Painted glass portrait of a sleeping figure wrapped in a red lace patterned blanket. there are barbed wire fences in the background, a pair of running legs, and a tree, moon and stars on a night sky.
Global Arts, Cultures & Design

Modern and Contemporary Design

Our Modern and Contemporary Design collections comprise over 35,000 objects dating from c.1850 to the present, including ceramics, jewellery, glass, metalwork, fashion and textiles, craft, contemporary furniture and product design.

Meet the team

Modern and Contemporary Design stories

  1. A detail of a sculpture made of jagged silver pieces

    A silversmith who combines handcraft and technology

    Art and design, Scotland

    Scottish silversmith Hamish Dobbie was commissioned by the P&O Makower Trust to create a piece for National Museums Scotland. Dobbie is part of a new generation of makers who combine traditional hand skills with innovative…
    Film
  2. Mannequins wearing colourful clothes on display in a museum

    Developing new mannequins for our fashion displays

    Fashion and textiles

    Written by Georgina Ripley
    Our displays are evolving to reflect different bodies and to tell new stories. Find out more about our process and where we plan to go from here.
    Short read
  3. Three blooming red poppies with black centres

    Glamorous poppies: Ceramics by Maryam Salour

    Art and design

    Discover the origins of a popular garden plant through artwork by ceramist Maryam Salour.
    Short read