Eureka! (museum) explained

Eureka! The National Children's Museum
Established:1992
Location:53.72°N -1.855°W
Type:Children's Museum
Visitors:300,000 per annum
Director:Leigh-Anne Stradeski

Eureka! The National Children's Museum is an interactive educational museum for children in Halifax, West Yorkshire, England, with a focus on learning through play. It is run as an educational charity and not-for-profit organisation. Eureka! is based on the North American model of children's museums, aimed at families with children aged 0–11 and encourages hands-on inter-generational learning.

History

The Museum for Children was formally constituted as a registered charity in 1985 by Vivien Duffield who was inspired to create the museum after visiting a children's museum in Boston in the United States. The museum is intended for children aged up to 12 with accompanying adults, and it was established with £9 million funding, £7 million of which came from the Clore and Duffield foundations with the rest from grants and private donations.[1] It is located on former British Rail land next to Halifax railway station. Eureka!'s location was suggested by King Charles III who thought the empty site particularly suitable for the museum and believed that it can serve as a stimulus for the regeneration of Halifax. King Charles III opened the museum on 9 July 1992 when he was Prince of Wales and Duke of Cornwall and was its patron until 2002.[2]

The building design was led by Ken Moth of the architectural practice Building Design Partnership (BDP),[3] and the exhibition designs were produced by an in-house team as well as a diverse group of designers who produced various elements of the museum – co-ordinated by Richard Fowler. Design groups included Imagination (the Me and My Body gallery) and Conran (original gift shop) and individuals included Tim Hunkin who created the Archimedes display at the entrance,[4] and Satoshi Kitamura who provide illustration and cartoon signage for the museum.[5]

Galleries

The museum has four main galleries:

External links

Notes and References

  1. The Fun Factory . Hugh . Pearman . The Sunday Times Magazine. 5 July 1992 . 50–51. Hugh Pearman (architecture critic).
  2. Web site: Eureka! History. Eureka!. 25 September 2013.
  3. Fun Factory in Halifax . RIBA Magazine . 1992 . 44.
  4. Web site: Archimedes . Tim Hunkin .
  5. Book: Caulton, Tim. [{{Google Books |TTf8hctWb24C|page=32|plain-url=yes}} Hands-On Exhibitions]. 2006. 9781134709205. 32–33. Routledge . Google Books.
  6. Web site: 20 of the best indoor family activities for half-term. Dixon. Rachel. 13 October 2018. The Guardian. 2 November 2018.