Tate Modern has quickly established itself as one of the world's leading museums of modern and contemporary art. Over the past two years we have worked hard to maintain this position by adding breadth and depth to our programme.

Before opening Tate Modern in 2000 we sought to develop a relationship with our neighbours, and in the past two years have continued to strengthen these ties. We are also, under the leadership of our new director Vicente Todolí, adding more texture to our programme, working more closely with artists and forging new partnerships with national and international organisations. In addition, we are extending and enhancing the ways we interpret art for our audiences.

Among several innovations has been the introduction to the programme of live events. Both the performance event Live Culture1 and the ambitious Tate & Egg Live2 season - involving the visual arts, film, music, dance and theatre, often in combination - were extraordinarily successful experiments that brought new kinds of art and new audiences to Tate Modern.

Another significant development was a major exhibition of documentary-style photography. Cruel and Tender3 surveyed the twentieth century and included the work of more than twenty photographers. It was Tate's first major photography show, and in introducing Tate Modern as a new platform for the medium in London, suggested fresh possibilities for Tate.

In 2002 Matisse Picasso4, an authoritative study of the relationship between the two artists' work, won critical acclaim and was the most visited exhibition in Tate's history. In-depth monographic exhibitions included Barnett Newman5 and Max Beckman6, both of which amassed substantial bodies of work and threw new light on the artists' significance. Eva Hesse7 brought vividly into focus an important artist previously little known in the UK. Early in 2004, we staged Constantin Brancusi8, the first major Brancusi show in this country, and deliberately programmed alongside Donald Judd9, the first full retrospective survey of Judd's work to be held anywhere.

Complementing these modern exhibitions are shows by contemporary international artists. Since 2002, we have featured the renowned German artist Sigmar Polke10, Eija-Liisa Ahtila11 from Finland, American artist Paul McCarthy12 and, in a group exhibition called Common Wealth13, the collaborative artists Jennifer Allora and Guillermo Calzadilla, as well as Thomas Hirschhorn, Carsten Höller and Gabriel Orozco.

We believe we should also offer opportunities for younger or less-established international artists and this ambition led us, in the spring of 2004, to create our new Untitled space14, close to the North Entrance, where we will present the work of emerging artists.

The Turbine Hall has become one of London's great public spaces. It is free to visit, dramatic in its impact, and draws people in as if it were an extension of the street. It also presents a unique challenge for artists, as we have seen in two further commissions in The Unilever Series15 - Anish Kapoor's Marsyas16 and Olafur Eliasson's Weather Project17. Both these remarkable and very different works enthralled the public, not least with their response to the awe-inspiring scale of the space. Between commissions, the Turbine Hall has also been the location for dynamic shows from the Collection. The Upright Figure18 assembled human figure sculptures from throughout the twentieth century, while Henry Moore: Public Sculptures19 brought into an interior space sculptures conceived as public works, often for outdoor settings.

Our thematic displays of the Collection have continued to attract large audiences. Highlights of the displays have included newly-acquired works by Bill Viola and Cy Twombly20. Several iconic works, including Auguste Rodin's The Kiss and Carl Andre's Equivalent VIII, were the subject of In Focus21 displays. We continued the Contemporary Intervention series with the display of The Story of Art by British artist Emma Kay22.

Our innovative education, events and community programme includes schools and youth schemes, professional development for teachers and programmes engaging local people. A growing schedule of talks and seminars ranges across visual culture, art theory and politics - the context in which contemporary art sits. We also now deliver interpretation in innovative ways, for example via touch screens, and are refining our visitor services through initiatives such as the Arrivals Project23.

In the next period, we will aim to further broaden and strengthen our programme, by reshaping our Level 3 and Level 5 Collection displays.

The opening of the Millennium Bridge in 2002 has created a major new route to Bankside. The popularity of Tate Modern suggests that we must begin to explore the potential of the building and its landscape, for the benefit of our audiences and to contribute further to Bankside's growth as a major cultural centre.

Footnotes

1. Live Culture, 27-30 March 2003. A collaboration between Tate Modern and the Live Art Development Agency
2. Tate & Egg Live, January - September 2003. A series of live arts events created in partnership with Tate and Egg, for Tate Modern and Tate Britain
3. Cruel and Tender: the real in twentieth-century photography, 5 June - 7 September 2003. A collaboration with the Museum Ludwig in Cologne. Sponsored by UBS
4. Matisse Picasso, 11 May - 18 August 2002. A collaboration between Tate, the Réunion des musées nationaux/Musée Picasso with the Musée national d'art moderne/Centre Georges Pompidou, Paris, and the Museum of Modern Art, New York. Sponsored by Ernst & Young
5. Barnett Newman, 20 September 2002 - 5 January 2003. Organised with the Philadelphia Museum of Art, with the support of the Henry Luce Foundation
6. Max Beckman, 15 February - 5 May 2003. A collaboration between Tate Modern, the Museum of Modern Art in New York, and the Musée Georges Pompidou, Paris. Media partner The Times
7. Eva Hesse, 13 November 2002 - 9 March 2003. Supported by Tate Members
8. Constantin-Brancusi: The Essence of Things, 29 January - 23 May 2004. Developed with the Guggenheim Museum in New York. Sponsored by Aviva
9. Donald Judd, 5 February - 25 April 2004. Supported by the Hedges Family Charitable Foundation and Tate Members
10. Sigmar Polke: History of Everything, 2 October 2003 - 4 January 2004. Supported by Tate International Council
11. Eija-Liisa Ahtila: Real Characters, Invented Worlds, 30 April - 28 July 2002. Curated in collaboration with Kiasma Museum of Contemporary Art, Helsinki
12. Paul McCarthy at Tate Modern, 19 May - 26 October 2003. Presented by The Henry Moore Foundation Contemporary Projects in partnership with Tate Modern
13. Common Wealth: An exhibition about objects, games and participation, 22 October - 28 December 2003
14. Untitled was launched on 12 May 2004
15. The Unilever Series, a major annual art commission for the Turbine Hall at Tate Modern was created in 2000. Sponsored by Unilever
16. The Unilever Series: Anish Kapoor, 9 October 2002 - 6 April 2003
17. The Unilever Series: Olafur Eliasson, 16 October 2003 - 21 March 2004
18. The Upright Figure, 22 April - 26 August 2002. Sponsored by BT
19. Henry Moore: Public Sculptures, 19 May - 25 August 2003. Supported by The Henry Moore Foundation
20. Five Angels for the Millennium, 2001 by Bill Viola, and Quattro Stagioni (A Painting in Four Parts) 1993-4 by Cy Twombly
21. These special displays include documentary material charting the history of the works and the public's changing perception of them
22. Contemporary Intervention: Emma Kay, 1 December 2003 - November 2004
23. Supported by the Millennium Commission, the Arrivals Project will create new information and retail facilities at the northern entrance, and improve visitor circulation

An innovative education programme reinforces our displays and exhibitions