Public appeal

William Burrell dedicated his life to collecting art from around the world. His private collection spanned thousands of years of history from countless countries and cultures. In 1944 he and his wife, Constance, gifted his collection to the people of Glasgow for them to enjoy: a transformational gift, the Burrell Collection in Pollok Country Park is considered “the greatest gift ever made” to a city and its people.

We need your help to ensure that future generations have the opportunity to fall in love with one of the largest and most important personal collections in the world.  The Burrell Collection is home to some 9,000 pieces of historical art and culture, including one of the world’s largest collection of Degas paintings, outstanding tapestry and armoury collections, and the only assemblage of ceramics outside of China that represents every Chinese Dynasty. The Burrell Collection in its beautiful park setting really does have something for everyone.

William Burrell gave 9000 gifts to Glasgow. You only need to give one.

The Burrell Collection has been closed since 2016 to undergo a major refurbishment that will help ensure that the collection, its listed home, and the history and stories it preserves survives for the next 100 years. As we near completion of this remarkable project we need you to Back the Burrell and help us reopen in spring 2022.

When you make a donation to Back the Burrell, you help ensure more people have the opportunity to enjoy the collection, now and in the future.

Over the last few years, this pioneering museum has undergone significant improvements to make sure that everyone can enjoy the museum, the collection, and the beautiful landscape around it. Replacing the glass roof to support a more environmentally sustainable building and installing new display cases will protect artwork from environmental damage and enable visitors to see treasures that have never been on permanent display. It will also be much easier to enter the building and move around the galleries, and extra space means that even more of Burrell’s great collection can be seen. Specially commissioned interactives and information displays will help everyone, including those with physical and sensory disabilities, to enjoy and learn more about the objects and their stories. The entire project is focused on bringing back the Burrell for everyone in Glasgow and Scotland.

A gift of £5 will help ensure everyone in Glasgow, and beyond, has the opportunity to connect to Burrell and his outstanding collection.

Our curators, conservators, designers and learning teams are working together with local community groups to create a museum that welcomes everyone. Local school children have helped to write the collection labels, LGBT and BAME groups have advised with interpretation, so we can reveal new relevance to the objects in our care.  When the Burrell Collection reopens it will be truly a museum for everyone, designed for the diverse people of our city so everyone can connect with individual and collective histories and cultures.

We need your help to complete the project. Please Back the Burrell by making a donation today. A gift of £5, or whatever you can afford, will help bring back the greatest gift ever made.

For you. For Glasgow. For Everyone.

To donate visit our secure online donation page, email supportus@glasgowlife.org.uk or call 0141 276 9515. We would love to hear from you.  

For a chance to be featured in our campaign please let us know why YOU are backing the Burrell when you make your donation today.