Donating Artworks to Cambridge University Hospitals
Thank you for your interest in donating artworks to Cambridge University Hospitals. It’s wonderful to see how many people love and value our art collection, and understand the importance of having quality artworks in our healthcare environments.
While we would love to be able to accept all donations, this is not always possible; the hospital has limited space for display and storage, only a small team to manage the care of artworks, and judgements to make about the nature of artworks we display.
If you are considering donating artworks to CUH Arts, please complete this Expression of Interest form with details of the work (one form for each artwork) and send it along with images to the CUH arts team via email.
We will contact you within 10 working days to respond to your offer. If the donation has been agreed, you will then be asked to sign our Art Donations Agreement before arranging for the safe transportation of the artwork.
CUH Arts programmes and projects rely on charitable donations. If you would like to donate funds to support our Arts programme, please contact Addenbrooke’s Charitable Trust (opens in a new tab).
CUH Arts Donations: Criteria and Considerations
Art can be a powerful, positive and transformative force. We appreciate that many people have strong opinions about how and what art should be displayed and where. At CUH Arts we need to consider a range of criteria before accepting artwork into our collection and displaying work in our hospitals.
These considerations include but, due to the range of the visual arts, are not limited to:
Physical Practicalities
- Is the work in a condition suitable for public display?
- Is the work of a manageable size for display and storage, within the resources of our team?
- Is the work framed suitably to protect the artwork and public when on display?
- Can the artwork be transported to Cambridge University Hospitals?
- Does the artwork, either the materials or the framing, pose a particular fire or infection control risk?
Quality, Collection and Care
- Does the artwork speak to the concerns of the patients and staff at Cambridge University Hospitals?
- Does the artwork support our organisation’s values: Safe, Kind and Excellent?
- Does the artwork connect with existing collection items, or represent a point of difference to existing works in the collection?
- Does the artwork need a conservation or maintenance plan which CUH can commit to upholding, within the resources of our team?
Location and audience
- Is the subject matter of the artwork suitable for display in a public hospital setting, given the myriad sensitivities of patients as they move through our buildings?
- CUH Arts consult with staff before agreeing display of artwork in particular locations – if this artwork is location-specific, are the staff happy and comfortable to work alongside the artwork?
- Does the artwork enrich our communication with patients?
To support your donation enquiry please complete the following document and send it to the CUH arts team via email.