The Museum of British Road Transport in Coventry is launching a new exhibition after being awarded a grant of £100, 000 to spend on new developments.

The temporary display of Shell Lorry Bills is a major collection of posters by artists including Graham Sutherland, Paul Nash, and Ben Nicholson.

On loan from the National Motor Museum in Beaulieu, it is the first new exhibition to open since the museum was awarded £100,000 to help its future development.

The museum in Hales Street was one of just fifty major museums in the country designated as having collections of national importance.

The grant was awarded by the Designation Challenge Fund, following the government's approval of the museum’s development plans for the coming year.

They include expansion of the 'Boomtime, Boomtown' exhibition on the 1950s, 60s and 70s, which opened at Easter and has been a major success with visitors.

The money means that the museum will revitalise all of its displays to make them appeal to a wide range of visitors.

Exhibitions Officer Paul Maddock said the Shell bills will help attract more visitors, as they were an unusual form of mobile outdoor advertising being attached to the sides and back of Shell deliver lorries, and capture the golden age of British poster design.

He said:

“When these posters were produced they were seen as 'art on the streets' bringing work by leading British artists into every day life.

“The images are colourful, fun and really capture the 1920s and 30s. It's a fabulous exhibition and it is wonderful to have such a display of art in the Museum.”

The Museum is open daily 10am - 5pm and admission is free.

Work on the re-interpreted exhibitions will begin in early Autumn and will be completed by March 2001.

It will still be business as usual for the museum, and although visitors may occasionally find small parts of the museum unavailable, the vast majority of its 250 vehicles, 200 cycles, and 90 motorcycles will still be on display.

Cllr Joan Wright, the Cabinet Member for Cultural and Leisure Services said

“This is a really exciting period for the museum as it is totally committed to maximising the appeal and profile of the museum for tourists and local citizens alike.

“We are delighted that the Museum's recognition as a nationally important collection has won this substantial grant for Coventry.”
   

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