Kelvingrove: A Museum of Empire

Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum is running a guided tour called Kelvingrove: A Museum of Empire on Friday 30 October, led by Senior Curator Nelson Cummins. It's free to join, and it starts at 2:30pm.

If you've spent any time in the museum, you know the range of what's inside is pretty wild. The galleries hold more than 8,000 artefacts, and the mix is famously eclectic: a stuffed elephant and a Spitfire sit alongside an outstanding collection of French Impressionists. That variety is part of the point. The museum's foundation and history were shaped by empire, and this tour works through the current displays to look at that imperial history in the present day.

There's a bit of history to the building itself that ties into the theme. The red sandstone on the banks of the River Kelvin is a piece of Edwardian architecture that opened with the 1901 International Exhibition, which was funded by profits from the 1888 international exhibition. Glasgow's colonial connections played a key role in both. The museum is celebrating its 125th anniversary this year, and this tour is one of the ways it's marking the occasion.

Beyond the galleries, the building also houses the Kelvingrove organ, which gives regular free recitals, as well as a restaurant, a café and a gift shop. The tour involves moving around the venue and some standing; wheelchairs and portable stools are available to borrow, and BSL interpretation and audio description are available on request. It's free, and it kicks off at 2:30pm on Friday 30 October at Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum, Argyle Street, Glasgow, G3 8AG.