It’s exciting to see the new museum taking shape, as contractors install cases and measure objects ready for mounting. As part of the work to get the new displays ready, museum staff have been busy putting the finishing touches to labels, and moving some of the larger objects on to site.
This week, the large Lucas painting that hung on the stairs at Hitchin Museum was taken down and moved, ready to be mounted in its new display position early next year.
Hitchin Marketplace, oil on canvas, Samuel Lucas Snr (1805-1870), 1840
Some of the other things we moved included a wheel pattern, a mangle, a Polyphon, a door, a ‘Penny farthing’ bicycle and a large dolls’ house.
Dolls’ house, 1860-1880
The old display galleries at both of the former museums are now full of boxes of packed objects as we continue to pack the stored collections ready to move, and staff have recently been packing boxes of books and files from the offices of each museum. At the new museum, objects and graphic panels are starting to go into cases, and everything is taking shape. We can’t wait to welcome the public into the amazing new museum when it’s finished!
Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year from all at North Hertfordshire Museum!
A romantic view of eighteenth century Hitchin by F.L. Griggs
In 1912 artist Spencer Gore borrowed his friend Harold Gilman’s house in Letchworth, where he made a series of wonderful modern paintings. He would have known Hitchin Town Hall, and would surely have been amazed to be told that in just over one hundred years a detail of one of his works would be blown up huge to cover the front windows of the adjoining North Hertfordshire Museum. This is a temporary measure, allowing us to display the logos of North Herts. District Council and the Heritage Lottery Fund, as well as the main contractors. It will come down when the museum opens.
Using a scissor lift to attach the vinyl image
Spencer Gore image, designed and fitted by Light Brigade
The lettering with our name is now up at the entrance
The museum now has its name looking very smart on the stone slab at the front of the new glass entrance. The Gill Sans lettering is nice and large, so no-one should miss us. Inside, things are moving on. Alan and Ian from Armour Systems have been working really hard installing our amazing new showcases, each one purpose-made for the objects we’ll display. Thanks to the Heritage Lottery Fund for grant-aiding the museum fit-out. The showcases in the first floor gallery are almost complete, and the Terrace Gallery is getting there.
Cases on the Terrace Gallery under construction
The first floor gallery, with centre cases in place
Yesterday a team from Conservation by Design moved in and set up a processing area in the temporary exhibition gallery, where they are photographing and measuring every object. This is to ensure that the mounts on which items will be displayed will fit each object exactly. Mounts to hold the lighter objects will be perspex, those for heavier items will be made of steel.
Iwan, Gwen and Caroline from Conservation by Design ensuring that the mounts for displaying our objects are all a perfect fit
Part of the new secure art store
Paintings wrapped and labelled ready for the move
We also now have a new art store, ready for paintings from both museums. Kate, Gill and Brenda have almost finished carefully wrapping and labelling the pictures, which will be moved shortly
On the ground floor, our new technician Mark Hazelgrove has sorted out the workshop, and is now putting up racking for the stores.
Technician Mark in the new workshop
The curators are busy checking and proof-reading the labels, re-checking, re-proofing, re-writing, finding illustrations and graphics at short notice. A huge amount of unseen work has gone into the labels for this museum, and I’ll give it a separate blog post. Finally, we welcome Sarah Burrows back to Hitchin Museum, to work with Sharon. Sarah is covering Lisa Ferridge’s secondment to the NHDC Finance Dept.