Why museums and galleries stretch way beyond beautiful buildings

The Design Museum re-opened its doors this weekend at its new home, the former Commonwealth Institute, partly funded by the new luxury flats surrounding this showpiece address.
Also in the spotlight are the V&A and the Smithsonian, the world’s largest museum, following the announcement that they will share a new permanent exhibition space in the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park. This is commercial branding’s equivalent to a joint venture between Nike and Adidas.
And just as that woul