In June 2022, our building in Bethnal Green reaches its 150th year – it was East London’s first public museum when it opened its doors in 1872. Right from the outset, the museum aimed to be a cultural and educational resource for local people, and throughout its history, the museum has been a place of reinvention, housing a wide variety of collections and activities. To celebrate this milestone and to help us look to the future, we are launching Young V&A’s Reinvent Festival, a year-long programme of 150 creative activities taking place over the months before we reopen in Summer 2023.
The festival is an opportunity for further collaboration with local children, young people and communities, and the 150 creative activities will support the reinvention of our museum as a place of imagination, play, social connection and inspiration. The programme will drive us towards the opening of Young V&A in 2023 and, along the way, we hope our many collaborators and supporters will continue to influence and shape the museum as a place for them.
The Reinvent Festival will take the Young V&A team to local schools, parks, libraries and local festivals, with events being delivered in partnership with local organisations including Rich Mix, Oxford House, St Margaret’s House, Tower Hamlets’ Idea Stores and many others. These partnerships are critical because they represent a shared ambition to pool expertise, energy and resource to ensure children in East London have access to diverse and engaging creative experiences.
