HIDDEN IN THE BACK: OPENING AND RE-INTERPRETING COLLECTION SPACES FOR THE PUBLIC

Collections Corner | Jaime Meier 

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One of the reasons I decided to write for the "Collections Corner" column was because I knew very little about collections and wanted the opportunity to expand my knowledge by exploring current practices. A popular career choice by students in my program is collections work and a sentiment I have heard illustrating why is, "I like working alone and being surrounded by interesting objects." As an extrovert, the thought of going a full day without human interaction is harrowing. Collections rooms and warehouses act as private places for museum staff, but I am left wondering what role does the public play in collections, if any.

I was fortunate enough to tour the Western Development Museum collection over Christmas. (Source)

I believe that in order to stay relevant and serve their audiences, museums must be willing to share not only their exhibition spaces, but also their collection storage rooms. Museums belong to everyone, regardless of education, race, and gender, and therefore people have the right to see more than the exterior, a small part of the story. I was shocked the first time I saw a collections room, with a huge variety of items stacked high and low. By seeing the collection, I was reminded that these things were made by humans, for humans, and are still being cared for by humans to serve other humans. A variety of museums have begun to allow the public to access their spaces or bring the collection to the people via digitization projects.


The McCord Museum in Montreal has reconsidered how to incorporate the public into their collection through collaborating with Inuit Elders. In the early 2010s, eleven workshops were planned and included over 85 participants. While the elders were asked to be careful with the fragile objects, they were encourage to handle the objects freely and based on personal discretion. The unique aspect of touch allowed for unparalleled understandings of remembrance, narratives, demonstration, and communication between Inuit peoples, cultural objects, and the museum. The idea of having people go into a collection and touch objects without gloves may terrify some, but the very objects we collect, especially cultural significant ones, only unveil their true meaning once grounded in the hands of a person.

Quitsaq Tarriasuk and the late Simon Makimmak discussing a fishing rod at the McCord Museum. (Source)

Physical, social, and economic barriers can prevent people from attending the collection location and many museums have turned to digitizing their collections for a wider audience. The Royal Ontario Museum (ROM) in Toronto has over 13 million artworks, cultural objects, and natural history specimens and approximately 43,004 have been published online. While not a complete reflection of the collection, it offers a unique glimpse into the collecting habits and considerations of a major institution. It has become a necessity to understand what objects are being held within museums, especially cultural significant or sacred ones. This aids in rectifying possible prior unethical collecting practices by re-opening spaces and conversation for communities to (re)connect and claim sovereignty over their items.

Opening collection spaces allows for the demystification of museum spaces and will only strengthen the public's connection to their past, present, and future. Since a vast majority of museums are colonial institutions, they have a special duty to share their collections with the communities involved and increase physical or technological access. Objects are not and should not be preserved just for people to look at, but experience on their own terms.

CONSERVING WITH YOUR COMMUNITY

CONSERVATION TIPS & TRICKS

BY: KRISTEN MCLAUGHLIN

Hello again! So last time I made some fun conservation do it yourself interactive PDFs that were hopefully useful to you guys! But this time I'm going to change it up a bit. Also, I'm fairly certain my brain can only handle about 1 chart post a semester.

This week I'm taking the view of a conservator at an institution and looking at the issue of: opening conservation to the public.

Source

Normally, conservation takes place behind intimidating shadowy doors. It is something rarely viewed. The question is: with museums recognizing the need of involving our communities more and more in the work that we do, is conservation one of those things that should be included in opening up to the public?

CHANGING PRACTICES: Community Ownership and Museum Relevance

It is becoming more and more common to "educate" the public on conservation but that is very different than actually involving people in the process. Museum staff are constantly brainstorming on how to keep their institutions relevant and increasing the feeling of ownership and investment from their communities into the museum; this is an important feeling to encourage because the passion of the people is what makes a museum function!

Thinking of this only in terms of exhibits, education programs, talks, and singular events that are designated ~public space~ or ~public learning~ can be limiting. I think it's about time for museums to get to the nitty gritty of what they conserve and why they do and how people can help.


WHAT AM I TALKING ABOUT?

Good question! It should not surprise archaeologists, conservationists, (art) historians, museum workers, etc. that our visitors like seeing the objects. They like the idea of them being real, of seeing them from all angles, of them having stories and histories. The curiosity for artifacts or art is not something unique. We should LOVE that lots of people LOVE it! We should be excited that people want to know more about how it got to the display case!

Imagine: wouldn't it be cool to see conservation or rebuilding in action? Wouldn't it be neat for visitors to understand how or why pieces go together, what techniques are important for sustainability, or being able to gain an understanding about how fragile some of these objects are? PLUS... some people could have really great ideas! Some visitors probably know more than we do about supports and physics and chemistry!

