July 19th, 2014 marks the long awaited re-opening of Imperial War Museum London after being closed for over 6 months. The updated museum will feature brand new First World War Galleries, as well as a redesigned atrium and terrace exhibiting large iconic historical artifacts and collections. Visitors to the city will have many more reasons to visit the IWM and, this doesn’t just apply to history buffs. The museum has something for everyone!
Michael Jones and Spencer De Grey from Fosters and Partners, the architects behind the project, believe that the new design will ‘allow for visitors to enjoy the museum more effectively, by enlarging galleries and bringing clarity to the existing buildings’. The museum reopening coincides with the Centenary of the First World War, a milestone event for Britain and the world.
The highlight of the IWM’s re-opening is the First World War Galleries. They will include innovative exhibitions and a series of events explaining how the Great War started, why it continued and its global impact. Another exciting feature is the IWM’s Truth and Memory: British Art of the First World War, which will be the largest WW1 art exhibition in almost one hundred years. This temporary exhibit will feature powerful works from some of Britain’s most significant WW1 artists and is open until March 8th 2015.
As an educational travel company, we love the fact that our students will now have an even better experience at the museum thanks to the IWM’s new and improved design and updated exhibits. The large atrium space now includes a Harrier jet, Spitfire plane, V2 rocket, a terrace and an expanded café that opens out onto Geraldine Mary Harmsworth Park.
The IWM is clearly committed to improving their guests’ experience at the museum while keeping the history and personal collections of the war alive for future generations. If you’d like to add a visit to the IWM London to your next Explorica tour to London, to celebrate the Centenary of the First World War, give us a call or check out our collection of tours to the UK.
Guest post by Kayla MacIntosh.
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