Open Day

Wonder at thousands of objects in the collection, explore The Magic of The Silver Swan with inventiveness and playfulness at its core, take part in behind the scenes tours, artist led workshops and family activities inside and out, discover more by meeting our curators, exhibition team and conservators or join a themed tour. Visit the Camera Obscura on the parterre to view the world around us as scientists and find out how Canaletto created his magnificent paintings.

Left A Bit, Right A Bit!

Behind-the-scenes of exhibition installation

Meet the Exhibitions team as they discuss how The Magic of the Silver Swan went from initial idea to full celebratory show.

Times: 10.30, 12.30, 2.30

Pots and Pots

Meet the education team and learn about the uses of pots through history, Bronze Age Beakers, Greek Amphora and Tudor Pipkins with a few more surprises along the way.

Times: 10.30, 12.30, 2.30

Spotlight

Meet the team of volunteer guides and find out more about the collections, with tours scheduled throughout the day in the galleries.

Times:

11.00: led by Visitor Assistant

11.30: Canalettos

12.00: Triptych

12.30:  Outstanding furniture (Boulle cabinet and Marie Antoinette’s writing desk).

1.00: Silver/ metals gallery highlights

1.30: Canalettos

2.00: Triptych

2.30: Outstanding furniture (Boulle cabinet and Marie Antoinette’s writing desk).

Curiosity Project

Visit the The Vault store, which currently houses furniture recently relocated from a gallery on the first floor which had been used as a store for the last fifteen years.  Come along and hear about the logistics of planning and relocating large objects within the Museum.

Times: 10.30, 11.30, 1.30, 2.30

Meet the Curator

View the reserve collection of paintings in store and look up-close at some highlights.

Times: 10.00, 11.00, 12.00, 1.00, 2.00, 3.00

The Glass Cube

 Meet the Textile Conservator in the morning and be introduced to how textile collections are prepared for display, from assessing condition to mounting. In the afternoon, the Curator of Fashion & Textiles will talk about how the Glass Cube is used as a display space, store and work area, and participants will have a chance to see treasures not usually on display.

Times: 10.30, 11.30, 12.30, 1.30, 2.30, 3.30

The Camera Obscura

From the Latin words for dark room or dark chamber, has an aperture through which light travels, creating images of outside objects which are projected live onto a viewing surface. The artist Canaletto used this method to create the beautiful paintings that are on display in the painting galleries. The Camera Obscura will be situated outside for the duration of the day for you to visit.

Artist Maker Workshops

Join artists Jayne Blacklock and Zoe Allen.

What time is it?

Get creative, inspired by the collection of clocks and timepieces on display Jayne will introduce you to the many activities for all ages.

Embrace the Lace!
The Bowes Museum is home to a large collection of intricate lace. Join us for this creative drop-in session inspired by the lovely lacy fashion choices of the past, cut and create ‘paper lace’ and fashion your own amazing designs for all the family to wear.

Booking

No booking is needed for the event, but please book your tours on the day upon arrival in reception. There is limited capacity so we are operating on a first come first served basis. Members, under 18s, full-time students and carers go free to this event.

Accessibility

All of our tours are accessible by wheelchair, please notify staff upon arrival if you have access needs as some of our tours are in the vaults and will require special assistance.