It's super cool to see museums taking steps toward a more engaging conservation experience. And boy, do I have some cool examples for those of you interested in pursuing this in your own institutions! And if you're a visitor reading this thinking "hey yes, that sounds cool!" then let the examples below be your guide to future excursions...

OPENING UP YOUR CONSERVATION TO THE PUBLIC: Some Ideas

 1. LABORATORY WINDOWS

Opening up your lab to the public with the use of windows is a good idea for large, busy institutions that might not be able to bring people to the back or with items that really are super sensitive. It allows visitors (and kids!) to see the cool work going on. There are quite a few examples of this so I've chosen two to quickly talk about.

A) Smithsonian American Art Museum - The Lunder Conservation Center at the Smithsonian allows visitors to see crucial behind-the-scenes art conservation. Five labs (frames studio, paintings studio, paintings lab, paper lab, and objects lab) are visible through floor-to-ceiling glass walls, which gives visitors views often not possible. You can also watch videos of these conservation projects!

A view of the lab. Carl Hansen, Smitsonian Institution. Source

B) Philip J Currie Dinosaur Museum -- I have to make a shout out to my hometown! Philip J Currie Dinosaur Museum, just 10 minutes out of Grande Prairie, Alberta, has a unique view of their laboratory where they are conserving fossils. The great part about these windows (also one in the ceiling!) is their location: right beside the children's exhibits, so that young children can really see what scientists are doing, ask questions, and make plans for the future! It's a great experience.

Photographs courtesy of Kelly McLaughlin.

2. OPEN STORAGE

Open storage can be a frightening concept that may only work for certain types of artifacts. Basically, it is the idea of museums opening up storerooms to visitors. Simple as that! This is not exactly a straight forward conservation aspect, however it can be an inexpensive way to display large quantities of material and provide behind-the-scenes views of how collections are stored and conserved. Open storage helps visitors to better understand the museum's mission and function and builds their interest in collections and education. Taking away the secretiveness of museum work can lead to more visitors and greater financial support.

I have to say it's really cool when it can be pulled off! A well-known example of this is Museo Larco in Lima, Peru, which has a branch of regular storage rooms that contain ceramic artifacts from various eras of ancient Peru for visitors to walk through. We know it's a great experience for visitors; just look up any online review agency and you will see the raving.

A look into the Museo Larco open storage. Lyndsay Ruell. Source

3. BLOGS and APPS

Conservation blogs are not a bad thing! (AHEM) They can still be useful resources, particularly for other museums, repositories, and heritage institutions. The next step in this realm is to try and get our friends and neighbors reading such blogs. Make cool conservation projects for families to try! Write about cool famous items and their conservation histories! There are also really neat apps out there that show the conservation process, particularly for paintings such as Touch Van Gogh. This is the COOLEST app. You can zoom in on painting details, see what other older paintings are underneath through the use of X-Rays, look at the backs of paintings (which always have neat little details) and so much more. There's a lot to this app, but it also allows for understanding the different techniques used by art conservators. There is definitely a place for conservation and public in the online world... the trick is finding the key!

Source.

4. WORKSHOPS (and no, not with your buddy museum)

Workshops between institutions and professional groups are all well and good but the best kinds of workshops are those done with and for the public on items they own and would recognize. One example of this is the Okanagan Heritage Museum and their Ursula Surtees Regional Conservation Laboratory. They hold workshops with people on how to conserve their family heirlooms, photographs, documents, etc. As someone who grew up in a household with a TON of these I think this is such a cool idea! And a great way to get younger people interested in not only conservation but their family histories! Think of all the amazing histories sitting in people's attics, boxes, and photo albums. Families love this stuff and it's a great way for multiple generations to come together and discuss/preserve their own histories!

THE FUTURE OF THIS PRACTICE

So as museums continue to grow and change and recognize the importance of involving their publics in a variety of museum activities, conservation seems to be one of those last problematic walls to climb. It will be exciting to see if more museums attempt to play around with the idea of more open conservation and make it even more interactive and engaging! I would love to see some actual participatory conservation happening in museums (despite the controversies). I know the concept of involving the public in cnservation can be scandalous, frustrating, or sometimes nearly impossible. All I am suggesting is: let's consider it. Let's think about how it could make a difference. Let's also think about the problems with it, because there are always problems! But don't let that stop you! Dream big! What do people think? Anti-share? Pro-share? Any other good/bad examples of this happening out there? Let me know!

REFERENCES 

http://americanart.si.edu/conservation/
http://www.apollo-magazine.com/conservation-accessible-stores-museum-future/
https://www.kelownamuseums.ca/collections-conservation/ursula-surtees-regional-conservation-laboratory/
http://www.jcms-journal.com/articles/10.5334/jcms.1021215/
https://www.si.edu/content/opanda/docs/Rpts2005/05.04.ConcernAtTheCore.Access.pdf
http://www.museums.ca/uploaded/web/docs/CMACollectionsMNGT2013REPORTENG.pdf