Alliance with Galleries hailed

The University of Edinburgh and the National Galleries of Scotland have announced a landmark partnership.

The institutions have signed a Memorandum of Understanding that will extend their aspirations and resources.

Potential projects

Under the terms of the new partnership, they will work together on academic endeavours and take advantage of their shared objectives and distinguished histories.

Potential developments include joint research projects, collaborative exhibitions and the pooling of resources for the study of Scottish Art.

The agreement also aims to encourage the University’s students to make more use of the Galleries’ collections.

We are looking forward to developing a deeper working partnership with the National Galleries of Scotland. Recent projects between the two institutions have helped to illuminate the Galleries’ fantastic collections and added a valuable dimension to the University’s insight and learning. I look forward to greater collaboration, which will produce significant benefits for our students, staff and the wider public in years to come.

Formalising a long relationship

The University has enjoyed a long-standing association with the National Galleries of Scotland. Since the Galleries’ foundation in 1850, there have been countless formal exchanges between the two organisations, with shared enterprises and representation in governance.

The University boasts many illustrious alumni who feature in the Galleries’ collection of portraits, including the naturalist Charles Darwin, geologist James Hutton, and novelists Sir Walter Scott.

More recent alumni to feature in the collection include author Ian Rankin and cyclist Sir Chris Hoy.

Signing ceremony

The Memorandum was signed in a ceremony at the Scottish National Portrait Gallery on Tuesday 24 February.

The four signatories were: Professor Sir Timothy O’Shea, Principal and Vice Chancellor of the University, Professor Mary Bownes, Vice Principal for Community Development at the University; and Ben Thomson and Sir John Leighton, Chairman and Director General of the National Galleries of Scotland respectively.

We are thrilled to formalise our long-standing and fruitful association with the University of Edinburgh, further strengthening our ties with one of Scotland’s most distinguished educational institutions. The National Galleries looks forward to sharing, with the public, the prosperous results such an official affiliation will bring.