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Exhibition of cultural heritage objects


The exhibition of cultural heritage objects is a practice used by organizations where collected objects are put on display to the public. The objects are carefully chosen and placed together to offer educational value, and often to tell a story.

Organizations that collect cultural heritage objects, such as museums, tend to focus on the identification, display and interpretation of what they collect, preserve and study. These organizations many times will have a mandate to exhibit those objects to the public. The process that is undertaken when an object is chosen to be in an exhibition requires careful analysis of the needs of both the object and the exhibit design. Therefore, exhibitions have created a need for systems and procedures to be in place for processing the objects.

A Collection Management Policy, or CMP, is a set of policies that address various aspects of collections management. This policy defines the scope of a museum's collection and how the organization cares for and makes collections available to the public. Access and use policies for objects in a collection will be explained in the CMP. The documentation of object activity and monitoring will also be laid out in the policy. When an object is chosen for exhibition inclusion, the CMP will give clarity and guidance as to how to proceed. An Exhibition Policy may be included within a CMP giving strategic planning guidelines that allow all participants in the exhibit-making process to know how it fits into the overall exhibit program and organization mission.

The formalized idea of a team of contributing members designing and developing museum exhibitions has been in practice since the late 1970s. Depending on the size and nature of the collecting organization, the number of people involved and what duties are assigned, the following responsibilities can vary significantly.

When an object is chosen for exhibit one must have an understanding of the nature of the material, its condition, and the types of deterioration to which the object is susceptible. Collections personnel and registrars work closely with developers and content specialists to select objects at a project’s onset, and then work with production specialists for determining proper conditions for display, such as light levels, humidity concerns and mount making. The registrar will research the object's file for any condition history, and a current condition report will be done to make an assessment if the object is capable of withstanding display. Because of exhibition inclusion, the object may be handled, moved, exposed to direct lighting, and experience fluctuations in temperature and humidity. All of these factors are agents of deterioration, making the assessment of the object's condition prior to exhibit very important.


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