The Barber Institute raises £14.8m for a once-in-a-generation transformation

One of Birmingham's great cultural treasures is getting the care it deserves. The Barber Institute of Fine Arts, on the University of Birmingham's Edgbaston campus, has announced that its once-in-a-generation transformation is under way after raising £14.8 million.

Since launching its public fundraising campaign in January 2025, the Barber has secured support from private donors and from trusts and foundations including the Edward Cadbury Charitable Trust, The Headley Trust, the Clore Duffield Foundation, The Michael Marsh Charitable Trust and the DCMS/Wolfson Museums and Galleries Improvement Fund. Its parent organisations, The Henry Barber Trust and the University of Birmingham, have also contributed significantly.

The works will make the building more accessible, welcoming and sustainable. At the heart of the project is a new learning wing, created by converting former ground-floor offices, and the Art Deco concert hall is gaining a fresh-air ventilation system. A further £400,000 is still being raised to complete improvements to the main galleries.

The Barber's story began with Lady Martha Constance Hattie Barber, who founded the Institute in 1932 as a lasting gift to her late husband's home city, leaving the Barber fortune to fund a building, a collection and public concerts. Designed by Robert Atkinson, the building was opened by Queen Mary in 1939 and was upgraded to a Grade I listing by Historic England in 2020.

While the doors are closed, the collection has kept travelling. More than 750,000 people have seen Barber works through loans and touring programmes, including Modern Masterpieces at Compton Verney in Warwickshire and The Barber in London.

"We are looking forward to opening our doors again and welcoming audiences back to our building and collection," the Barber says.

Its stated vision is ambitious: "to be one of the best civic university museums in the world, and to make our world-class collections and beautiful Grade-1 listed building accessible to everyone, bringing art, music and people together."

The Barber expects to reopen in the latter part of 2027. Updates, concerts and offsite exhibitions are listed on the Barber Institute website.