The Beaney

The Beaney ART | MUSEUM | LIBRARY
Situated in the heart of the historic Canterbury
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The Beaney House of Art & Knowledge is a Museum, Art Gallery, Library and Visitor Information Centre situated in the heart of historic Canterbury. This award winning facility provides state-of-the-art exhibition galleries, excellent educational facilities and a varied programme of events for all ages. The building takes its name from its benefactor, Dr James George Beaney, a Canterbury-born man of

modest background who studied medicine before emigrating to Australia, where he found his success. Upon his death in 1891, Dr Beaney left money in his will to the city of Canterbury to build an ‘Institute for Working Men’ with amenities for men from poor backgrounds such as his own. His patronage was fundamental in building the Beaney Institute: a new home for the Canterbury Royal Museum and Free Library, now known as The Beaney House of Art & Knowledge. A cultural hub in East Kent, praised for its welcoming atmosphere, providing a range of services under one roof, uniting art, heritage, books, ideas, information and collections. Whether you are a frequent Library user, a teacher on a Schools Workshop, or an inquisitive explorer studying our treasures from the Ancient worlds; The Beaney is a building for everyone. Canterbury City Council continues to own the Beaney and provides the museum and art galleries - Kent County Council is the library authority.

04/09/2026

“Obscurities” by Eszter Novák 👀

Eszter Novák is a Hungarian-British artist, illustrator and graphic designer with a fascination for the weird, the comically obscure and the wonderfully peculiar. 😵‍💫

Obscurities grew from her undergraduate dissertation research into how visual humour affects memorability and has since developed into the first exhibition inside Canterbury’s Clocktower Gallery.

Did you know there’s a word that used to be shouted often and when you heard it, you’d better jump out of the way? Or that there’s a word for awkward youth, and even one for a beautifully shaped bum? And what if I told you none of these words are new?

Discover the definitions, synonyms, and etymology behind 26 obscure English words in this unique illustrated dictionary. The centre pages even fold out into a neat timeline!

Now on sale at The Beaney £28 📗

Free workshop: Mend Patch Transform with Laura Elford 🪡Add to and extend the life of your clothing, learning techniques ...
03/09/2026

Free workshop: Mend Patch Transform with Laura Elford 🪡

Add to and extend the life of your clothing, learning techniques that not only create strength to your most worn pieces but also create your own visual ID, creating truly personal items.

Book a slot in this embroidery and beading workshop, creating custom patches to add to your own pieces. A huge range of beads and embroidery threads will be available with Laura guiding on making unique patches to take away with you, or add to clothing during the session.

Friday 25 September 2pm to 4pm

Learning Lab, The Beaney House of Art and Knowledge, Canterbury

The workshop is FREE but spaces are limited. Book with Laura Elford to secure your place. Link in comments 🎟

This session is run as part of Sustainable Fashion Week, follow and www.asinglethread.org to find out more about other events taking place.

03/09/2026

New free activity at The Beaney! 🐮

‘Charlie the Bull’ stars as a new wellbeing mascot in an activity co-designed with Year 12 Simon Langton Girls Grammar School students.

They designed this lovely activity sheet for The Beaney so ‘all families can enjoy screen free fun in the gallery together’

Looking for something calm for the kids to to do after school this September? Come and relax with Charlie in the Garden Room! 😌

Available until Wednesday 30 September 🗓️

The work is part of The Beaney’s ongoing Young Person’s Wellbeing Programme, funded by the Museum Association and Julia Rausing Trust.

28/08/2026

Take a look around The Beaney! 👀

9 galleries of art, history and more right in the middle of Canterbury there are
so many reasons to visit.

The museum is usually closed on Mondays but we'll be open especially on Bank Holiday Monday 31 August 2026 so finish off the summer with a stroll around The Beaney.

We hope to see you soon! 👋

26/08/2026

Which Canterbury landmark would you explore first? 📍

Christopher Marlowe spent his formative years in one of the most important cities in Elizabethan England and some of the sites are still here today.

Delve deeper into Marlowe's life in the city by visiting 'The Making of Marlowe' exhibition at The Beaney.

24/08/2026

Remember this? 💭

That’s right! It’s the Ship In The Bottle from the very first episode of Bagpuss!

Recently uncovered, cleaned up and put alongside the beautiful puppets and other props from the beloved show.

Smallfilms Gallery, The Beaney House of Art & Knowledge, Canterbury 📍

23/08/2026

The sculpture in the Stour 🌸

Installed in 2024, ‘Alluvia’, created by artist Jason deCaires Taylor is a sculpture made from recycled glass, LED’s and marine stainless steel.

The work references John Everett Millais’s painting ‘Ophelia’ that depicts the well known character who tragically drowns in Shakespeare’s ‘Hamlet’.

Some suggest that when writing the scene, Shakespeare was inspired by a similar tragic incident involving Sir James Hales that took place in the River Stour in the 16th century. So potentially this is another of Canterbury’s many links to literature.

River Stour, Westgate Gardens, Canterbury, England📍

21/08/2026

Travel back to Tudor Canterbury with us! 👋

Explore what life was like for Christopher Marlowe who grew up here in one of the most important cities in Elizabethan England.

Visit ‘The Making of Marlowe’ to learn about Kit’s family, their home and business, his education at The King’s School and all of the drama and danger that followed him throughout his fascinating life!

With artefacts, historical documents, games and costumes - there’s something for everyone so why not plan a visit?

We're looking for a Museum Audience & Engagement Intern! 📣The role offers an great opportunity to build practical skills...
20/08/2026

We're looking for a Museum Audience & Engagement Intern! 📣

The role offers an great opportunity to build practical skills and experience within a busy and ambitious museum service. Working closely with the Museums Audience & Engagement Officer, you will gain hands-on experience in audience engagement, programming, marketing and digital communications, helping to connect people with our collections, exhibitions and events.

You will support the delivery of visitor-focused projects, create content for digital and social media channels, assist with audience research and evaluation, and contribute to activities that broaden participation and develop new audiences.

Your knowledge:
- An interest in museums
- An interest art, culture / visitor attractions

Your experience:
- Experience of using and working across digital platforms and websites
- Experience of working as part of a team
- Experience of working to strict deadlines and with competing priorities

Your skills:
- Good organisational, logical and methodical thinking and planning skills
- Good interpersonal and communication skills, both verbal and written
- Willingness to work collaboratively and in partnership with colleagues and other organisations
- Ability to think creatively

Details:
£25,948.96
1 year fixed-term contract
Options for flexible, hybrid working
Application closing date Monday 21 September 2026
Interview dates are Wednesday 7 and Thursday 8 October

If this sounds like the opportunity for you we'd love to hear from you!

Link in comments to find out more and apply

Address

18 High Street
Canterbury
CT12RA

Opening Hours

Tuesday 10am - 5pm
Wednesday 10am - 5pm
Thursday 10am - 5pm
Friday 10am - 5pm
Saturday 10am - 5pm
Sunday 11am - 4pm

Telephone

+441227862162

Website

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