Manx Museum

The building which houses the original Manx Museum was erected in 1886 as was used jointly as a hospital and a museum, but it did not become the permanent home of the museum until 1922 when the hospital was relocated to a larger building. The first curator, Manxman Philip Kermode, established an initial collection of local prints and pictures including works by distinguished local artist John Miller Nicholson. Before his death in 1932 Kermode laid the foundations of the academic standards on which his successors have built. Since then the collection has grown extensively and houses works the majority of which are either by Manx artists of contain Manx subject matter. including John Ernest Aitken, Thomas Arthur Bridson, Arthur James Wetherall Burgess, Hugo Dachinger, Anthony Van Dyck, Franz Hoepfner, William Hoggatt, John Holland, Fritz von Kamptz, Archibald Knox, John Hobson Nicholson, John Miller Nicholson, Edward Christian Quayle, Michael Sandle.

In 1886 with the celebration of their centenary, a plan was established for an impressive programme of redevelopment including a major new £1.3 million extension which would increase and improve the facilities on offer to the public. The new extension was opened by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II in 1989. Here you will find oil paintings, watercolours, sculptures and prints from the 18th century to the present day. A unique feature of the Manx National Art Collection is that all works are either by Manx artists or have a Manx-related subject matter. In 1993 the Isle of Man Arts Council initiated an innovative project for taking contemporary art into the community. The resulting loan collection from around the UK now consists of over 300 prints, paintings and photographs by a diverse range of artists who are not by any means necessarily IOM related.