Open
Mon to Fri -10.30am to 4.00pm
Sat.- 10.00am to 3.00pm
Closed
Sunday
Admission charges
FREE
Description
A stroll up Market Hill past the Town Hall and opposite St Mary’s Church on Church Street you will find the splendid Cooper Gallery. This light and airy gallery has a friendly and welcoming atmosphere and is one of the town centre’s cultural gems.
Besides offering a varied programme of touring contemporary art exhibitions, the Gallery is home to the Cooper Gallery Trustees’ permanent collection and the Craft Showcase offering you the chance to purchase at reasonable prices a fine selection of original and hand-made crafts ranging from ceramics, textiles, cards to jewellery.
Cabinet spokesperson for Development Councillor Bill Denton says ‘The Cooper Gallery is well worth a visit, whether it’s to buy a piece of artwork by local or regionally renowned craft artists; look at the permanent or temporary exhibitions or as a place to meet family and friends in the café over a coffee and cake’.
Collections description
The Gallery has a long history. There has been a building on the site since the 1600’s with the present building being bought by Samuel Joshua Cooper in 1912 for the princely sum of £3,300. Samuel was the second son of Samuel Cooper of Park House, Barnsley, a linen manufacturer and colliery owner. As was the norm for second sons, Samuel Cooper travelled extensively in Europe during the mid 19th Century, collecting great works of art along the way by artists such as Corot, Ruskin, Decamps and the seascapes of Isabey. This collection of paintings now forms the heart of the Gallery’s permanent collection.
When Samuel Cooper died in 1913 he arranged for the building to be converted into a Gallery for his personal collection of 275 paintings. The building opened on in 1914 as the Cooper Art Gallery and operated as such until the Second World War when it closed and was used as an annexe to Barnsley Beckett’s hospital. The Gallery finally reopened in 1957 and in 2001 it was extensively refurbished with a new entrance, a café and a modern look that makes it an ideal space for the display of art and crafts. The day to day administration and running of the Gallery is undertaken by Barnsley Metropolitan Borough Council, whilst the permanent collection remains the responsibility of the Cooper Gallery Trustees.
Key artists and exhibits
The permanent collection of over 600 paintings and drawings contains such gems as JMW Turner, Christopher Nevinson, Paul Nash, Jacob Kramer, Vanessa Bell, Louis Gabriel-Eugene Isabey and John Atkinson Grimshaw, to name but a few.
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The gallery also has an annual cultural diversity exhibition with a changing focus.
General Information
Brochure or leaflet available with directions to museum
Pre-booking service for groups
Information point provided
Collections
General guide to collections available
Object identification and/or written enquiry service
Disability Access
Events/teaching/resources for people with disabilities
Induction loops in lecture theatres
Large print information and/or interpretation
Toilets for disabled
Wheelchair access to all public areas
Children and Families
Activities for pre-school children
Baby changing facilities
Events and resources for children and families
General Education
Adult lectures and courses held
Education facilities available
Member of staff available with responsibility for education
Reception and lunch facilities for educational groups
Teaching/resources available for HE/FE students
Schools Education
Direct teaching services for schools
Primary school education service available
Printed/audio-visual information available for schools
Secondary school education service available
Facilities
Cafeteria
Facilities for private functions and events
Meeting room available
Refreshments
Shop
