David France Collection

The Picton Reading Room and Hornby Library are two grade II* listed buildings on William Brown Street, Liverpool, England, which now form part of the Liverpool Central Library. The chairman of the William Brown Library and Museum, Sir James Picton, laid the foundation stone of the Picton Reading Room in 1875. It was designed by Cornelius Sherlock, and modelled after the British Museum Reading Room, and was the first electrically lit library in the UK. It was completed in 1879 formally opened by the Mayor of Liverpool, Sir Thomas Bland Royden. The front is semicircular with Corinthian columns, and the shape was chosen by the architect to cover the change in the axis of the row of buildings at this point. The Hornby Reading Room (named after Hugh Frederick Hornby) by Thomas Shelmerdine was added in 1906. It stands behind the older building and the interior is decorated in the Edwardian Imperial style.

Central is a Liverpool City Council ward in the Liverpool Riverside Parliamentary constituency. The population at the 2011 census was 20,340. It was formed for the 2004 municipal elections from the former Abercromby, Everton and Smithdown wards. It contains the majority of the city centre but also includes Kensington Fields in Kensington to the east and the Marybone/Holy Cross community in Vauxhall. The ward includes the longstanding city centre community around the Bullring, as well as many new city centre apartments. Furthermore, the ward contains the Pier Head and the two larger universities; the University of Liverpool and Liverpool John Moores University. In 2004 Central was the city's most marginal ward, largely due to the intervention of the hard left Liverpool Labour Community Party. In more recent elections has become safer for Labour. The May 2008 local elections saw Labour take 62% of the vote. The 2011 vote was effected by the controversy involving the Liberal Democrat candidate, Daniel Bradley the son of former Liverpool City Council Leader Warren Bradley, when Daniel disclosed that he had not signed the candidate paper, which his father had witnessed.

William Brown Street in Liverpool, England, is a road that is remarkable for its concentration of public buildings. It is sometimes referred to as the "Cultural Quarter". Originally known as Shaw's Brow, a coaching road east from the city, it is named after William Brown, a local MP and philanthropist, who in 1860 donated land in the area for the building of a library and museum. This area gives its name as the William Brown Street conservation area.

Liverpool Central Library is the largest of the 22 libraries in Liverpool, England, situated in the centre of the city.

Liverpool Record Office and Merseyside Record Office hold the archives for the city of Liverpool, and the rest of Merseyside. The archives are held at the Liverpool Central Library, and are run by Liverpool City Council.

The John Moores Prize Exhibition is a bi-annual competitive art exhibition held at the Walker Art Gallery, Liverpool. It is named after Sir John Moores (1896–1993), the founder of the competition and one-time head of the Littlewoods clothes retailing empire.First held in 1957, it is Britain's most well-known competition for aimed solely at painters and is now part of the Liverpool Biennial, a citywide celebration of the arts that encompasses the Tate Liverpool, Bluecoats Gallery and other venues in Liverpool. In 2008, the exhibition was a major part of Liverpool's celebrations as European Capital of Culture.

The Walker Art Gallery is an art gallery in Liverpool, which houses one of the largest art collections in England outside London. It is part of the National Museums Liverpool group.

The William Brown Library and Museum is a Grade II* listed building situated on the historic William Brown Street in Liverpool, England. The building currently houses part of the World Museum Liverpool and Liverpool Central Library. The William Brown Library and Museum building was conceived as a replacement for the Derby Museum (containing the Earl of Derby's natural history collection) which then shared two rooms on the city's Duke Street with a library. The land for the building on what was then called Shaw's Brow as well as much of the funding was provided by local MP and merchant Sir William Brown, 1st Baronet of Astrop, in whose honour the street was renamed. Following on from the then-recently completed St. George's Hall across the street, the new building was designed by Thomas Allom in a classical style including Corinthian columns and was modified by the Liverpool Corporation architect John Weightman. The new building opened its doors in 1860 with 400,000 people attending the opening ceremony. With Liverpool being one of the country's key ports, much of the city was badly damaged by German bombing during the Second World War and William Brown Library and Museum were no exception. Hit by firebombs during the blitz in 1941, the building was ravaged by fire and much of the building had to be rebuilt. Key parts of the museum's collection had been previously moved to less vulnerable locations and damage to those avoided. Plans have now been brought forward to redevelop the library, replacing the post–World War II additions with state-of-the-art facilities.

World Museum is a large museum in Liverpool, England which has extensive collections covering archaeology, ethnology and the natural and physical sciences. Special attractions include the Natural History Centre and a planetarium. Entry to the museum is free. The museum is part of National Museums Liverpool.

The Steble Fountain stands in William Brown Street, Liverpool, England, to the west of Wellington's Column. It is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade II* listed building. It was donated to the city by a former mayor to fill a vacant plot to the west of the column.

Liverpool Biennial is the largest international contemporary art festival in the United Kingdom.Every two years, the city of Liverpool hosts an extensive range of artworks, projects, and a programme of events. The biennial commissions leading and emerging artists to make and present permanent and temporary public artworks, as well as long-term community-based projects. These newly commissioned and existing artworks are presented in diverse locations, including unusual public spaces, unused buildings, as well as the city's galleries, museums, and cultural venues. Cultural organisations in Liverpool provide context for the presentation of contemporary art and culture. Since its launch in 1999, Liverpool Biennial has commissioned over 300 new artworks and presented work by over 444 artists from around the world. During the last 10 years, Liverpool Biennial has had an economic impact of £119.6 million. Liverpool Biennial 2014 attracted nearly 877,000 visits.

St George's Hall is a building on St George's Place, opposite Lime Street railway station in the centre of Liverpool, England. Opened in 1854, it is a Neoclassical building which contains concert halls and law courts, and is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade I listed building. On the east side of the hall, between it and the railway station, is St George's Plateau and on the west side are St John's Gardens. The hall is included in the William Brown Street conservation area.In 1969 the architectural historian Nikolaus Pevsner expressed his opinion that it is one of the finest neo-Grecian buildings in the world, although the building is known for its use of Roman sources as well as Greek. In 2004, the hall and its surrounding area were recognised as part of Liverpool's World Heritage Site until its revocation of World Heritage status in 2021. The Liverpool Register Office and Coroner's Court have been based in the hall since 2012.