Barber Institute of Fine Arts

The Barber Institute of Fine Arts stands on the University of Birmingham campus five kilometres southwest of the city centre. The Art Deco building, designed by Robert Atkinson in the 1930s, was opened in 1939 by Queen Mary and is Grade I listed. Its exterior displays heraldic shields of the Barber family and the university, carved by Gordon Herickx between 1936 and 1937. The layout centres on a concert hall surrounded by galleries, lecture halls and libraries. Sir John Summerson praised the building as a fine example of 1930s English architecture. The institute was founded in 1932 by Martha Constance Hattie Barber in memory of her husband, Sir William Henry Barber. Its collection was shaped by founding director Thomas Bodkin, who acquired works described by The Observer as the last great art collection of the twentieth century. The Barber holds five stars for outstanding collections of international significance, placing it among Britain’s leading galleries. Works by Van Gogh, Monet, Rodin and Turner are displayed alongside Renaissance paintings and British portraits. The institute also holds one of the world’s largest coin collections, including Roman and Byzantine pieces. Visitors enter through a foyer of travertine marble to reach the first-floor galleries. Spacious rooms display masterpieces by Botticelli, Rubens and Veronese alongside Impressionist works by Degas and Renoir. The music library holds 860 items from the Shaw-Hellier collection, and concerts take place throughout the year. A music festival is held each June in the concert hall panelled in Australian walnut. The Equestrian Statue of George I stands at the entrance as Birmingham’s oldest public sculpture.