Exhibition project: interpreting collections

When I moved here from Canberra, Australia this past September, I was a bit nervous about how intensive and challenging the MA program in Art Gallery and Museum Studies would be at the University of Leeds. So far, I have been proven right about the rigorous program, but this intensity has been softened by its fun and interesting intellectual engagement. The challenges the program presents me with simply make the completion of each step more rewarding.

The first day of the program included an introduction to our exhibition project for the Stanley and Audrey Burton Gallery. Imagine my concern when I learned the details:

• 12 brand new masters students 
• 5 weeks 
• 2 display cabinets 
• 141 pieces of Yorkshire pottery 
• ￡50 

The organisation of our exhibition was formed around deadlines for our ‘client’ (the gallery), formal learning sessions and informal group planning meetings.

The formal learning sessions with University Research Fellow extraordinaire Helen Graham got us thinking about how to bridge the gap between the objects and our audience. This informed the interpretation strategies we used in our exhibition.

The main interpretation tool which we found invaluable in our process was the development of a ‘Big Idea’. We used several of the strategies suggested in Beverley Serrell’s Behind It All: A Big Idea in Exhibit Labels: An Interpretative Approach. The ‘Big Idea’ can be summed up as a clear and concise idea that we are delivering to the audience, an idea that the visitor can easily recognise in the exhibition and something that they can take away with them. Basically, an exhibition isn’t successful if you can’t recognise the message that the curator is trying to deliver! The ongoing dialogue of a successful exhibition has the following elements:

• Big Idea or Theme (objects) 
• Interpretation strategies 
• Audience 

Taking all of this into account, we began thinking about the collection of objects we had to work with and conducted preliminary research on Yorkshire pottery. We made our first selection of 25 objects for our handling session with Curator Layla Bloom and the gallery staff.

Collection handling session

Brainstorming for our ‘Big Idea’ began, and we discovered a common thread of interest amongst our group members was the function and use of the quirky ceramics. We have all seen plates, teacups, teapots and bowls, but what about the jelly moulds, pickle dishes, spice castors and knife rests? Today, we can scarcely even recognise these objects, let alone consider putting them on our tables.

We divided our group into different teams responsible for research, writing, marketing and display with myself as the group organiser. The research group began the contextual research, in which they made informative excursions to the Doncaster Museum, Leeds City Museum, Leeds Central Library Special Collections and the Leeds University Library Special Collections.

The contextual research that our team conducted allowed us to compose our title and confirm our ‘Big Idea’, tag line and audience.

Title 
From Pantry to Table: The Preparation and Presentation of Food in 18th and 19th Century Yorkshire

Big Idea
Ceramics were essential for fine dining in Yorkshire during the 18th and 19th centuries.

Tag Line
The exhibition showcases ceramics essential for the ideal fine dining experience in Yorkshire during the 18th and 19th centuries. The collection highlights objects significant in the creation and storage of food, as well as those used for display and table decoration.

Audience
We determined our target audience for the exhibition based on consideration of the existing audience research conducted by the gallery. We decided the display did not have enough scope to attract a new audience, so we targeted the over-55 age group and those with an interest in cooking, dining and tableware. We hoped to evoke nostalgia by presenting familiar objects and to encourage engagement with the unfamiliar. 

 
Once we had established the foundations of our exhibition, we began to structure our interpretation hierarchy. We had a great session with Michael Terwey, Head of Collections and Exhibitions at the National Media Museum, during which we learned how to develop and implement an interpretation plan. 

Our final interpretation plan, with the Big Idea featured along the top of the board

Interpretation Strategies
Each of our groups implemented the use of interpretation strategies to reach our audience. Our main strategies were:

• conducting research about the Stanley and Audrey Burton Gallery's principle audience 
• composing clear, concise text to accompany our display, including an introductory panel, laminated page, and individual labels 
• creating icons to establish visual links between our texts and displays 
• developing consistent 'branding' used on all printed materials (both on marketing materials (leaflets, advertisements, and emails) and in the exhibition itself
• distributing promotional leaflets to locations frequented by our prospective audience 
• contacting and liaising with local cultural organizations 
• raising curiosity through the 'mystery object' postings on our Facebook page 

Preparation icon

Presentation icon

This opportunity to practically apply the theory we have been learning in our modules has been an extremely valuable experience. Our exhibition, ‘From Pantry to Table’, opened on the 29 October with a private viewing and will be open at the Stanley and Audrey Burton Gallery, Parkinson Building, University of Leeds until 7 December, so please do take a look. 

We are now moving on to the visitor feedback stage of the project so any feedback you have would be greatly appreciated and prove very valuable to our learning experience. Also, Like us on Facebook!

From Pantry to Table marketing leaflet

Our exhibition shares the Stanley and Audrey Burton Gallery's education space with 'Through the Keyhole: The Camden Town Group Re-interpreted’, a display of works on paper presented by our fellow classmates. Their exhibition offers a thought-provoking look at how this group of Edwardian male artists portrayed working class women in the domestic space. 

Ji Hyung, Rosie and Danielle on exhibition installation day

Beverley Serrell (1996) Exhibit Labels: An Interpretative Approach. AltaMira Press, California.