Tour of the Borthwick Institute for Archives

4 Feb 2026

The Borthwick is one of the biggest archive repositories outside London. Since 2005 it has been based in a purpose- built building made possible by a grant of £4.4 million by the Heritage Lottery Fund. In this tour, Gary Brannan, the Keeper of Archives and Special...

Tour of Birdsall House, Malton

3 Feb 2026

Leaving Memorial Gardens at 1pm, we will travel by coach to Birdsall House, near Malton for a 2-hour guided tour by a member of the Willoughby family. Set in beautiful parkland, the original Tudor house was enlarged in the mid eighteenth century and later extended by...

Coach trip to Skipton

3 Feb 2026

We will leave Memorial Gardens by coach at 9am to travel to Skipton. Here we will first visit the newly refurbished Craven Museum, which was shortlisted for the Art Fund Museum of the year in 2024. Here we will have coffee and a short talk by the Curator, before...

Walking tour: Art and Architecture in Beverley

3 Feb 2026

We will start our tour at 11am in the medieval Guildhall, with its fine 18th century courtroom, local history museum, and collection of paintings by the Beverley artists Fred and Mary Elwell. The Guildhall was remodelled in the 17th and 18th centuries and the Court...

Friends Exhibition Preview

2 Feb 2026

*** Fully booked *** Friends’ Exclusive Preview of the Exhibition ‘Making Waves’ The exhibition of Japanese prints, ‘Making Waves’, opens to the public in the Madsen Galleries on Friday 27 February. Before the public are admitted, there will be a...

Artwork of the Month – ‘Our Lowrys’

24 Dec 2025

The next Friends’ Talk in the Gallery – Wednesday 14 January at 11.30 am – will be given by Jane Eddleston in the Burton gallery. Its subject will be “Our Lowrys”. Lowry’s Clifford’s Tower has been a constant presence in the Burton Gallery for...

Bernardo Bellotto: Piazza San Martino, Lucca

28 Nov 2025

Our speaker for Artwork of the Month, November 2025, was Charles Martindale, Chair of the Friends. His subject was Piazza San Martino, Lucca by Bernardo Bellotto, one of the gems of the Gallery collection and a favourite painting of Charles’s. Click the button...

Talk by Sir Gabriele Finaldi, Director, National Gallery London

19 Nov 2025

Sir Gabriele Finaldi will give a talk ‘The National Gallery: A Growing Collection’, followed by a conversation with Professor Charles Martindale, Chair of the Friends, about his career and role as Director of one of the greatest galleries in the world. The National...

‘The Indian Girl’ by William Etty

14 Nov 2025

Our speaker for Artwork of the Month, September 2025, was John Roe, formerly Secretary of the Friends. His subject was The Indian Girl, a painting by William Etty held in the collection of York Art Gallery and not usually on display. Click the button below for a...

Friends tour to Sussex

20 Oct 2025

This five-day coach tour to Sussex has been arranged for the Friends by Travel Editions. Departing from York Memorial Gardens on Monday 28 September, we will visit Wardown House Museum & Gallery en route. Accommodation will be at the four-star Holiday Inn on...