Birmingham’s Barber Institute of Fine Arts reopens late June after almost nine months of building improvement works. This year’s highly anticipated exhibitions include a first solo show in the Midlands from Turner Prize nominee Claudette Johnson, botanical drawings from the Victoria & Albert Museum in London, and a fresh look at Pre-Raphaelite paintings that’s not to be sniffed at...

The Barber, situated in the green, airy surroundings of Birmingham University, has been closed for building improvement work for almost nine months. Its return has been highly anticipated by regular visitors, who will be looking forward to seeing beloved works from the collection again when the gallery reopens on Saturday 22 June. 

The collection contains works by masters ranging from Botticelli to Rubens, and from the Pre-Raphaelites to the Impressionists, as well as esteemed 20th century artists.  
“We’ve always been regarded as a small art gallery with a collection that punches far above its weight,” says Andrew Davies, communications & marketing manager at the Barber. “It’s like a mini National Gallery.”

One of the interesting things about the Barber’s permanent collection is its examples of unusual works by well-known masters. The two Rubens masterpieces, for instance, are not epic scenes of Biblical stories or classical history. Instead, there’s a tranquil landscape of the artist’s estate in Belgium, and an unassuming yet masterful portrait of a monk lost in his devotions.

The gallery will this year host exciting exhibitions of botanical illustrations from the V&A and well-loved Pre-Raphaelite works explored in a new way. There will also be a celebration of contemporary Turner Prize nominee Claudette Johnson. 

The Johnson exhibition was confirmed by the Barber’s current director, Professor Jennifer Powell, before the artist’s shortlisting for the Turner Prize. Her work often takes the human figure as its subject, and in particular explores the experience of Black women, including herself. Entitled Darker Than Blue, the exhibition includes a loan from Coventry’s Herbert Art Gallery and brand-new works created with the Barber show in mind.

Darker Than Blue is Johnson’s first solo show in the Midlands. Having studied fine art at Wolverhampton School of Art (now part of Wolverhampton University), she was a key member of the Blk Art Group, and her work will be exhibited at the Turner Prize show at Tate Britain in September, immediately after being on display at the Barber.

“It’s wonderful that Claudette has been nominated and recognised for her incredible work,” says Professor Powell. “It is really powerful, with striking and confident line work - and her figures always hold your gaze.”

Opening along with the wider gallery this month, Johnson’s exhibition is a fitting celebration to mark the completion of the Barber’s first phase of scheduled redevelopments.

The main change to the venue that regular visitors might notice is the complete redevelopment of the Lady Barber exhibition gallery, named after the venue’s founder. The exhibition space, originally a painting store and technicians’ workshop, has been taken back to the bare bricks and rebuilt. Not originally created for use as a gallery, the room now contains state-of-the-art lighting and air-conditioning systems, as is appropriate for a gallery that frequently houses priceless works.

The conversion of this space in a Grade-1 listed building has been handled with care, creating an unmistakably modern gallery that is also in keeping with the four main historic picture galleries.
Another thing eagle-eyed visitors might notice is a change to the way Renaissance paintings and sculptures are exhibited in the Green Gallery. Previously displayed chronologically, the Barber has been working for over a year with Chloe Church, National Gallery Curatorial Trainee, who developed an alternative way of looking at the paintings. 

The Green Gallery will now group works by theme within the broad chronological pattern, with bay sections devoted to shared subjects such as devotional works, portraiture, the influence of ancient Greece and Rome, and Venetian art. The re-grouping gives context to different works, and the opportunity to explain why those subjects were repeatedly chosen.

The second phase of redevelopment will begin in early 2025, so art fans in the Midlands are encouraged to make the most of the Barber’s exciting programme before the next wave of building improvement begins.

The focus of the redevelopment will swap from improving the gallery spaces to enhancing the visitor experience, and retro-fitting a ventilation system into the Barber’s elegant concert hall. 

The original 1930s Art-Deco concert hall is situated in the middle of the building, without external ventilation, so the building works will include a new system which extracts ‘used’ air from the hall and pumps in fresh air.

A frequent problem when working in historic buildings is the need to make sure they are accessible to as many people as possible. As a 1930s building, with steps up to the main entrance, the Barber can prove hard to navigate for some. There is step-free rear access, but the works scheduled for 2025 will create an easier journey into the building for visitors with additional mobility needs.

Before the final stage of redevelopment begins, the Barber’s 2024 programme has much to offer. Lunchtime gallery talks, open to everyone, will begin again - the first being an introduction to Claudette Johnson’s exhibition on Wednesday 26 June. There’s also a programme for younger audiences, including a family festival in August, upholding Lady Barber’s mission to promote ‘the study and encouragement of art and music’.

Other exhibitions include The Hidden Lives Of Plants, a selection of visually lovely botanical watercolours, drawings and prints from London’s V&A Museum, and Women In Power, assembled from the Barber’s extensive coin collection.

Autumn’s exhibition, Scent And The Art Of The Pre-Raphaelites, meanwhile, will explore largely forgotten ideas about smell in the 19th and early 20th century. Apparently, there was actually a belief in Victorian times that you could smell a rainbow - it smelt like spring flowers and meadows. One of the paintings to be lent to the show by Birmingham Museum & Art Galley - The Blind Girl, by Millais - depicts two young girls breathing in the scent of the rainbow.

The exhibition is going to be a multi-sensory experience, complete with concealed machines pumping spritzes of scent in the gallery at the press of a button. 

And this isn’t the only multi-sensory installation in the upcoming season either - as Professor Powell explains: “In Claudette’s show there will be a sound installation by Trevor Mathison, who’s a contemporary sound artist. Trevor has created a soundscape that combines aspects of the Barber experience - the echoes and sounds of the galleries - with the sound of Claudette working in the studio. 

“It’s the first time that Claudette and Trevor have ever worked together as well, and it’s the first time that Claudette has had this sound aspect in an exhibition. 

“We can’t wait to welcome visitors back to the Barber and to our exhibitions.”

Feature by Jessica Clixby

The Barber Institute of Fine Arts reopens on Saturday 22 June, along with the exhibitions Claudette Johnson: Darker Than Blue and The Hidden Lives Of Plants. Scent And The Art Of The Pre-Raphaelites opens on Friday 11 October