During the late summer of 2024, the Unlocking Collections project recruited a group of co-curation volunteers to develop a small exhibition at Market Hall Museum. The project was looking for people who:
- Enjoyed working collaboratively.
- Enjoyed taking part in discussions and collective decision making.
- Had an interest in visual display and writing and editing text.
- Had an interest in developing new skills.
- Had an interest in creating exhibitions.
Meeting weekly
The co-curation volunteers began meeting weekly from mid-October and have started planning their new exhibition alongside project staff.
The group have:
- Familiarised themselves with the existing First Museum gallery at Market Hall. They were shown the gallery by museum curators and began discussion around their own ideas for the new display.
- Listened to a guest speaker talk about her experience of volunteering on co-curated exhibitions at the Museum of Oxford. The volunteers heard about her experiences of developing ideas around a theme, writing, and editing text, selecting objects and images, securing copyright permissions and tips for installation.
- Worked in small groups to look at different exhibits at Market Hall. The volunteers discussed different aspects of the exhibits, including the content and location of text panels, the number and position of objects, the use of images and photographs, case lighting, and the inclusion of interactives. The volunteers shared their personal responses, including elements they liked, elements they didn’t like and ideas for future tweaks and additions. The volunteers were joined by a museum curator who was able to assist the discussions and answer questions.
- Spent time looking closely at the research compiled by the Unlocking Collections Research & Tour Guide volunteers. Inspired by the research, the group took part in several conversations about individuals and themes identified within the research. Discussions focused on themes including: the founders of the Warwickshire Natural History and Archaeological Society, the role of women within the Society, colonisation, and the hidden individuals who supported the work of Society members but are not mentioned in the historical record. The group discussed the importance of the Society both regionally and nationally and the excitement of societal developments of the time.
Developing ideas
During the next month, the volunteers will develop their ideas further. They will begin writing and editing their text for the exhibition, will select the objects for display, choose supporting images and photographs, secure copyright permissions, feed into discussions around exhibition design, and begin planning for the installation of the exhibition.
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