A Decade of Success!
Thursday 09/11/17
Here at Galway City Museum, we are 10 years old and proud to celebrate a decade of success since officially opening in 2007. Galway City Museum, which is wholly funded by Galway City Council, was established by the Council to safeguard and promote the cultural heritage of Galway. Led by a determined team, the past 10 years has seen the development of long-term and temporary, high quality and engaging archaeology, art, history and science exhibitions. During this time, the team has made Galway City Museum an experience to remember, growing visitor numbers from 16,000 in year one to an astonishing 220,000 plus visitors today.
The hard work and enthusiasm of all who work for the organisation shows in the many accolades achieved and the reputation that has been built. Now the eleventh most visited free attraction in the country (and one of only three outside Dublin) Galway City Museum has been recipient of TripAdvisor’s Certificate of Excellence and the Expert’s Choice award, for five years in a row, ranking it among the highest rated attractions in Galway. Most recently Galway City Museum was awarded Full Accreditation status from the Heritage Council’s Museum Standards Programme for Ireland.
As we look back on our achievements since 2007, we are proud of the inspiring space that we have created. This could not be achieved without the invaluable support and contribution of our local community. We thank all our collaborators, donors, partners, friends and visitors for engaging with us and embracing the museum as their own. Here are some of our best bits:
WE HAVE A BRAND NEW WEBSITE!
www.galwaycitymuseum.ie
To mark this significant milestone we have developed a new website, which has now gone live. The website documents the work that has taken place in the museum over the past ten years. Why not log on and re-visit your favourite past exhibition, visit current exhibitions or take a browse through the colourful collection of museum objects. We hope you enjoy using this resource as much as we have enjoyed creating it!
ARCHAEOLOGY: WE HAVE SUCCEEDED IN MAKING GALWAY’s ARCHAEOLOGY ACCESSIBLE TO GALWAY PEOPLE
Artefacts found during the Galway City Excavations Project between 1980 and 1990 have been made accessible to the people of Galway and to all who visit Galway City Museum. This was made possible thanks to the National Museum of Ireland and by the positive relationship that exists between the two organisations.
HISTORY: WE HAVE RAISED GALWAY’S COLOURFUL PAST TO THE SURFACE
The museum team have made great strides in sharing Galway’s unique story with the public. The first floor galleries offer visitors an opportunity to explore Galway’s past and bring the military and social history of the area to the surface.
The memorable People’s History of Galway project invited people to share stories and memorabilia of everyday life in Galway in the midst of major world events. Resulting exhibitions such as Cinema and Dancehall Days represented the proud heritage and passions of local Galway people. These popular exhibitions are still accessible on the museum website.
Current exhibitions, Galway & The Great War and Revolution in Galway 1913-1923, deal with Galway’s role in the unprecedented events that would change the course of history. These fascinating exhibitions deal with personal accounts previously untold. The iconic Galway Hooker and the lives of Galway’s fishing community feature in a very popular maritime exhibition that features a full size replica of the sailing vessel that hangs in the museum atrium.
SCIENCE: WE HAVE DEVELOPED IRELAND’S FIRST EVER SEA SCIENCE GALLERY
In collaboration with the Martin Ryan Institute (NUIG) and the Marine Institute Galway, we have created Sea Science – The Wild Atlantic. This exhibition takes visitors on a journey from the rocky shore to the ocean depths, to discover more about the wonders of the magical marine world on our doorstep; from how the moon affects the tides and the global movement of ocean currents, to who eats whom in the ocean depths, and what it’s really like to explore our oceans. This interactive gallery makes learning fun!
STANDARDS: WE HAVE BEEN AWARDED FULL ACCREDITATION ON THE HERITAGE COUNCIL’S MUSEUM STANDARDS PROGRAMME FOR IRELAND
Galway City Museum is one of four museums that have been officially awarded full accreditation under the Heritage Council’s Museum Standards Programme for Ireland in 2017, along with Dublin Castle State Apartments, Highlanes Gallery in Drogheda, and Rathfarnham Castle.
The Museum Standards Programme for Ireland (MSPI), which started in 2006, recognises excellence and achievement in thirty-four standards ranging from care of collections, museum management, education, exhibition and visitor services.
COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT: WE HAVE CREATED A VIBRANT AND DYNAMIC EDUCATION PROGRAMME.
We have invited the public to participate in cultural and arts activities and have made the museum – its exhibitions, collections and programmes – accessible to all. The museum prides itself in being a welcoming space for all members of its community and is committed to building relationships, encouraging individuals, groups and organisations to help us deliver a better service.
We continue to achieve milestone success and attract an increasing number of visitors through the Community Engagement programme. A vibrant and dynamic Events Guide has been rolled out since 2007 with talks, events, workshops and much more offered free of charge. The Educational Resources which have been developed from this work are now available on the museum website.
WHAT’S TO COME?
We look forward now to the expansion of Galway City Museum and the re-development of the museum site. Keep an eye on our website for updates on this. Thanks to you, Galway City Museum has become an award-winning must-see attraction for any visitor to Galway city. We hope you will continue to support us and to share our success for many more years to come.
