Art lovers urged to back plans for major new exhibition

Derby Museums is appealing to art lovers to help it raise funds to stage a major exhibition of work by the artist William Hogarth.

In what would be a significant coup for the city, Derby Museums is hoping to stage the free exhibition at Derby Museum and Art Gallery in spring 2023.

With one major grant secured and another application pending, it is now looking to local art lovers and businesses to help secure the final £24,000 needed to make the exhibition a reality.

In total, the exhibition will feature around 60 objects loaned from 13 collections, including loans from the National Portrait Gallery, The Foundling Museum and National Galleries of Scotland.

Lucy Bamford, senior curator of fine art at Derby Museums, said: “The exhibition focuses on Hogarth’s response to the long-running threat posed by the Jacobites; in particular the Jacobite Rising of 1745, which is important in both the history of our city and nationally.

“In a campaign to topple the Hanoverian King George II, the Jacobite army, led by the ‘young pretender’ Charles Stuart, “Bonnie Prince Charlie”, marched south from Scotland to Derby, where the decision was taken to retreat rather than march on to London. It was a pivotal moment that decided the course of British history.

“It was a time of turmoil for Britain. As the prince and his army occupied Derby, guardsmen were assembling on the northern edge of London in preparation to defend the king and capital.

“Hogarth himself witnessed the scene and was inspired to paint ‘The March of the Guards to Finchley’, which will form the centrepiece of the exhibition.”

Donations of any size are welcomed by Derby Museums. In exchange for donations, supporters will receive a range of benefits.

The Hogarth exhibition is expected to strengthen Derby’s reputation as an important destination for seeing world-class art, bringing new visitors to the city and boosting the local economy.

In 2019, Derby Museums brought Leonardo da Vinci: A Life in Drawing to Derby, attracting more than 50,000 visitors and increasing football in the local Business Improvement District by 4%.

Lucy said: “This is set to be a world class exhibition that will further elevate Derby’s position as an unmissable place to visit.

“At a time of rising living costs, it is more important than ever that we continue to bring free admission exhibitions of this calibre to Derby, supporting the local economy of our city and providing cultural opportunities of outstanding quality for our visitors and supporters.”

To find out more and to support the appeal visit here.