There has been a lot of work going on in the background since the member survey in mid- 2014.
Conservation Standards & Guidelines for Exhibitions Utilizing Museum Collections
We have formed a partnership with American Institute of Conservation (AIC) to complete the Conservation Standards & Guidelines for Exhibitions Utilizing Museum Collections:
http://www.conservation-wiki.com/wiki/6.3_Exhibitions_and_Display_Cases
There is a working group that has mostly completed the standards on Exhibit Fabrication and Exhibit Installation.
It would be great if the Exhibitions SIG membership could review these standards and adopt them as part of our professional practice. If you have feedback about this contribution or about applying these standards please get in contact.
Online content
There is also another working group creating online reference material on topics such as condition reporting, risk assessment, mounting, exhibition lighting, display duration, display environments/off gassing/acclimatisation, material selection, install timeframes, packing for transport, the display & loan of hazardous material, venue assessments etc. This content will eventually be available on the AICCM Wiki.
Conservation Materials Database
A third working group is working on the development of a ‘recommended list of materials for exhibition’ project. The aims of this project are to:
- Develop a national standard for the testing of materials
- Develop an AICCM list of recommended materials for use in showcases
- Develop a framework for how this information can inform risk assessments for the selection of materials during exhibition development
To date 30 conservators representing major institutions and conservation services across the country have been contacted to gain interest in the project and understand what sort of testing has been performed to date. There is overall interest in the project because many institutions have either not done any formal testing or are not happy with the test results that they have.
The next stages of this project include formalising partnerships with institutions, universities and industry, confirming project assumptions, establishing project principles and establishing the means by which the project will be delivered.
Updates will be provided to the membership.
Exhibitions Symposium in Melbourne November 2018
An Exhibitions SIG symposium in Melbourne is proposed for November 2018. The 2-day event would explore current trends in innovative practices, challenges and problem solving faced during exhibition development, design and delivery by GLAM professionals through key note presentations, diverse sessions (including panel discussions that inspire robust discussion) and practical workshops.
The aim of the symposium is to disseminate information and promote interdisciplinary sharing of knowledge and resources. The symposium will explore the balance between the recommended conditions (or conservation requirements) and the educational, interpretive and aesthetic goals of displaying artworks and objects. It will present individual and varied examples of teams working together to achieve the desired results through compromise, creativity, and collaboration. The symposium would invite GLAM colleagues such as:
- Curators
- Designers
- Collection managers
- Carpenters/Preparators/Mount makers
- Operations/project managers
Please get in touch if you are interested in contributing to the planning and delivery of this symposium.
Final note: great resource:
SAAM Conference – Conservation & Exhibition Planning: Material Testing for Design, Display, & Packing
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL7gn_68Hr4h94mi7kmikywNJSDEFcaCqq
Samantha Hamilton
AICCM Exhibitions SIG coordinator