Robert Anderson (museum director)
Encyclopedia
Robert Geoffrey William Anderson is a British museum curator and chemist
who was Director of the British Museum
, London
.
Anderson studied at St John's College
, Oxford University. He has held posts at the Royal Scottish Museum (joining as Assistant Keeper in 1970), the Science Museum, London, the National Museums of Scotland
, Edinburgh
and at the British Museum
, London
(1992–2002). Anderson oversaw the £100 million millennium project redevelopment of the British Museum
's Queen Elizabeth II Great Court
, designed by Norman Foster
and opened by the Queen
in 2000.
Subsequently, he has held visiting academic posts at the Institute for Advanced Study
, Princeton University
and at the Centre for Research in the Arts, Social Sciences, and Humanities
(CRASSH) at the University of Cambridge (2002–2003). He is now an Official Fellow of Clare Hall, at the University of Cambridge.
Chemistry
Chemistry is the science of matter, especially its chemical reactions, but also its composition, structure and properties. Chemistry is concerned with atoms and their interactions with other atoms, and particularly with the properties of chemical bonds....
who was Director of the British Museum
British Museum
The British Museum is a museum of human history and culture in London. Its collections, which number more than seven million objects, are amongst the largest and most comprehensive in the world and originate from all continents, illustrating and documenting the story of human culture from its...
, London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
.
Anderson studied at St John's College
St John's College, Oxford
__FORCETOC__St John's College is a constituent college of the University of Oxford, one of the larger Oxford colleges with approximately 390 undergraduates, 200 postgraduates and over 100 academic staff. It was founded by Sir Thomas White, a merchant, in 1555, whose heart is buried in the chapel of...
, Oxford University. He has held posts at the Royal Scottish Museum (joining as Assistant Keeper in 1970), the Science Museum, London, the National Museums of Scotland
National Museums of Scotland
National Museums Scotland is the organization that runs several national museums of Scotland. It is one of the country's National Collections, and holds internationally important collections of natural sciences, decorative arts, world cultures, science and technology, and Scottish history and...
, Edinburgh
Edinburgh
Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...
and at the British Museum
British Museum
The British Museum is a museum of human history and culture in London. Its collections, which number more than seven million objects, are amongst the largest and most comprehensive in the world and originate from all continents, illustrating and documenting the story of human culture from its...
, London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
(1992–2002). Anderson oversaw the £100 million millennium project redevelopment of the British Museum
British Museum
The British Museum is a museum of human history and culture in London. Its collections, which number more than seven million objects, are amongst the largest and most comprehensive in the world and originate from all continents, illustrating and documenting the story of human culture from its...
's Queen Elizabeth II Great Court
Queen Elizabeth II Great Court
The central quadrangle of the British Museum in London was redeveloped to a design by Foster and Partners, from a 1970s design by Colin St John Wilson, to become the Queen Elizabeth II Great Court, commonly referred to simply as the Great Court, during the late 1990s...
, designed by Norman Foster
Norman Foster, Baron Foster of Thames Bank
Norman Robert Foster, Baron Foster of Thames Bank, OM is a British architect whose company maintains an international design practice, Foster + Partners....
and opened by the Queen
Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom
Elizabeth II is the constitutional monarch of 16 sovereign states known as the Commonwealth realms: the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Jamaica, Barbados, the Bahamas, Grenada, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Belize,...
in 2000.
Subsequently, he has held visiting academic posts at the Institute for Advanced Study
Institute for Advanced Study
The Institute for Advanced Study, located in Princeton, New Jersey, United States, is an independent postgraduate center for theoretical research and intellectual inquiry. It was founded in 1930 by Abraham Flexner...
, Princeton University
Princeton University
Princeton University is a private research university located in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. The school is one of the eight universities of the Ivy League, and is one of the nine Colonial Colleges founded before the American Revolution....
and at the Centre for Research in the Arts, Social Sciences, and Humanities
Centre for Research in the Arts, Social Sciences, and Humanities
The Centre for Research in the Arts, Social Sciences and Humanities is an interdisciplinary research centre within the University of Cambridge for collaboration between researchers from the arts, social sciences and humanities...
(CRASSH) at the University of Cambridge (2002–2003). He is now an Official Fellow of Clare Hall, at the University of Cambridge.