Exhibition Makers’ Toolkit

There are lots of different ways that video, audio and other electronic media can be used within exhibitions. This chapter is a brief introduction to some of the technical considerations that you will need to make when including these types of works and displays in an exhibition.

Determining the suitability of an object to go on tour is an exercise in risk management.

The progress from initial concept to realisation is a process of constant questioning, where answers will help to identify an exhibition’s intention and scope.

The traditional purpose of the catalogue is to list and describe all works included in an exhibition. The extent to which this basic function is extended and elaborated will depend on the overall aims of the exhibition and the expected size and commitment of the exhibition’s visitors.

This section looks at the key areas to consider when developing or purchasing retail products for a touring exhibition. Some factors need only be considered by the exhibition organiser, but some will be relevant for both organiser and venue(s).

Touring exhibitions carry many risks with them: financial, damage to objects, reputation, health and safety etc. Most of us manage these risks without knowing we are doing it. However, many institutions nowadays require evidence that risks have been identified and are being managed.

Exhibits in touring exhibitions must be transported and kept in conditions that are at least as secure as those they normally enjoy.

A social inclusion policy within a gallery or museum is primarily about reconnecting marginalised people with local services and opportunities, and ensuring that the multiple issues associated with personal problems and circumstances continue to be addressed.

Sustainability plays a key part in many museums’ organisation-wide strategies.

Producing touring exhibitions can be time consuming and expensive but can also have the following advantages: […]

Transportation is a key element of any touring exhibition budget and organisational schedule, and can be the hardest to quantify/pin-down at the planning stage, because an exhibition originator may not have secured all of its venues.