Dear Heleanor,
the Powerhouse in Sydney is full of beautiful originals and replicas. A
truly beautiful museum. Many science and technology museums do not care so
much about good design and beauty in their galleries, but the Powerhouse
sure is one of the best.
Thanks for the stories about your Events. Congratulations.
Yes, you are right about the never ending discussion on "originals" and
"replicas". But the Powerhouse does not hide originals and states, if it is
an original or a replica.
Greetings from the other side (Austria, no kangaroos, but Mozart)
Peter


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-----Ursprüngliche Nachricht-----
Von: Heleanor Feltham <[log in to unmask]>
Newsgroups: bit.listserv.museum-l
An: [log in to unmask] <[log in to unmask]>
Datum: Freitag, 29. Januar 1999 06:47
Betreff: Introduction & inquiry


>"Sorry, but I still want to see the real thing. By all means, add a
>mockup of
>what the rusty metal thingamajig originally looked like, but place it
>beside
>or near the real one, in your realistic dioramas. An institution filled
>with
>exhibits of fakes is not a proper museum, but an interpretation centre."
>
>I wasn't going to buy into this one, since the 'real' v. 'replica'
>'conservation' v 'conservation for whom?' arguments have been going on
>since museums began.  I do think that 'living history' - with replicas
>and 'real objects' can go hand in hand to very good effect.
>
>In the Powerhouse in Sydney we have some objects which are regularly in
>use - indestructibles such as steam engines, a photoplayer which
>accompanies screenings of old silent films, the Columbia printing press
>(when it's on display) - though we are extremely careful of them and the
>conservators monitor their use.  With musical instruments, early motor
>vehicles, the 3830 locomotive and other goodies, being given the
>occasional working day is not only good for the object (instruments,
>anyway) but brings in a whole new circle of admirers.
>
> We also run public programs with local craftspeople which demonstrate
>how some kinds of things were made - contemporary jewellery,
>glass-blowing, Oriental woven rugs, Jewish illuminated wedding contracts,
>lace, hand-made shoes, Hmong weavings, Pacific Island tapa - in
>conjunction with special exhibitions.  The demonstrators are rarely in
>costume (though the armourer we had with the Imperial Austria exhibition
>was meticulously dressed to suit his trade in early C16th style), as we
>are concerned to show that many skills are living art not merely historic
>artefacts. Are the products of these craftspeople replicas or objects in
>their own right?  The craftspeople certainly don't think of their work as
>fakes or replicas.  These demonstrations compliment permanent or
>temporary exhibitions and help people to look more appreciatively at the
>objects themselves.
>
>Getting even closer to 'replicas' are objects bought for touch trolleys
>which are often modern pieces in traditional styles, or not quite museum
>quality originals, or actual replicas - particularly costume.  They allow
>visitors to have a very much more personal experience, and add the
>dimension of texture and feel to an otherwise purely visual experience.
> You have to be willing to have these things worn, broken or even stolen,
>but it's well worth it.  They are, I guess, borderline realia. Sometimes,
>with the fragile, delicate, or susceptible, we ask our visitors to wear
>gloves we supply and this also gives us an opportunity to talk about
>conservation - which allows them to go away much happier about the 'don't
>touch' signs or the low light levels.
>
>Sometimes, often when working with community groups, we develop programs
>with performers rather than demonstrators - Aboriginal dance, Renaissance
>madrigals, Chinese New Year lions, Indonesian gamelan, contemporary
>computer artists.....the list is pretty endless.  Their costumes are
>certainly replicas, but they are also part of a living community
>tradition, and they add a lot of colour and movement to otherwise static
>displays.  And we also sometimes use live, theatrical interpretation,
>which replicates an entire person.  Their scripts or improvisations,
>their individual performances, are also a form of realia with a valid
>place in a museum.
>
>So the whole thing is not a simple case of 'good' original and 'evil'
>replica forever spinning like a two-faced coin, it's a spectrum - and no
>less valid than the magical trick of taking what was once a fairly
>ordinary artefact or animal, putting it in a case with a light and a
>label, and turning it into a thing of mana, a realia museum icon.
>
>Heleanor Feltham
>Powerhouse Museum Sydney
>(I'm mad, you're mad, we wouldn't be here if we weren't!)
>[log in to unmask]
>