About the Museum
Brighton Museum and Art Gallery re-opened on 4 May 2002 after undergoing major restoration. The new look Brighton Museum & Art Gallery features state-of-the-art visitor facilities including a gift shop and café, a series of innovative redesigned galleries and wide-ranging collections brought to life using the latest interpretative techniques.
Several new galleries reflect a range of contemporary interests.
Fashion & Style focuses on key themes which hold special significance for Brighton. Moving through the Gallery on a raised catwalk, visitors discover the breadth and scope of the collection - from costumes worn at George IV's Coronation to contemporary fashions.
Body explores the ways in which we interpret our own bodies and those of others. Exhibits range from an ancient Egyptian make-up jar to contemporary male corsetry, and from a Roman coffin portrait to a Spitting Image caricature.
World Art presents highlights of one of the largest ethnological collections outside the national institutions. A wide range of visually striking objects from Africa, Asia, the Pacific and the Americas are thematically displayed.
Performance is part of Brighton life, from mainstream theatre and pier shows to 
carnival and street performers. This gallery places local performance within a world context through costumes, masks, musical instruments and puppets from different national traditions, as well as programmes, ceramics, Japanese prints and Regency cartoons.
20 th Century Art and Design displays a stunning collection of British and European decorative art. Major pieces from every decade of the last century include works by Gallé, Lalique, Bugatti and Clarice Cliffe, as well as modern masters such as Ron Arad, André Dubreuil and Philippe Starck.
Mr Willett's Popular Pottery is a famous collection of ceramics showing many aspects of 19 th century life from crime and punishment to the arts, from personalities to sport. Five hundred prize examples are on view.
The Fine Art Galleries show the Paul Heyer Bequest of works by major late 20 th century artists, including Frank Stella, Jules Olitski, Larry Poons, Alexander Calder and Sir Anthony Caro. This is complemented by paintings from the British and European Schools and changing displays of watercolours, prints and drawings.
Exploring Brighton and Images of Brighton draw a fascinating picture of the city from its early days to the present, featuring fashionable society and Regency architecture, the piers and the beach. They show Brighton as a place not only to visit, but a city in which to live and work and above all enjoy.
Discovery - a special gallery for children - houses a series of rotating annual exhibitions based on the themes of colour, shape and light & sound. Children can explore objects and paintings from the collections through play, the senses, fun, excitement and interaction.
Brighton History Centre - brings together material on Brighton's history formerly divided between the Library and Museum. It is the principal public access point for information on the Museum collections in general.
To visit the museum’s website, click on www.brighton.virtualmuseum.info