Curating a Display at the University of Winnipeg: Getting Started

Dr. Melissa Funke

After an eventful summer, it is great to be back to the Lux project on a more regular basis. We are kicking off the Fall term by Congratulating Dr. Melissa Funke on her appointment as an Assistant Professor at the University of Winnipeg! The Classics Department is lucky to have you.

We have also dived right in to outreach and research by meeting with the Classics Students’ Association to recruit some student volunteers and interns; the Lux project is about accessibility and education, after all. And finally, we are collaborating with the Anthropology Museum here at the University once again to create a display centred around the ancient Roman and Near Eastern Lamps in the Hetherington Collection. Since I (Simone) am an almost-graduate of the University of Winnipeg’s Curatorial Practices M.A., I have been leading the design for the display along with a mentorship (and a lot of help) from the Anthropology Museum’s curator: Val McKinley. 

Mapping it Out

I began planning the display while conducting research on the lamps. Each lamp has a lot to say, and it is my goal to interpret and then translate it into didactics that are interesting and concise. Since the display has yet to be completed, I will be explaining the didactics and my choice of subject matter in a later post. This post is focusing on something that is just as important: the aesthetic component. 

The final product

I chose to target the display at a first year university audience. Some of these students may be well read on the subject, but it is more likely that many have had their introduction to the Classics through popular culture. I wanted to design something that could be immediately interpreted without shouting “GET YOUR EGYPTIAN LAMPS HERE!” (Although, that would have been hilarious). My idea was to render a papyrus map of the Mediterranean and Ancient Near east. Although it would be central to the display,  the map is not meant to be a comprehensive representation of the ancient world at a specific time, but rather a general guideline and an aesthetic component; I wanted to create something attractive that features some well-known ancient cities and regions as a point of reference for students.

 The outline before and after "aging"

Val McKinley painted the background of the display according to my outline, and even came up with a technique that mimicked the appearance of papyrus. The result of her experimentation is impressive, and I could not have done better myself. I chose the muted aqua-blue for the side panels to add a pop of colour, recall desert skies, and compliment the blue tones that would be present in the map. I specifically chose to stay away from too many brown tones because I find that they tend to scream “EGYPT”, when we all know that the artifacts in the Hetherington collection were not solely from Egypt  

Simone hard at work

I spent about an hour and a half in the morning drawing out the map on the “papyrus” background. This was done freehand, as close as I possibly could to the several ancient maps that I had referenced. After the sketching was complete I began to paint. I was aiming for an old-world feel; something muted so it was not overpowering in the space. To achieve this look, I used watered down browns and blues for the lines. I have to say that I am very pleased with the result and I had so much fun stuck in that glass box all day. As a hobby painter, I live for projects like this. The painting was a live show, which meant that I occasionally had an audience or friends who tapped on the glass and expressed their approval with a big thumbs up (I couldn’t hear anything in there).

When it was done, Val came by to let me know that she was pleased with the result. Her words were very poignant to me: “There is something special about a non-permanent artwork: it is here for a short while and then will be gone forever. In a certain way, that makes it more beautiful.”*

*paraphrased