The Barber Institute of Fine Arts is located 5 km southwest of the city centre and was designed by Robert Atkinson in the Art Deco style before opening in 1939. Commissioned by Martha Constance Hattie Barber, a descendant of the old Worcestershire Onions family of bellows-makers and an heiress in her own right, the Institute was established in memory of her husband, William Henry Barber. Inside, a collection of art from around the world has found a home, with masterpieces such as those by Gwen John, René Magritte, and Egon Schiele.
Thomas Bodkin served as the Institute's first director from 1935 to 1952. The building was the first to be purpose-built for the study of art history in the United Kingdom, featuring a central concert hall surrounded by lecture halls, offices, and libraries on the ground floor with art galleries on the first floor.
To this day, the Institute stands as a treasure trove of art, architecture, and history, situated on the campus of the University of Birmingham.
Sources: Wikipedia, OpenStreetMap, Wikidata, Wikimedia Commons
Written by Nicolo Ciampini
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