Recollecting Collecting

Dr Hilary Diaper, former Keeper of the University Art Collection and Gallery, reminisces about the trials, tribulations and delights of organising and expanding the University’s art collection.

Hilary played an essential role in helping The Stanley & Audrey Burton Gallery become what it is today. She was responsible for introducing professional standards of collection care and conservation to the gallery. She made huge progress in cataloguing the collection and growing a successful temporary exhibitions programme. The main space in the current Transformation exhibition pays tribute to her incisive vision and hard work.

Dr Hilary Diaper was Keeper of the University Art Collection and Gallery from 1987 until 2010. Previously she had been Research Assistant in the Department of Fine Art, and has published a number of books and articles on late nineteenth- and twentieth-century art.