THE SERVANTS’ BALL
The Servants’ Ball had a long tradition in the country house estates of Britain and only really died out with the onset of the Second World War. They were a cultural melting pot where popular music of the day would be performed alongside traditional country dance tunes. At this event, The Servants’ Ball launch their […]
NOW ONLINE: SHOULDER TO THE WHEEL
Although the museum is currently closed due to the COVID-19 situation, and the physical exhibition would have closed officially on April 5th, you can still see pictures and information about how the exhibition was developed in our Shoulder to the Wheel Online Exhibition “Shoulder to the Wheel”, curated by Dr Glenn Adamson, takes as its starting […]
Christmas at The MERL
Make it a MERL Christmas this year! Christmas shopping Browse our beautiful Christmas shop, packed with even more ranges this year, including exclusive gifts and cards inspired by our collections. You’ll find toys, ceramics, books, jams & chutneys, biscuits, scarfs and much more… Christmas crafts Make and Takes Free festive paper craft activities available from […]
JELLICOE, THE SUBCONSCIOUS, SERPENTS AND POSTMODERN LANDSCAPE
Tom Turner writes that: Sir Geoffrey Jellicoe used to say that he was educated as a classicist and then struck by the dynamic power of Modern Art. My view, with which he did not disagree, is that his approach was intrinsically Postmodern from the day he enrolled at the AA. His first serpent supports this […]
DRAW AT THE MERL
Draw with us this October and celebrate the power of creativity on our well-being! Every week day, sit back and relax in our café or garden with some MERL-inspired colouring-in. Or explore the galleries and draw your way through the English countryside. On Tuesday 15 October, join students from the University’s Institute of Education in […]
POPULAR PROTEST – THEN AND NOW: A REFLECTION ON 1989
The University’s Special Collections and East German Studies Archive commemorate the 1989 protests which brought down the Berlin Wall by looking at public protest in history. On this day thirty years ago, the Berlin Wall came down, signalling the end of the Cold War. This dramatic and world-changing event was also the result of growing […]
CLOSED: LADYBIRD IN FOCUS: ONE GIANT LEAP
To celebrate the fiftieth anniversary of the moon landing, One Giant Leap looks at how Ladybird Books has illustrated our fascination with space and the inventions that helped us reach it. Beginning with books about the night sky and constellations, Ladybird Books has covered humanity’s interest in the sky since the 1960s. Showcased in the Ladybird Gallery, this exhibition […]
THE MERL SEMINAR SERIES: FARM ANIMALS
The MERL Seminars, Autumn 2019: Farm Animals For the majority of us, our image of farming would be incomplete without working animals or livestock. The role of farm animals as part of our future food systems, environmental lives, or global health often plays a part in the headlines. However, our ideas about those animals are […]
ROMANCE OF THE HIVE
Discover treasures from the Cowan Bee Collection Described as the most comprehensive collection of its kind in the world, the Cowan Bee Collection contains 1,800 volumes of books, pamphlets and journals relating to bees and beekeeping, including many rare foreign language titles. The items date from the sixteenth to the twentieth century, and were owned […]
GAMBLING WITH FLOODS?
As floods are expected to become more frequent in the future, and with an increasing population at risk, it is vital to predict these events well in advance. Machines have an ever-growing role in the anticipation of floods. But how much can they really predict in nature’s noisy chaos? Enter the heart of the forecasting […]