New on the blog: An interview with artist Harriet Mena Hill on her fascinating work on the Aylesbury Estate. Photography by Jon Cardwell tinctureofmuseum.wordpress.com/2026/04/02/t...

Really pleased to have written about mural artist Bruce Williams as part of this fantastic initiative artuk.org/discover/sto...

I'm looking for suggestions of museum/heritage education consultants for a small project, ideally south-west based. Any ideas or recommendations greatly received!

I do love a Martello Tower

Love this - Anning 'sick of fossils' letter sells for £15,000 via BBC Couldn't love Mary Anning any more www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

Weird to think that Liza Minnelli and Dusty Springfield were respectively only 43 and 50 when they made their comeback records with the Pet Shop Boys. At the time they felt like ancient ghosts of showbiz past. The equivalents now (in age if not in stature) would be Cheryl Tweedy and Emma Bunton.

Stunning 4,600 year-old silver bracelets with inlaid semi-precious stones in the shape of butterflies! 🦋🦋🦋🦋 They belonged to Egyptian Queen Hetepheres. From her tomb at Giza. Old Kingdom, 4th Dynasty, c. 2613-2494 BC. Grand Egyptian Museum, Cairo 📷 by me #Archaeology

On the blog - fuelled by Guinness and lost in time, tinctureofmuseum.wordpress.com/2026/02/27/g...

Opening today ‘The Coming of Age’ @wellcomecollection.bsky.social gave me a good giggle which you can’t always say that about ageing! #free wellcomecollection.org/exhibitions/...

New on the blog ... the delight of 'The Jolly Postman' at the Postal Museum is returning to a time when my kids were little. tinctureofmuseum.wordpress.com/2026/03/11/t...

On the blog - fuelled by Guinness and lost in time, tinctureofmuseum.wordpress.com/2026/02/27/g...

Fab to listen to Catherine Opie today talking about her new exhibition at the National Portrait Gallery which opens tomorrow www.npg.org.uk/whatson/exhi...

You can find links to my upcoming A Hard Day's Night @bloomsburybooksuk.bsky.social book festival events and screenings around the UK here... Hay, Bath, Lake District, Newcastle, Cambridge and more being added .. samiraahmed.blog/upcoming/

As bombs rained down in 1940s London, artists responded. See art that presents a city both familiar and strange in over 45 paintings and drawings alongside photographs, film, objects and oral histories. IWM London 20 March to 1 November 2026

Sometimes, in the whirl of life, the personal seeps into my blogs. I've been reflecting on Guinness, Beckett and the circles of time this week. Bit of a strange one but then, life is sometimes just that way. tinctureofmuseum.wordpress.com/2026/02/27/g...

Embracing the arrival of spring with our Dementia-friendly groups. After a tough winter, it might seem daunting to reconnect with nature, but we've made sure a cosy spot for tea awaits you afterwards! Discover your nearest group here:

In or near Abergavenny (or want an excuse to visit)? Augustus & Gwen John biographer @judithmackrell.bsky.social, curator Lucy Wood and I will be in discussion with @peterwakelin.bsky.social on Thursday 26th March. Talking about Gwen John, of course artshopandgallery.co.uk/events/conve...

Hannah Spencer walking into Westminster, sucking her teeth, tutting, and muttering "tell you what, you've had some cowboys in here."

Loved visiting the Love Letters exhibition in the National Archives in Kew — a free show spanning 500 years of devotion, longing and passion, from monarchs and spies to everyday Britons. Runs until 12 April. Highly recommended. 💌https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/whats-on/exhibitions/love-letters/

I'm now recruiting for a crucial post in my team - Curator: Parliamentary Art Collection. A rare chance to work with a wonderful collection in a unique setting. Please do share, and feel free to get in touch with any questions

Sometimes, in the whirl of life, the personal seeps into my blogs. I've been reflecting on Guinness, Beckett and the circles of time this week. Bit of a strange one but then, life is sometimes just that way. tinctureofmuseum.wordpress.com/2026/02/27/g...

New on the blog - Lucian Freud: Drawing into Painting at the National Portrait Gallery, on till 19 April. It's all about the fungus... tinctureofmuseum.wordpress.com/2026/02/26/l...

New on the blog - Lucian Freud: Drawing into Painting at the National Portrait Gallery, on till 19 April. It's all about the fungus... tinctureofmuseum.wordpress.com/2026/02/26/l...

New on the blog - Life was better in the 80s, or at least that is what the Blue Nun told me... You have till the end of March to see 'Blitz: the club that shaped the 80s' @designmuseum.bsky.social tinctureofmuseum.wordpress.com/2026/02/25/b...

