There are many jobs in the Cooper Hewitt Design Museum that play notable roles in installing an exhibition collectively. Today, we had a chance to reach the cast behind the scenes in person. They were the registrars, curators, managers, and conservators. The registrars managed the protection, security, and storage of the pieces, and were responsible for checking, reporting, and documenting the history and the conditions of the objects. They explicated us the full process of applying code numbers and their programmed interface to report and record for everyone in the museum. They also conducted the placement of the pieces during the display and packed and supervised them when they needed to be moved by transportation, carts, and more. We were able to watch the registrars use a small crate and foams to pack a small object: a pencil holder. They further told us an amusing story about the colossal sculpture in the entryway of the museum which an education department donated. Since the department associates’ pursuits had nothing to do with museum artifacts, they didn’t acknowledge the futileness of the peanut-shaped styrofoam they loaded in the box to “protect and stabilize the object.” It was pouring when the moving operation occurred; thus, the object had to be unwrapped to get carried in the building because the receptacle wouldn’t fit in the front gate. When they attempted to peel the cover off, tremendous quantities of styrofoam followed and coated the entire road. Luckily, the soluble styrofoam shrunk in size, and the only thing that was impaired was the registrars’ shoes.
After meeting with the registrars, we went to the paper conservatory. In there, Becky, the paper conservator, told us about her duties and responsibilities. Similarly, with the registrars, her role was to keep the paper works in their best condition. She mainly worked with prints, paintings, and photographs, which she kept in a congruent temperature and dusted with micro vacuums and brushes. With a microscope, she taught us how to differentiate a print, which had uneven surfaces, and a photo, which was patchy with green. We also met other conservators concentrating in diverse areas such as ceramics, textiles, porcelain, and glass. We reviewed the similarities between the process that they use to examine and record an object and the process that hospitals use. They both observe the piece or the wound first, then write a report or a prescription, and then repair or treat it. Additionally, they explained the gadgets they utilize to detect flaws such as ultraviolet light, microscope, and light meters. We did activities such as color matching, repairing shattered pottery, observing repaired mantelpiece, and using ultraviolet light.
After the training, we met with Cristina, the curator, and the manager of the entire Cooper Hewitt exhibitions to learn the process of curating a display. We walked through an exhibition about bio futurism which the Wyss Institute conducted; they selected the objects from the Cooper Hewitt permanent collections like we did yesterday. We were conscious of the relevance of the objects to the theme and the arrangement of them. Cristina spoke about the viewpoint of the visitors; what would have caught their attention and drew them into the room as they walked past the entrance? Then I noticed how the curators placed the bright objects towards the viewpoint from the entrance, small objects to the front, and the spiral-shaped objects together. We discussed the color of the wallpaper, the purpose of A-text, placement of B-texts, preference over types of tables and vitrines, and if the exhibition respected the disabled. After the walkthrough, we learned that the curator team produces an editorial for everyone in the museum with a graphic model for placements, budgets, funds, duration, measurements, and more to get approval and feedback from people.
