Hidden treasures and stories from our collection
2005/188/1 Glass diorama, ‘Little Known Facts’, glass, designed and made by Tom Moore, Adelaide, South Australia, Australia, 2004
Very carefully. This was the dilemma that 2 conservators and 2 registrars were recently faced with.To ensure a safe transit, each of the beautiful delicate glass objects has had a padded acid –free box made for it. Continue reading ‘How do you package and send glass objects to Washington State ?’
Powerhouse Museum Collection, object 2006/54/1. Gift of Quantum Technology Pty Ltd, 2006.
This neat Australian-made Braille note-taker, the Jot a Dot, is on display in the Powerhouse Museum’s version of Wallace & Gromit’s World of Invention. I selected it to complement the story of inventor Louis Braille, which came with the exhibition but without any objects.
When curator Angelique Hutchison acquired the Brailler, she also acquired a suite of design process material, which adds greatly to its value as an example of product design. Concept sketches, which sadly are not often kept, are of particular interest as they provide some insight into the designer’s first thoughts on a project.
Continue reading ‘Beyond the object: collecting design process material’
Boorowa Museum
Each year the Powerhouse Museum’s Regional Services Program offers a Movable Heritage Fellowship to students residing in New South Wales enrolled at any University campus. Movable Heritage refers to any natural or manufactured object of heritage significance. The successful applicant undertakes a research project as part of the Fellowship on one or more objects in a community museum, historical society or other collecting institution. They are awarded $5,000 and also spend one week at the Powerhouse Museum receiving expert guidance by a supervising member of staff.
The winner of the 2012 Movable Heritage Fellowship was Rosie Strange. In this post, Rosie shares with us the nature of her costume research project and the experiences she has gained working with Lindie Ward, textile and lace curator at the Museum.
This photo of the Cootamundra Railway Disaster 1885 is the front cover of ‘All is not lost – the collection recovery book.
The pink ted prop dries off during a disaster training session
There is a wealth of materials on the web about disaster planning and recovery but you may not have electricity in an emergency situation. We decided to produce a disaster flip book that provided quick, basic instructions about salvaging different materials that have been damaged by fire, water or impact. Conservators contributed sections for the book that was originally intended for our own department. I received a call from a colleague in the Riverina who was assisting the local members of the Lockhart Historical Society who had suffered severe flooding in their building. The Lockhart locals did a wonderful job in salvaging what they could. The advice I gave was from the draft text for the disaster flip book. After that, we decided the book would be useful for anyone salvaging items from a disaster.
A conservator demonstrates how to remove mould safely.
If you do have damaged items, please feel free to contact the Conservation Department at the Powerhouse for advice on how to salvage and conserve them.
Disaster planning – materials and equipment useful in a salvage operation
Sculpted Elephant, carved from graphite, purchased from F Krantz, 1884, Powerhouse Museum, 6189
For most of the hundred-plus years this graphite elephant has been in the Powerhouse Museum’s collections it has been inextricably tied to the Garden Palace fire of 1882. The main reason for this has been the ongoing claims that the elephant was one of the only Museum objects to survive the flames. These claims have, over the years, increased its significance and given it a special place within the Museum’s collections. But research over the past few years has revealed a very complicated tale, and while this elephant has played a starring role, it is perhaps not quite as heroic as once thought.
Continue reading ‘Museum Mythbusters – the graphite elephant story’
Gulgong Pioneers Museum. Image courtesy Mudgee tourism
I was contacted late last year by Marie Gorie from the Gulgong Pioneers Museum about a project she was about to undertake. She wanted to re-order the textile store. Maintaining a collection store takes a lot of time and resources and obviously, as the collection grew, some of the maintenance had slipped.
Continue reading ‘Gulgong Pioneers Museum Blog’
Mark Daly with Mr and Mrs Devil
How do museums, particularly large museums keep going on a daily basis? What do people in these departments called front of house and security do?
Fellow curator Geoff Barker and I thought we would show a glimpse of some of the hidden workers photographed with their favourite Museum objects.
Continue reading ‘International Museums Day 2012, behind the scenes’
Over the last six months or so the Powerhouse Museum has been going through a major revitalisation project. One result of all this activity has been the opening up of some large exhibition spaces. Given this is International Museums Day and the current interest within the museum surrounding exhibition development I thought it could be an opportune time to blog about this vital area of museum work and see how museums in general have been approaching the issue.
Continue reading ‘Museum Exhibitions – some new approaches’
Portrait of Min-Jung Kim, Curator of Asian Arts & Design, Powerhouse Museum, Photo by Sotha Bourn
People often ask me what curators do. Usually my answer is “we research, collect, document and display objects.” However, this answer doesn’t seem to satisfy people who wonder what really goes on behind the scenes in the museums and galleries.
Continue reading ‘What does a curator really do in a day?’
2007/50/64 Music magazine, 'Juke' Melbourne, used by Festival Records, Sydney, 1986. Collection: Powerhouse Museum
Vince Lovegrove was an Australian journalist, music manager, television producer, musician and AIDS awareness campaigner. Perhaps best known for his job as manager of rock group Divinyls and singer Jimmy Barnes. Lovegrove was a member of a 1960s band the Valentines sharing vocals with Bon Scott whom he later introduced to heavy rock group AC/DC.
Continue reading ‘Vince (Vincent) Lovegrove, 1948 – 2012′
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