Meet the winner
Beamish, The Living Museum of the North was announced as Art Fund Museum of the Year 2025 at a ceremony at the Museum of Liverpool on 26 June.
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Beamish, The Living Museum of the North, is a renowned open-air museum in County Durham that brings North East England's Georgian, Edwardian, 1940s and 1950s history to life through immersive exhibits. Visitors engage with costumed staff and volunteers and experience regional stories of everyday life. As Beamish celebrates its 55-year anniversary, the museum continues its longstanding commitment to preserving local heritage.
Art Fund Museum of the Year is the world’s biggest museum prize
Every year, Art Fund shortlists five outstanding museums for Art Fund Museum of the Year.
The prize champions what museums do, encourages more people to visit, and gets to the heart of what makes a truly memorable museum.
This year, our judges are tasked with identifying projects that spotlight the wide range of remarkable people, including museum staff and volunteers, who bring museums to life by engaging with communities, families and younger visitors, artists and creatives.
Our Judges for 2025
Our experienced and passionate panel of judges are responsible for selecting the shortlist of five museums and deciding who will win Art Fund Museum of the Year 2025.
Meet last year's winner
Young V&A was announced as Art Fund Museum of the Year 2024 at a ceremony at the National Gallery, London, on 10 July.
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Young V&A is a museum sparking creativity now and for the future. Created with children from early years to early teens, it is a place for young people to imagine, play and design, and get inspired by almost 2,000 toys, characters, objects and artworks on display from around the world and across history.
Art Fund Museum of the Year map
Discover all the winners and finalists of the prize, from 2013 to the present day
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