Sir Robert (1906 -2000) and Lady Lisa Sainsbury (1912- ) donated their collection of world art to the University of East Anglia in 1973 and the Sainsbury Centre first opened its doors to visitors in 1978.

It was the Sainsburys’ hope that students, academic staff and the general public would grow to appreciate the works on display in much the same way as the Sainsburys themselves had done, by being able to look frequently and closely at them without the distraction of too much museum-style text and labelling.   More detail...