2 November 2023
Closure of MoDA and Disbursal of Collections
The SAHGB, DHS and AAH note with sadness and immense concern the announcement of the closure of the Museum of Domestic Design and Architecture (MoDA) by the management of Middlesex University.
Since its opening, the rich collections held by the Museum - many of them unique - and the expertise of the staff, have supported the research of scholars from both academia and the wider public. It has brought new understandings of the place of home in British society and has enriched the learning of generations of students, demonstrating the importance of university-based archives and collections to both Higher Education and the community. MoDA has thus formed an invaluable component of the archives and collections which form part of the wider cultural industries in which the UK excels.
More than ever the Arts and Humanities are under threat, and more than ever these threats need to be challenged. As the subject bodies that represent many of those who research these collections we look to government and to policy makers (present and future) to fund the Arts and Humanities in a manner that reflects their value to the nation’s well-being and to its economy.
Signed
Elizabeth Darling, Chair of the Society of Architectural Historians of Great Britain
Sally-Anne Huxtable, Chair of the Design History Society
Gregory Perry, CEO of the Association for Art History
Categories
Newsletter
Keep informed of all Society events and activities, subscribe to our newsletter.