New on the blog - behind every great man there is a … flawed woman? A look at the new exhibition at the Charles Dickens museum. tinctureofmuseum.wordpress.com/2026/02/12/e...

@booseyandhawkes.bsky.social have mined the archive here to make a series of short films marking the 50th anniversary this year of Benjamin Britten's death: www.boosey.com/cr/news/Benj...

New on the blog - behind every great man there is a … flawed woman? A look at the new exhibition at the Charles Dickens museum. tinctureofmuseum.wordpress.com/2026/02/12/e...

Free! The Weight of Being at Two Temple Place explores mental health and art. Lots to see and some fab inclusions from @bethlemmuseum.bsky.social until 19 April twotempleplace.org/exhibitions/...

You have to check out @markmanders.bsky.social sculpture at the London Mithraeum! Free to visit and on display until 4 July 2026. I love it! www.londonmithraeum.com

Booking now open for 'Climate Resilience in the Cultural Sector' @britishlibrary.bsky.social Friday 6 March 9-5pm. For a day specifically for the culture sector to explore ways to boost climate resilience and protect our heritage! www.eventbrite.com/e/climate-re... #ClimateChange

New on the blog, January is a time for fresh starts and new art. New Contemporaries @southlondongallery.bsky.social is a great place to start tinctureofmuseum.wordpress.com/2026/01/30/n...

Crossing into Darkness, the new exhibition curated by Tracey Emin at the Carl Freedman Gallery shows how artists can find the shadows in all of us. Until 12 April #Margate carlfreedman.com

If you missed this over the Christmas period now is the time to catch up with the fascinating story of the London School of Mosaics which closed in 2025. #mosaicmonday artuk.org/discover/sto...

New on the blog- it is 10 years since @bethlemmuseum.bsky.social was shortlisted for @artfund.bsky.social Museum of the Year and in my new blog I return to one of the most interesting museums in the UK. tinctureofmuseum.wordpress.com/2026/01/25/k...

The seaside isn’t just for the summer you know…. Bridget Riley: Learning to See at Turner Contemporary Margate is on till 4 May 2026. turnercontemporary.org/whats-on/exh...

Fascinating article on Italy's mosaic school Inside www.bbc.co.uk/travel/artic... What a crime that London's School of Mosaic closed in 2025. You can read about it in my @artukdotorg.bsky.social piece artuk.org/discover/sto... #Mosaics

Just a few more days left to apply for the Paul McLean graduate trainee programme at the FT. This is an amazing opportunity for any aspiring journalist job-boards.greenhouse.io/financialtim...

I think this is the most important thing I have written this year. Just published on @artukdotorg.bsky.social It is about the closure of the London School of Mosaic. artuk.org/discover/sto...

I am counting down to my most read blog of 2025! In at number 5 from April is Pirates at Royal Museums Greenwich - tinctureofmuseum.wordpress.com/2025/04/04/p... #MuseumBlogger

In at number 3 of my most read blogs of the year is from May - Unearthed: The Power of Gardening @britishlibrary.bsky.social tinctureofmuseum.wordpress.com/2025/05/03/u...

In at number 4 of my most read blogs of the year is one of my favourite exhibitions of the year! - From January it is Christina Kimeze: Between Wood and Wheel which was at @southlondongallery.bsky.social tinctureofmuseum.wordpress.com/2025/01/31/c...

For #MosaicMonday read up on the sad loss of the London School of Mosaic which closed its doors in August 2025. artuk.org/discover/sto...

For #MosaicMonday read up on the sad loss of the London School of Mosaic which closed its doors in August 2025. artuk.org/discover/sto...

I am counting down to my most read blog of 2025! In at number 5 from April is Pirates at Royal Museums Greenwich - tinctureofmuseum.wordpress.com/2025/04/04/p... #MuseumBlogger

I think this is the most important thing I have written this year. Just published on @artukdotorg.bsky.social It is about the closure of the London School of Mosaic. artuk.org/discover/sto...

And my favourite story of the festive period goes to… Bomb disposal robot destroys Labour MPs' Christmas cards www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

Enjoying a bit of Jane Austen quotes on my academic reading for today “I am no longer surprised at you knowing only six accomplished women…”

I do like an interesting map - and there are interesting maps aplenty in the British Library's current exhibition Secret Maps. Fully of intriguing detail and thought-provoking ideas. Well worth a visit. #museum #museums #exhibition

Happy birthday to Jane Austen, and to this very on-brand Economist chart www.economist.com/christmas-sp...