Friends of the Ashmolean
Founded in 1969, the Friends of the Ashmolean Museum play an active and important role within the Museum. This highly sociable group organizes a wide variety of activities for its members throughout the year. The Friends help to support the Museum in a variety of ways, including:
- Making vital contributions towards the purchasing funds of the Ashmolean.
- Supporting Museum posts.
- Organizing the Information Volunteers, who provide a welcoming and helpful resource for visitors.
Benefits of membership:
- Three activity programs a year (following Oxford University's terms), which include events specially arranged for the Friends. These include: invitations to private views of Ashmolean exhibitions led my Museum curators; visits to museums and country houses; lectures, recitals and parties. Our current programme of events can be viewed here.
- Opportunities to see behind the scenes in some departments of the Museum.
- Private views of Ashmolean exhibitions.
- The Ashmolean Magazine published twice-yearly free of charge, containing news of the Museum and illustrated articles on items in the collections.
- A discount on adult study days organized by the Education Service.
- The Ashmolean Museum Shop and Digby Trout Restaurants kindly offer all Friends and Patrons a courtesy 10% discount upon presentation of their membership card.*
* Please note that these discounts are offered at the discretion of the Ashmolean Museum Shop and Digby Trout Restaurants, and may be subject to change.
Membership rates
- £25 (minimum) annual subscription paid by standing order or £30 if paid by cheque or cash/credit card.
- £20 annual subscription for individuals over 60 or £25 if paid by cheque or cash/credit card.
- £30 joint membership for a couple if paid by standing order or £35 if paid by cash/credit card, plus £5 family membership (to include all children in the family under 18).
- £500 life membership by donation, or £750 for a couple.
On annual subscriptions and life Subscriptions paid with Gift Aid Declarations the Friends are able to reclaim income tax.
Gift membership
Please indicate which membership you wish to give, and enclose the recipient's name and address with any message.
To join
Follow this link for information on how to join the Friends.
To contact the Friends
The Friends' telephone number is 01865 278016. Membership queries may be answered on Wednesday mornings. Messages left for the Activities Secretaries will be answered as soon as possible.
Young Friends of the Ashmolean
The Young Friends of the Ashmolean is a special branch of the Friends of the Ashmolean set up to encourage students (both university and schools) and the "young" (twenty-somethings) to develop their interests in art and archaeology. Our membership is diverse and our style is informal. If you are interested in art and archaeology, or are considering a career in museums, the Young Friends is an organization for you.
The Young Friends host a programme of events from October through June, designed to give our members a behind-the-scenes look at the collections and contact with curators and specialists.
Our events include gallery talks on the collections by curators and invited specialists, occasional handling sessions, invitations to private views, talks by Young Friends themselves in the Ashmolean's galleries and 'The Oxford Series' - an introduction to the art and architecture of city and colleges of Oxford. Finally, we host a number of parties each year in the Museum and around Oxford. Please download the document for details of events.
Benefits of membership:
- Free entry to a series of specially organized events
- Invitations to special Friends Gallery Openings and Private Views
- Discounted tickets for the Young Friends Christmas Party and Garden Party
- Discounted tickets for events organized by the Education Service.
- 10% discount on gifts at the Ashmolean Museum Shop
- 20% discount on books at the Ashmolean Museum Shop
- 10% discount at the Museum Café
- Free subscription to the Ashmolean Magazine
- As a Friend your greatest privilege is to know that your subscription is helping to support an Oxford Museum whose collection of art and antiquities are of international importance. An example of this support is the small donation the Young Friends were able to make towards the Museum's purchase of Titian's Portrait of Giacomo Doria (Gallery 39, Renaissance Gallery).
To join
To join the Young Friends, please complete and return the following form.
For further information, and to book for talks and events, please contact:
The Young Friends of the Ashmolean
Ashmolean Museum
Oxford
OX1 2PH
UK
Email: young.friends@ashmus.ox.ac.uk.