The MAD Museum
UK's Only One
MAD is the country’s only permanent venue for mechanical art.
STEM & Design
Creative Ideas
Interactive Fun
What is The MAD Museum?
In a Snapshot… The MAD Museum does what it says on the tin! Based in the center of Stratford upon Avon, this quirky attraction displays interactive pieces of mechanical art, in particular; kinetic art and automata.
“MAD” stands for Mechanical Art and Design.
If you’re not quite sure what mechanical art is all about, think of the machines and gizmos used in Wallace and Gromit, Scrapheap Challenge and Chitty Chitty Bang Bang.
In a nutshell, mechanical art is usually beautifully crafted, moving sculptures either made to have an exaggerated purpose or made simply for the fun of it.
Find out more about MAD here...
As well as a lot of fun, The MAD Museum demonstrates inspirational creativity and clever, often witty design. We support the STEM subjects (Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths) and Art and Design.
Overall The MAD Museum is a fantastic playground for adults and a perfect treasure-trove for inquisitive kids. As well as being highly interactive and a lot of fun, this eccentric museum appeals to those with curious and methodical brains too. Figure out how the gears, sprockets, robotics and eccentric paraphernalia all engage with one another at the press of a button.
There are plenty of different styles of kinetic art and automata to interactive with. From marble machines and 3D faces to Flying mechanical birds and sand pictures. Even the museum’s founder has tried his hand at making an exhibit which is on display in the museum. It’s called ‘The Kitchenator’ and it’s a rolling ball sculpture made entirely out of things you would find in your kitchen. If you like art, design, science and/or engineering, The MAD Museum is for you.
Our Company History
MAD’s Resident Artists
Kinetic Art & Automata
Visiting The MAD Museum
The Team behind The MAD Museum
The MAD Museum is run by a local family from Kenilworth in Warwickshire. Richard Simmons’s enlisted his son, Iain Simmons and his nephew, Mike Abbotts to run the museum.
There are 4 full time members of staff and each person has been with the museum since it was launched in March 2012. Several of our part-timers have also been with MAD since it was all kicked off. As a small team, we all wear many hats, but our enthusiasm and passion for MAD pushes us to make sure The MAD Museum is always running as a well-oiled machine (excuse the pun!). .
Richard Simmons
Founder of The MAD Museum
“I have always been fascinated by how things work and love to see how mechanical parts interact with each other.
The MAD Museum is a fantastic collection of some of the best pieces from artists across the UK and Europe.
I want kids to put down their mobiles and get inspired by interacting with engineering and design. There’re some fantastic things to witness at MAD and the great thing is we’re still growing, The MAD Museum is just getting bigger and better!”.
Awards
2014
Winner – Business Entrepreneur of the Year Award
Touch FM’s Pride of Stratford Awards 2014
Runner-up – Small Business of the Year Award
Touch FM’s Pride of Stratford Awards 2014
2015
Winner – The Bright Idea Award
Coventry and Warwickshire Tourism and Culture Award 2015
Runner-up -The Kids & Families Award
Coventry and Warwickshire Tourism and Culture Award 2015
2016
Runner-up – The Kids & Families Award
Coventry and Warwickshire Tourism and Culture Award 2016
Runner-up – The Visitor Attraction of the Year Award
Coventry and Warwickshire Tourism and Culture Award 2016
2017
Runner-up – The Visitor Attraction of the Year Award
Coventry and Warwickshire Tourism and Culture Award 2017
Runner-up – The Kids and Families Award
Coventry and Warwickshire Tourism and Culture Award 2017
2018
Runner-up -Arts Organisation of the Year
Stratford-upon-Avon Tourism Awards 2018
Runner-up – Team of the Year
Stratford-upon-Avon Tourism Awards 2018
2023
Runner-up – Best Museum
Warwickshire Little Ankle Biters’ Awards 2023
