Blackburn Museum

30/05/2026

Happy National Creativity Day! ⭐🎨📸✂

Blackburn with Darwen Borough Council Discover Blackburn National Festival of Making The Making Rooms The Bureau - Centre for the Arts The Exchange Blackburn Culturapedia One Voice Blackburn Chip In

29/05/2026

Free Lunchtime Talks!

We're excited to announce our next series of 30 minute talks by former Museum Manager and Curator of BM&AG, Mike Millward.

4th June - Japanese Woodblock Prints:
An overview of the prints currently on display.
⏰ 13:00-13:30PM

18th June - Orthodox Christian Icons:
What they are? How they are made? and why Blackburn Museum and Art Gallery has one of the largest collections in Britain.
⏰ 13:00-13:30PM

2nd July - Early European Printing, Illustrated with examples from the Hart Collection at Blackburn Museum and Art Gallery.
⏰ 13:00-13:30PM

16th July - Some Medieval Illuminated Manuscripts from the Hart Collection at Blackburn Museum and Art Gallery.
⏰ 13:00-13:30PM

All talks are free and no booking is required.

Discover Blackburn Blackburn with Darwen Borough Council

27/05/2026

Eid Mubarak to everyone celebrating Eid today. We wish you all a happy and blessed day with your loved ones. 🌙

Eid Mubarak to everyone celebrating Eid today. We wish you all a happy and blessed day with your loved ones.

26/05/2026

It's hotter than The Forge* out there in Blackburn today. Seek shelter from the sun by coming down to the museum to cool off. 🌞🧊

There's plenty of activities on this afternoon for those looking for a break from the heat including self-led crafts and a painting workshop with Saima Hussain inspired by our Japanese prints.

* This is not a scientifically accurate comparison, we don't actually know how hot it is inside a Blacksmith's forge but we reckon it's HOT. 🔥

🖼️ The Forge c.1847 by James Sharples
🔗 https://artuk.org/discover/artworks/the-forge-153962

22/05/2026

📢 ART OPEN 2026 Artists 📢

A reminder that exhibiting artists can collect their work from the Museum on Friday 22nd and Saturday 23rd May, between 12–4pm. 🏛

📢 ART OPEN 2026 Artists 📢

A reminder that exhibiting artists can collect their work from the Museum on Thursday 21st, Friday 22nd and Saturday 23rd May, between 12–4pm each day. 🏛

Blackburn with Darwen Borough Council Discover Blackburn

16/05/2026

WHAT'S ON - MAY HALF TERM

Looking for free family fun this half term? Make sure to visit Blackburn Museum & Art Gallery! We've got a variety of artist-led workshops and self-led crafts all inspired by our incredible exhibitions and collections on display.

Tuesday 26th May (12–3PM) 🌊
Decorative painting on carved wooden fish with Saima Hussain, inspired the Japanese prints and Marine life ceramics on display in our Hart Gallery.
Participants will have the opportunity to explore a range of bright and vibrant patterns and use of different colours to create their very own fish hanging decorations.

Wednesday 27th May (12–3PM) 🎩
Victorian Character Art with Hannah Robinson
Design your own character using prompts from our Victorian Gallery to help people generate ideas to turn into their very own picture book character.

Thursday 28th May (12–3PM) 📖
Egyptian Inspired Bookmarks with Annahieta Oskooi
Decorate your own Egyptian gilded bookmarks inspired by our Egypt gallery.

ALL WEEK (11AM–4PM) ✂
Drop in for our ‘Get Crafty’ sessions!

(Please note, all children must be supervised by an adult)

Discover Blackburn Blackburn with Darwen Borough Council

15/05/2026

📢 ART OPEN 2026 Artists 📢

A reminder that exhibiting artists can collect their work from the Museum on Thursday 21st, Friday 22nd and Saturday 23rd May, between 12–4pm each day. 🏛

Blackburn with Darwen Borough Council Discover Blackburn

15/05/2026

Today! 🎼

We're extremely excited to present new music written in response to pieces in the gallery collection!
Young composers from the RNCM will present their music alongside the original art/artifacts that inspired it.
Admission is FREE
Join us on Friday 15 May at 3pm!

RNCM - Royal Northern College of Music Blackburn Museum iPAN Performing Arts North Discover Blackburn New Road Music Studios SVETA & SLAVA DUO

14/05/2026

Edwin Long died 1891. He was a British genre, history, biblical, and portrait painter. 🖼

Long was elected an associate of the Royal Academy in 1870 and an academician (RA) in 1881. His works always attracted attention; particularly his piece ‘Diana or Christ?’ pictured below greatly enhanced his reputation at the time. 🏛

This work was originally loaned to us in 1894 for the opening of the New Art Gallery and was later donated at the end of WW1 in 1919 as a tribute to local men who fought and died in war.

His pieces suited the taste and appealed to the religious sentiment of a large portion of the public, and their popularity was increased by a wide circulation of engravings.

Read more about the work below!

https://blackburnmuseum.org.uk/blog/diana-or-christ-edwin-long-1829-1881-by-anthea-purkis/

🖼 'Diana or Christ?' c.1881 by Edwin Long
Gift from John Edmondson, Blackburn, 1919
🔗 https://artuk.org/discover/artworks/diana-or-christ-153884
Art UK