The purchase of a beautiful Renaissance masterpiece by Pietro Lorenzetti is the latest in a string of successes for Hull's Ferens Art Gallery, as James Campbell reports.
While many museums and galleries are keeping their heads down and trying to ride the budget cuts and recession, Ferens Art Gallery is blossoming.
After a number of high-profile and hugely successful exhibitions, the gallery has now pulled off a remarkable coup by landing a rare medieval painting.
Called Christ Between Saints Paul And Peter, it was painted by Sienese old master Pietro Lorenzetti in around 1320 and has been bought for a bargain £1.6m.
"The reputation of the gallery is going from strength to strength," curator Kirsten Simister said.
"This means other galleries often approach us to hold exhibitions.
"We have built up partnerships by lending our works and then those galleries return the favour.
"I think the successful exhibitions are helping raise awareness but there is always more we can do.
"Although our visitor figures are very good, we want to encourage more people to come from both Hull and elsewhere."
The artwork was painted more than a century before Michelangelo and Leonardo da Vinci arrived on the Renaissance scene.
Its purchase will help Hull push its bid to become the UK's City Of Culture 2017, in a move many hope will bolster the city's artistic credentials.
"The Ferens Endowment Fund has been an amazing resource for the gallery and it is pretty unique," Kirsten explained.
"It allows us to evolve and grow.
"The majority of old Masters have been acquired by the gallery in the early days before prices went through the roof.
"There were particular circumstances around this painting, which was subject to a temporary export stop.
"This meant the price was significantly reduced. The endowment fund wouldn't have stretched to the market value price."
For some, the religious theme of the Lorenzetti painting won't seem terribly exciting. But its significance cannot be underestimated.
"Art in this period was all religious," Kirsten explained.
"This will be the oldest painting in the gallery by about 130 years.
"It can be classed as either late medieval or early renaissance.
"There is already interest from Hull and York universities to use it for studies.
"Part of the success is down to the timing and also in identifying opportunities and knowing when to secure such paintings."
The City Of Culture bid presents a great opportunity for the Ferens Art Gallery to further enhance its reputation.
"There is a real sense of expectation about Hull and what it has to offer," Kirsten said.
"The city is ready to take that next step and we realise what a great opportunity this represents.
"Hopefully, acquiring the Lorenzetti will help boost Hull's bid.
"It shows we are ambitious and want to take it further."
The gallery's purple patch began in 2011 with the David Hockney exhibition Bigger Trees Near Warter and, with the likes of the Leonardo da Vinci, Andy Warhol and Jacqueline Wilson shows, the gallery has not looked back.
The buzz generated by the big-name exhibitions has seen a steady rise in visitor numbers at the gallery.
The draw of the Ferens saw it recognised as one of the prizewinners at this year's Remarkable East Yorkshire Tourism Awards (Reyta).
"We have been extremely lucky with a spell of high profile shows, one after the other," assistant curator Claire Longrigg said.
"The Hockney exhibition had a large impact locally but it also attracted audiences from beyond Hull.
"We attracted 67,000 visitors in just 12 weeks, which was really good for us.
"In terms of exhibitions, we have been very successful which has made more people aware of the gallery both locally and further afield.
"What is important is that people see the rest of the collection and then come back."
As well as bringing the work of high-profile artists, variety is also key.
"We always try to have a balanced programme," Claire said.
"We love to attract families so the Jacqueline Wilson exhibition is perfect but we also have a show by Turner Prize winner Martin Creed which is more challenging and difficult.
"We are doing what we can and when opportunities arise.
"We are trying to make sure we build on the momentum we have created."
Claire also believes the culture bid represents a great opportunity for the gallery. The City Of Culture bid is great for us and it is an exciting time," she said.
"There is a lot of culture in Hull and we need to celebrate that.
"We will be expected to do something high profile if the bid is successful and that is something we look forward to working on."
Despite the gallery's success, it hasn't been achieved through vast resources.
"We are a very small team which is quite a challenge and we work on something of a shoestring," Claire said.
"We just take the opportunities where we can and apply for grants.
"We are a passionate team. We all love what we do and it is great to engage with visitors."
The success has also been a source of personal pride for Claire.
"I have been here for five years now and it has been very interesting," she said.
"We work on a broad range of shows.
"I was aware of the Ferens before I came here and already knew it was something of a gem. We have had some good shows and we will continue to work hard to deliver more of the same."
The next exhibition later this year will be entitled Going Dutch and will bring together all the paintings and objects from the Lowlands across Hull's museums.
