We are Museumand
The National Caribbean Heritage Museum.
What do we do?
We are the first museum in the UK dedicated to celebrating Caribbean heritage, culture, and social history. As a museum “without walls” we connect with communities across the UK, through art, music, performance and more.
We are known for our compelling and original programme of multi-layered, innovative, thought-provoking projects, which include exhibition-events, films, TV series, theatre shows, podcasts and books. We also have an extensive archive collection of objects, memorabilia, information, oral histories, and stories related to Caribbean history, heritage, and culture – tangible and intangible. That’s why we’re called Museumand – because we’re a museum and more.
We work with a whole range of partners to make sure the Caribbean contribution to life in Britain is understood, shared, celebrated and honoured. From local grassroots organisations to national institutions like the V&A, National Trust, and The British Library.
Who do we do it for?
We foster culture and cultural exchange within the Caribbean community and beyond – everyone is welcome. To do that, we don’t just put on exhibitions, we create events around them, so people get chance to speak to and learn from each other. As a team, we’re continuously learning and developing our projects from these cultural conversations and sharing of community knowledge and audience feedback.
As a “museum without walls” we aren’t limited to any particular place – we bring the museum experience to the people wherever they are. We want our exhibition-events to be a sensory experience and a journey accessible to all – that starts with an initial visit and becomes a process of exploration and discovery. There are at least 77 different Caribbean islands and we’re here to reflect the stories of all Caribbeans.
When we interpret Caribbean culture, we consider all generations of Caribbean descent, including those in Caribbean blended and mixed heritage families. We also include the wider community and those who are keen to develop a greater understanding of Caribbean history, heritage, and culture in the UK.
Who do we work with?
We’ve collaborated with a whole range of people and organisations to create everything from major exhibition-events, to books, films, TV programmes and podcasts. Our national partners include the V&A, National Trust, Bank of England Museum, Museum of London Docklands, Whitworth Art Gallery, Pitt Rivers Museum, Manchester Museum, Nottingham Castle Museum and Art Gallery, York Castle Museum, Parliamentary Archives and The British Library.
We also work with universities across the UK including Oxford, Nottingham, Nottingham Trent, Manchester, Sheffield, Sheffield Hallam, Hull, Derby, Leicester, Lincoln, York, Exeter, UEA University of East Anglia, SOAS University of London and Hertfordshire; as well as museums, art galleries, libraries, theatres, cinemas, local councils and MPs. Internationally, we have worked with the University of Toronto Scarborough in Canada.
Collaborating with us enables our partners to reflect on their own collections, programmes and practices and think differently about British history, heritage, and culture – including how it can be interpreted, experienced, and shared to tell the Caribbean story and become more inclusive and representative of all communities.
Who are we?
Museumand is a Black female-led heritage organisation founded and run by a mother-daughter team.
Meet Catherine Ross
our Founder Director
I emigrated to the UK from the Caribbean island of St Kitts in 1958, aged seven years old, as part of the Windrush Generation. As the Founder Director of Museumand, I’m responsible for all the museum does (and what it doesn’t!) including how we present our projects in a way that engages, connects, and encourages visitors to recommend others should “come see”. When people tell us they came because of a recommendation or we overhear the phrase “I never knew that” our team high five each other, knowing it’s been a job well done and we’ve got the interpretation right.
A key part of my role involves harnessing collaborations, building partnerships, fundraising, and representing the museum at various events.
I am also a published author, former teacher, and management consultant. I have been a national strategic development adviser at both The British Red Cross and The Scout Association.
Meet Lynda Burrell
our Creative Director
I studied fashion at London College of Fashion and Middlesex University and went on to have an exciting career in New York as a fashion designer for companies including Marc Jacobs, and as a fashion editor with magazines including Vogue and Marie Claire. I have also owned and run a number of successful beauty businesses and a line of cosmetics.
As the Creative Director of Museumand, I oversee every aspect of the creative process to make sure our projects are second to none, with every detail carefully crafted. We work with a diverse and multi-talented range of curators, artists and other creatives on exhibition-events and projects, but we manage and lead on all these aspects ourselves.
Creative excellence is at the heart of our vision and mission as an organisation, both in terms of our innovative, collaborative, unique approach; and our high quality production values. I devise new ideas and unexpected ways of telling heritage stories that capture people’s imaginations and encourage them to become advocates for heritage sites and landscapes – including those who may not be familiar with, or feel welcome in, traditional heritage institutions.