It has been a busy start to 2026 for the wider North East Museums Team with a whole host of new exhibitions opening and welcoming thousands of visitors already.
It is not often that a masterpiece by one of the world’s most famous artists comes to South Tyneside so we were delighted to open Monet: In the Presence of Nature at South Shields Museum and Art Gallery. It is the first year of a new partnership between North East Museums and The National Gallery which will see other masterpieces from their collections visit the town. The exhibition (in the museum until 25 March 2026) of Monet’s The Petit Bras of the Seine at Argenteuil is complemented by some other stunning landscapes from our collections at South Shields, The Laing and Shipley Art Gallery as well as responses by young people from the town.
At Woodhorn we have opened the North East’s largest Open Exhibition bringing together the work of over 280 professional and amateur artists in the Workshop Galleries at the Ashington museum. The exhibition runs to 10 May and is sure to attract lots of visitors to the site which also includes permanent exhibitions of work by the Pitmen Painters and Mik Critchlow.
Obviously at the Hatton itself we are pleased to have opened Happy!, curated from the Jerwood Collection of modern British art by young people from North East England. The exhibition runs to 9 May and promises to be joyful and fun.
Later in the Spring we will have a new show at Great North Museum: Hancock called Treasure which will tell the story of some of the amazing archaeological finds from the region and over at Segedunum in Wallsend we have an exhibition of Roman Diplomas in Follow The Eagle! Keep an eye out for details.
I hope to see you at one of our museums over the what is sure to be a busy few months.
Keith Merrin
Director, North East Museums (formerly Tyne & Wear Archives & Museums)
Friends of the Hatton 