Assisting the Devon museum community
03 March 2008
RAMM's Community Museums Officer has worked with a range of grass-roots, volunteer-run community museums throughout the winter to deliver significantly improved quality in their displays.
Supported by Renaissance in the Regions funding from Plymouth City Museum and Art Gallery, museums in East and West Devon have benefited.
By providing new display cases, graphic panels, new mounts and conservation standard display materials, the project has supported the re-interpretation and improved use of collections making them more accessible and enjoyable for visitors. The project has also helped to motivate the museum volunteers to participate in interpretation and display training provided by MLA's South West Skills programme.
Tavistock Museum has been able to acquire a new, specially designed display case and to install a digital photo frame to show many of their recently digitised collection. Allhallows Museum in Honiton has been able to show its large collection of Honiton Pottery for the first time in a display incorporating archive film and large-scale photographs of local characters and personalities connected with the pottery. Fairlynch Museum in Budleigh Salterton has installed new display panels about the town's railway. Sidmouth Museum is being provided with a new display case for their Maritime Sidmouth exhibition and new graphic panels on Regency and Victorian Sidmouth. Exmouth Museum has installed a new display case for their Exmouth Schools archive display and a new picture hanging area.
"This project has enabled us to display our huge Honiton pottery collection for the first time. We've worked with RAMM's designer to produce a display which incorporates things we've never done before. Having the digital photo frame has also enabled us to show photographs and archive film footage to really bring the display to life."
Margaret Lewis, Honorary Curator, Allhallows Museum, Honiton
