简体中文
The Hepworth Wakefield has been named the UK's museum of the year by the Art Fund.
The Yorkshire attraction won the coveted £100,000 prize for showing unfailing flair, as well as exceptional imagination, innovation and achievement.
Art Fund director and chairman of the judges, Stephen Deuchar, said: "The Hepworth Wakefield has been a powerful force of energy from the moment it opened in 2011.
"But it has just kept growing in reach and impact ever since."
This year, the Yorkshire museum saw a 21% increase in visitor numbers
This year, the art gallery and museum saw a 21% increase in visitor numbers, a bold new sculpture prize and an ambitious exhibitions programme including major retrospectives of Stanley Spencer and Martin Parr.
"The Hepworth serves it local community with unfailing flair and dedication," said Deuchar.
"It's the museum everyone would dream of having on their doorstep."
Deuchar went on: "David Chipperfield's building has proved a perfect stage - both for the display of collections and as a platform for a breathtaking sequence of special exhibitions, curated with determined originality by the talented curatorial team."
The museum displays sculptures of the late British artist Barbara Hepworth
The award is the largest museum prize in the world, and has for the first time given a £10,000 consolation prize to all its finalists.
The Hepworth Wakefield was chosen from a shortlist that also included Birmingham's Lapworth Museum of Geology, the National Heritage Centre for Horseracing & Sporting Art in Newmarket, London's Sir John Soane's Museum and the Tate Modern.
The Tate Modern lost despite launching a £266m extension last year.
The Tate Modern lost despite launching a multi-million pound extension last year
The Art Fund is the national fundraising charity for art and has, in the last five years, given £34m to help museums and art galleries.
This year's prize was handed out by radio DJ Jo Whiley, at the Great Court of the British Museum.
"Travelling around the country and discovering places that were completely new to me has really opened my eyes to the incredible work that UK museums are doing," she said.
"Any one of the short-listed museums would have been a worthy winner, and the pressure was very much on in making this tough decision, but in the end we all agreed that The Hepworth Wakefield was a worthy winner."
(SKYNEWS)
