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Lightbox wins Art Fund Prize

22 May 2008

The Lightbox has won The Art Fund Prize for museums and galleries 2008. The announcement was made by chair of the judging panel, Sue MacGregor, at an awards ceremony at RIBA in London last night (Thursday 22 May).  The prestigious award involves a £100,000 prize.  To add to the celebrations, The Lightbox also received an award for being runners up in the RICS South East Awards at Oxford Castle last night for the Community Engagement category.

The short list of four for the Art Fund Prize was announced in April, after a judging panel whittled down competition from a long list of ten. The other short listed contestants were: the Wellcome Collection in London, the Shetland Museum and Archives in Lerwick, Scotland and The British Empire and Commonwealth Museum in Bristol, for the slavery exhibition ‘Breaking the Chains.’

The judges were impressed by a visit to The Lightbox in February. Sue MacGregor said that she enjoyed ‘Woking’s Story,’ the museum of the town’s history. She mentioned the displays on the Shah Jehan Mosque, the first to be built in the country, and Brookwood Cemetery, which was used as a London overflow in the 19th century, as particular highlights.

The judges’ decision was also influenced by the positive feedback they have received from visitors and members of the local community. 

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