Hiring an Exhibition

There is a wide range of reasons why a touring exhibition may benefit a temporary exhibitions programme and an organisation more broadly, conceptually and pragmatically. These reasons include:

• Programme diversification: For hiring venues touring shows can be used to creatively complement and support self-generated initiatives. They are especially useful for organisations with limited resources and a broadly defined remit.
• Profile raising and audience development: Hiring an exhibition can be a cost effective method for an organisation to show more high profile or unusual exhibits than they would normally have the resources to do themselves, such as loans from a National Collection. Touring exhibitions can enable a diverse programme, for example allowing venues to target and reach audiences that their permanent displays do not cater for, and also ‘block-buster’ exhibitions that attract publicity, draw large audiences and encourage people to travel within a region.
• Outward looking: Touring relies on developing outside contacts, both to tour and hire exhibitions and creates opportunities to partner with others, whether with a museum, curator, freelance specialist or artist. The effectiveness of a project can be enhanced by sharing skills – curatorial expertise, educational initiatives, reinforcement of press and marketing efforts – across organisations.
• Outsources work: Whilst hiring venues should play an active role in preparing their venue to receive a touring exhibition, for smaller venues or organisations with limited resources, hiring a touring exhibition can relieve internal staff from the research and organisation required for a successful annual temporary exhibition programme, to tackle other projects or exhibitions.
• Maximises resources: Touring presents an alternative opportunity to use limited resources effectively. Hiring an exhibition is cost-effective and developing exhibitions in partnership(s) can enable costs and contributions to be shared.

Touring exhibition producers commonly broadcast information about their exhibitions to a large group of potential venues or target specific venues, utilising email bulletins, websites, social media and printed materials. When you have identified one or more venues developing exhibitions of interest (see ‘Places to look’ below), it is recommended to contact them directly to register your interest, and find out the best way to receive information about their latest portfolio of exhibitions.

Places to look:

• Our exhibition database holds regularly updated information on a wide variety of exhibitions available to hire. TEG members can search for exhibitions online.
• Our annual conference Exhibitions Connect is an invaluable tool for those organising a touring exhibition to find venues, for people looking to programme exhibitions or generally for anyone seeking to expand their network of contacts. The event is quite literally a marketplace. Anyone who attends can book a stall – a table or display – to promote their current or forthcoming touring exhibition(s). Above all, it provides a time and place to meet other venues, exchange ideas, negotiate bookings, discuss current issues and share problems and concerns.
• Muscon is a database for international touring exhibitions: www.muscon.org 
• Specialist subject networks are co-ordinated by sector professions and provide a focus for the development of research, exhibitions and partnership projects, as well as the sharing of good practice: http://www.collectionstrust.org.uk/collections-link/museum-development-support/subject-specialist-networks
• Tour organiser websites – for a list of tour organisers see our exhibition database.

Both the tour producer and the venue need to be satisfied that the exhibition is suitable for the venue and vice versa. As a venue the first key information you should request is:

• What is in the exhibition?
• How much space is required?
• When it is available?
• What is the hire fee?

Tour producers will often prepare a tour pack; ideally this should contain everything a venue will need to know about the touring exhibition. The earlier an exhibition is offered in its development, the less detailed some of the information will be, but typically the pack might contain the following:

• Exhibition proposal/outline
• Images of key exhibits and/or installation images of the exhibition at the first venue (if available)
• A full list of exhibits and if applicable accompanying exhibition build and equipment
• An exhibition layout
• A press release and/or copies of press reviews (if available)
• Proposals for educational activities such as workshops or teacher’s notes.
• A copy of the exhibition catalogue (if available)

The Exhibition Proposal is the key document that carries essential information for the venue. It should make clear the contents of the exhibition package, which will later inform the hire agreement:

• Exhibition concept and content
• Scale of the exhibition
• Availability
• Hire fee: what the fee will include and what additional costs the venue will need to pay (e.g. transport, insurance, costs of couriers to travel with the exhibition)

Along with the tour information there are two key documents that will enable both parties to assess suitability in more detail.

An object list, sent by the tour producer, should detail the content of the exhibition and include the following information on each exhibit:

• Image
• Dimensions
• Materials/technique
• Valuation
• Credit line
• Artist/Designer/Maker
• Title
• Date
• Display information
• Environmental and security requirements
• Packing information and crate dimensions

Facilities report and security supplement documents request practical information about a venue in relation to a proposed loan. The UKRG standard facilities report will ask questions about the building where the exhibition is to be held. The purpose of the forms is to:

• Facilitate the processing of loan requests by curatorial, conservation and security staff at the lending institution
• Replace lengthy exchanges of correspondence between lender, organiser and venue
• Avoid expensive and impractical site visits to a venue, though these should be done if possible

Once completed keep a copy on file, and updated, so that you can then use it for other exhibitions and loans.

Before taking a touring exhibition a venue should consider whether the exhibition supports the objectives of their exhibition programme and if audiences will come and see it. Venues should be sure that they can manage the exhibition; talking to the tour producer and colleagues internally will help determine this. If the exhibition has already toured to other venues they could be contacted for more information.

The venue will normally pay the tour producer a fee to hire the exhibition for a certain period; this may be for a set number of weeks or a charge per month. What the tour producer provides for the fee varies. For example some exhibitions will tour display cases and plinths and all object labels and text panels. Other tour producers will provide the curatorial concept and objects or artworks – the text for labels and panels may be supplied but the venue produce them along with their own exhibition design.

How much a tour producer charges a venue will vary based on what is included, the number of loans, staff time required and any funding obligations. When agreeing a price for a touring exhibition, venues should research the market and be aware of what other tour producers charge and what is included. Our website can be a useful source for finding out what different size and types of exhibitions are available and how much producers are charging.

There are key questions that a venue should ask before agreeing to take a touring exhibition and that should be discussed with the tour producer before signing an agreement:

• What is the fee, and what is included?
• Are object mounts or display cases required – who will provide them?
• Does the tour producer provide text for labels and panels? Do you have to produce these, or do they come with the exhibition?
• Who arranges and pays for each leg of the transport?
• Who arranges and pays for insurance? What is the insurance value?
• What are the security requirements? E.g. alarms, invigilation, display cases
• What are the environmental requirements of the exhibition content?
• Will the organiser provide images for publicity?
• Do you need to cover costs of couriers?
• Will it fit? Think about access routes, not just the gallery space

Author: Alice Lobb (2015)