Annan, former Secretary General of the United
Nations, paid a private visit in February 2012.
The Riverside Museum has won a string of
awards and been named as the overall
winner of Scotland’s favourite visitor attraction
in the Scottish Entertainment Guide, best
customer experience at the Scottish Digital
Business Awards in October 2011 and won
the best digital customer experience award
at the Herald Scottish Digital Business Awards
ceremony in November 2011.
Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum
reported an excellent year end with 1 million
attendances recorded during 2011/12 and
the venue also retained its status as Glasgow
Museums’ 5 Star Visitor Attraction. Responding
to customer demand and following the
successful exhibition in 2010, a Glasgow
Boys Gallery was opened in October 2011
exhibiting paintings by well loved figures
such as Guthrie, Walton, Henry, and Hornel,
alongside some superb works by artists who
are not so well known, such as Nairn, Mann,
and Roche.
The AC/DC Exhibition at
Kelvingrove from September 2011
to February 2012 attracted 41,000
visitors, most of whom had never
visited Kelvingrove before and
included visitors from all over the
UK and Europe, including fans
who travelled from Spain, Austria,
Portugal and Germany. The
band’s founding brothers, Angus
and Malcolm Young, were born
in Glasgow and in addition to celebrating the
relationship between this world-famous band
and Glasgow, the exhibition illustrated the
City’s deep rooted musical tradition, reinforcing
its UNESCO City of Music accolade.
The Gallery of Modern Art reported a very
successful year in 2011/12 with more than
600,000 recorded attendances, a 22%
increase compared to 2010/11. GoMA,
Tramway and the Centre of Contemporary Art
hosted the 2011 British Art Show and there
were 195,000 recorded visits to the galleries
between June and August 2011.
more than
1.5 MILLION VISITS
more than
600,000 VISITS
1 MILLION VISITS
Riverside Museum GoMA Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum