Exhibition: The Barber in London - Highlights from a Remarkable Collection (2025, Courtauld Gallery)
Link to paintings from the exhibition
From the exhibition label:
This display brings together a group of exceptional works from the Barber Institute of Fine Arts, University of Birmingham. The Barber was founded by Hattie, Lady Barber (1869-1933) in 1932, the same year as the Courtauld Institute of Art and its collection.
Lady Barber's ambition was to create an art museum for the benefit of university students Hattie (later Lady) Barber in the greenhouse at her home, Culham Court, around 1895-1900 and the wider public. Today, it holds one of the finest collections of European art in the United Kingdom, represented here by highlights that range from the Renaissance to the 20th century. Three further works are displayed across the second floor, integrated within The Courtauld's permanent collection.
Lady Barber founded the museum in memory of her husband, Sir Henry Barber (1860-1927), a wealthy Birmingham property developer and lawyer. Lady Barber did not herself possess a significant collection of art. Instead, she created a charitable trust with a sizeable endowment that allowed it to acquire works that were, in her words, 'of exceptional and outstanding merit' and of the 'quality required by the National Gallery and Wallace Collection'. Over more than 90 years, this founding vision has shaped a carefully selected collection of major works that represent key developments in the history of Western art.
The formation of the collection began in 1936 under the discerning eye of Thomas Bodkin, director of the Barber from 1935 to 1952, some of whose early acquisitions are on view here. Bodkin was buying at a time of economic crisis in the art market, which allowed him to secure important works by artists such as Peter Paul Rubens, Nicolas Poussin and Claude Monet, despite international competition for such masterpieces. Today, the collection includes around 180 paintings and continues to grow through significant acquisitions.
Lady Barber's gift also financed the construction of an exceptional Art Deco building on the University of Birmingham campus. Designed by Robert Atkinson (1883-1952), it opened to the public in 1939 with just 14 paintings on display. Intended as a centre for the arts more widely, the Grade I listed building also houses a concert hall, lecture theatre and art history library.
The Barber is currently closed until 2026 for refurbishment. This project will support its mission to be a welcoming and responsive museum of world-class art in Birmingham that is free for everyone.
Exhibition: The Barber in London - Highlights from a Remarkable Collection (2025, Courtauld Gallery)
Link to paintings from the exhibition
From the exhibition label:
This display brings together a group of exceptional works from the Barber Institute of Fine Arts, University of Birmingham. The Barber was founded by Hattie, Lady Barber (1869-1933) in 1932, the same year as the Courtauld Institute of Art and its collection.
Lady Barber's ambition was to create an art museum for the benefit of university students Hattie (later Lady) Barber in the greenhouse at her home, Culham Court, around 1895-1900 and the wider public. Today, it holds one of the finest collections of European art in the United Kingdom, represented here by highlights that range from the Renaissance to the 20th century. Three further works are displayed across the second floor, integrated within The Courtauld's permanent collection.
Lady Barber founded the museum in memory of her husband, Sir Henry Barber (1860-1927), a wealthy Birmingham property developer and lawyer. Lady Barber did not herself possess a significant collection of art. Instead, she created a charitable trust with a sizeable endowment that allowed it to acquire works that were, in her words, 'of exceptional and outstanding merit' and of the 'quality required by the National Gallery and Wallace Collection'. Over more than 90 years, this founding vision has shaped a carefully selected collection of major works that represent key developments in the history of Western art.
The formation of the collection began in 1936 under the discerning eye of Thomas Bodkin, director of the Barber from 1935 to 1952, some of whose early acquisitions are on view here. Bodkin was buying at a time of economic crisis in the art market, which allowed him to secure important works by artists such as Peter Paul Rubens, Nicolas Poussin and Claude Monet, despite international competition for such masterpieces. Today, the collection includes around 180 paintings and continues to grow through significant acquisitions.
Lady Barber's gift also financed the construction of an exceptional Art Deco building on the University of Birmingham campus. Designed by Robert Atkinson (1883-1952), it opened to the public in 1939 with just 14 paintings on display. Intended as a centre for the arts more widely, the Grade I listed building also houses a concert hall, lecture theatre and art history library.
The Barber is currently closed until 2026 for refurbishment. This project will support its mission to be a welcoming and responsive museum of world-class art in Birmingham that is free for everyone.