Commenting on the winner, Will Richards, Chairman of Dreweatts, said, "We are delighted to be giving this year’s award to Inveraray Castle. Their approach to collection interpretation offers a fresh and engaging perspective on this important historic collection, exploring themes that resonate with visitors today, while remaining firmly rooted in its historical context. Through thoughtful interpretation and an engaging visitor interaction that brings the exhibition alive, Inveraray Castle has brought its collection to a new generation.”

We are delighted to present a grant of £4,500 to further improve interpretation and display of this marvellous collection.

Inveraray Castle

Inveraray Castle is the family home for the Duke and Duchess of Argyll, built and furnished to provide a comfortable and impressive home, which has developed to meet the needs of different generations. The present Inveraray Castle was built in the mid-eighteenth century.

The classical interiors of the State Rooms still reflect their creation in the 1770s and 1780s. The Armoury Hall, the central feature of the house, is decorated with a fine display of arms, used and ceremonial. The first-floor public rooms are furnished with objects and pictures from the collection in a themed approach, with the Victorian Room, the MacArthur room and the Picture Turret.

Recently, a change in focus has seen a reinterpretation of the Castle and its collections to look more closely at the women in the family. As well as bringing dowries and cementing alliances, many of the Argyll women carved their own spheres of influence in society, in fashion, at court and many took on management of the extensive Argyll estates when needed.

The initial Leading Ladies exhibition brought together portraits, artefacts and documents with three dresses, two of which were worn by the 12th Duchess and the other made by the 12th Duchess for her young granddaughter, Lady Charlotte. 

Since then the exhibition has expanded to include two gowns recreated from portraits hanging in the Castle. The dresses are being entirely hand sewn by an historic seamstress. Once completed, they will be displayed alongside the portraits, engaging visitors to discuss the designs, textiles, construction and techniques required to make them, whilst also bringing a new focus to the women themselves, to the paintings and to the social history behind them. The focus on the Leading Ladies continues with other items from the collection, including furniture, pieces of porcelain and other artefacts which connect to other women, providing these stories too.

Alison Diamond, Archivist for Argyll Estates Archives at Inveraray Castle, said, “We are delighted that Inveraray has won this award. What has meant most to us is seeing visitors stop, ask questions and really engage with these women and their stories, whether that is watching the gowns being sewn or standing in front of the portraits. It is a credit to everyone here, and we thank the judges, Historic Houses and Dreweatts."

Find out more about the work of Inveraray Castle.

The Judging Panel

For this year's award, we invited a distinguished panel of judges from the worlds of curation, collecting, and creative practice. A special thanks goes to:

Jasper Conran

Alice Loxton

Dr Xavier Bray

Will Richards

Recognising, responding, reimagining

All the collections in Historic Houses member places are unique, priceless, and inseparable from the individuals and families who have brought and kept them together. Each year our judges will choose a collection that best exemplifies the way that those who care for our independent heritage:

• Recognise and research the significance and stories of their artefacts;
• Respond to new imperatives and challenges, both social and technical;
• Reimagine the composition or presentation of the collection for a new generation.

We look forward to working with Historic Houses in 2026, exploring and recognising more collections!

www.historichouses.org

Film shown by permission of Historic Houses